First time hosting - question about my first guest cancelling

[Sarah4475]

I have my first reservation coming on Monday (booked for 7 days) and she just sent me a text that she needed to cancel.  She asked me to do the cancel which luckily I just saw that I should NOT do that.  She still has not canceled.  What needs to happen and what will she be charged what will I be paid? I have a moderate cancel policy.  

[Kate867]

@Sarah4475 .. Absolutely you should not cancel.   Your guest should cancel themselves, and take whatever ‘hit’ according to your policy.  Normally, moderate is up until five days before.  Perhaps a message to them, asking them them to cancel sooner rather than later to ‘mitigate’ losses on both sides’ … 

[Sarah4475]

Thank you so much for helping me. I still don’t understand what the policy is on refunds or reimbursement? They’re not within the five day windows so will I get the full booking fee minus the cleaning fee?

[Mark116]

@Sarah4475 Ha.  They must have rewritten the policy, because this is what it says now:

• If they cancel after that, you’ll be paid for each night they stay, plus 1 additional night, plus 50% for all unspent nights

I can't understand it either. 

My recollection of how moderate works is you are paid for 100% for the first night and then 50% for the other nights.

ETA...in order to move her to cancel ASAP you can tell her you will refund her any nights that you are able to rebook [if you want to], as way to motivate her to cancel as soon as possible, what you want to avoid is her not cancelling until the day her reservation starts because then she will be able to leave a review, whether she stays or not.

[Sarah977]

@Sarah4475  I would tell her that a host only cancels if the host is unable to honor the booking- that if the guest wishes to cancel, it's the guest who needs to do that. And that according to your cancellation policy, she will not be refunded in full, but that the sooner she cancels, the more chance you have of rebooking the dates, in which case you would refund her for any rebooked days.

@Mark116  I'm not sure about that policy wording. It is essentially the same as it's always been, as far as I can tell.

[Sarah4475]

Now she has notified me that she came up with a great idea …. that she would rebook it in October and has made a request for me to accept.   But now that puts her in a window to cancel without any penalty and still leaves me without her booking on Monday?!!

[Sarah977]

@Sarah4475  Just decline the rebook. She sounds like a savvy scammer. She asked you to cancel in the first place because she knew she would lose money. Now she's trying on a new angle. 

She sent a new request for Oct. dates, or sent a date alteration? If she sent a new request, tell her to withdraw it immediately, or she will not only be charged for the booking she hasn't cancelled, she'll be charged for the Oct. booking as well. 

[Sarah4475]

She is savvy!  She sent a date alternation.  So do I decline it?

[Sarah977]

@Sarah4475  Yes.

[Colleen253]

@Sarah4475 DECLINE DECLINE. As other hosts have suggested, this guest is a player. Tell her its too late for a date alteration. No need to say so to her, but you are left with little chance to fill the dates. As Mark says, urge her to cancel asap so your calendar opens up to rebooking and that you’ll be happy to refund her for whichever days you can fill. 

[Amanda660]

Did she tell you why she wants to cancel?  Does she have  a decent feedback history? 

[M199]

@Sarah4475 

Decline!  Trouble in  the making.