Final straw! ECP extended to June - NO support from $250 million fund!

[Andrew1928]

I got an email saying 3 of my June reservations (I only have 2) will fall under the extenuating circumstances policy. Full refund to guests and NO support for hosts from $250 million fund!

I called Airbnb to discuss and a case manager just sent me the link to the $250 million fund info which does not even apply to June reservations!

Anyone else get this email?

[Brenda328]

@Ryan-and-Darnie0 

Using that same logic, Travelocity is just a centralized listing service.  Imagine what would have happened if Travelocity had unilaterally made the decision that it was going to refund all airline reservations made through that site without any input from the airlines.   Because Travelocity respects their business relationships each airline was allowed to determine their own refund policy and Travelocity acted in accordance with those policies.

I offer my regular rentals on Craigslist.  Craigslist doesn't charge me or my client a fee and they are not involved in the business transaction in any way.  Airbnb collects a fee and they do determine many of the parameters of the business transaction.  As such they have an affirmative responsibility to deal with all parties to the transaction in an equitable manner.

[Sheila22]

@Brenda328   Exactly.

[Dianne79]

@Ryan-and-Darnie0 

I wish that we didn't have to give Airbnb so much control. We had a website for many years, just updated it last year but the tenants aren't finding our properties which is why I was asking what other platforms besides Airbnb & HomeAway/Vrbo that we could advertise with. Not too sure about craigs.

[Ryan-and-Darnie0]

Totally empathize with all the comments here, and we are not trying to defend Airbnb's decisions. We personally do not agree with this decision, but I'm certain they weighed the pros and cons and decided this was logical for them to do. Only time will tell if it was the right decision.

Being a business owner involves a lot of risk management, and relying entirely on Airbnb for income is a huge risk for obvious reasons. For one, you'll be exposed to their decisions (good or bad). The point is that Airbnb does not own your property, they are just a resource, don't forget that. There are ways to mitigate this risk, too, and creative owners are already doing that.

[Colin-and-Myra0]

While I wasn't happy to receive this email, I do appreciate the heads up before this is extended. I have proactively reached out to my guests offering the opportunity to move their dates at a discount or cancel now (per my strict 50%) and I'll keep the nonrefundable amount as credit for a future visit. 

AirBnb has given us some time to work with guests before they can cancel for free - be sure to take advantage of it! 

I do hope that if they extend it they can put some tighter controls on it, like the need to cancel 2+ weeks in advance (and not last-minute) and show some sort of proof that travel is not possible. These last-minute cancellations are painful especially when the guests know that they are likely not going to travel as they hold our calendar hostage. 

[Gordon0]

I've just taken a look at the two reservations we have (for stays in June) and there's a message alongside them saying I'll be updated on May 1. 

[Dianne79]

@Sarah3274 @Colin-and-Myra0 Thank you for posting as it assists me in handling all of our June reservations made before March 15th.  I assume that the email received pertains to June only. You both said that you will request your guests to move their dates at a discount. How much approximate percentage are you offering and have you been successful with any changes yet?  If you don’t receive a reply, are you still going to cancel their reservation by April 30th?

Unfortunately, most of our guests would probably prefer a full refund. Then they don’t have to commit to any future travel plans and also would be able to secure a less expensive trip somewhere else. So I assume that the discount should be a decent amount.  Are you going to say that Airbnb is going to offer a full refund or simply not mention it at this time?  Seems like May 1st they will be able to cancel June for a full refund anyway.

[Sheila22]

@Colin-and-Myra0   You did NOT receive an appropriate heads ups.  You have not received an appropriate heads up for any of these policy modifications.  Airbnb's own terms stipulates that they are supposed to give Hosts notice of modifications to terms 30 days in advance of enacting those modifications.
Airbnb is obviously in breach of contract, and Airbnb is well aware of that, but what are you going to do about it?  Airbnb is counting most Hosts doing nothing at all. 

[Colin-and-Myra0]

While it may not have been appropriate it's still a step up over what they did before with no notice, they are working to improve things and while not perfect it's a step in the right direction. 

[Donna953]

This is strange

[Sarah3274]

Applying the extenuating circumstances policy to June bookings with moderate cancellation policies is ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. I will be reaching out to all of my guests to cancel their booking and require that they re-book. Here is the message I am planning to send: "We would still love to host you, however AirBnB has recently made some decisions that complicate things for hosts. For bookings made before March 15th, AirBnB is allowing guests to cancel at any time regardless of the cancellation policy that hosts have in place. At this time, I believe that there is enough information available about COVID-19 for guests to be able to make their decisions before the standard 5 day advanced notice cancellation policy that I have in place.  AirBnB is currently allowing hosts to cancel reservations penalty-free until April 30th. Therefore I will be cancelling your reservation, but would love to have you re-book so that you re-commit to the cancellation policy. If there is any difference in price that is set by AirBnB, let me know and I will adjust it for you. I apologize for any hassle that this causes you, however the circumstances created by AirBnB have left me no other choice."

[Melanie189]

@Sarah3274 can we just cancel the reservation on our end without penalty or do we need to contact CS to do that? I'm also understanding that we can cancel all reservations through the end of the year if they were made before March 15.

[Sarah3274]

Yes the online platform allows you to cancel the reservation without any impact. At this point I'm really unclear if the "cancel by April 30th" is different than "cancel any bookings made before March 15th" and since they don't seem to be helping hosts with moderate cancellation policies in any way, I'm not taking any chances. @Melanie189 

[Melanie189]

@Sarah3274 I went to the platform to cancel a reservation and the penalty warning still comes up. Are you still seeing that as well? I don't want to be charged the $50 for each reservation.  Thank you for your helpful information!

[Sarah3274]

Not sure what you are seeing in your host view. I cancelled the June reservations for my place without penalty.