Guest cancellation

[Chris12152]

Guest reserved room.  Guest sent message to me (host)  advising me that he made a mistake and asks me to cancel reservation.  

I asked guest to cancel their reservation but guest has refused to do so.  

If I decline the reservation, those dates will remain blocked on my calendar and I will lose availability and potential revenue.  

What do I do?

[Luana130]

Hi @Chris12152, don't do anything. If the guest wants to cancel let him cancel it. DO NOT Cancel, as there will be penalties for you.

Send a message to the guests saying that you are sorry to hear that, and if he wants to cancel he needs to do that on the website. Cancelation policy applies.

[Sandra856]

@Chris12152 Tell the guest that you can't do anything from your side - you will get penalized harshly by airbnb if you cancel. If he can't stay HE needs to cancel that’s the normal procedure and he will get refunded according to the cancellation policy you got and it all happens automatically. You don't have to do a thing. If you receive a request to cancel don't ever accept such a request as it will then look like you cancelled. He has to cancel from his side and all by himself. If a guest can't make it they have to cancel - always 🙂 

[Ange2]

@Chris12152    Has it been more than 48hours and  what is your cancellation policy.  If he gets a full refund if he cancels now tell him that (minus Airbnb take if applicable),  and tell him the date that 50% or  zero refund kicks in.  If you are happy to refund him, if penalties apply, tell him you will do so if he cancels now (minus Airbnb take).  As everyone else has mentioned do not do it yourself you will be harshly penalized. As @Sandra856   says do not click 'Yes' if you get an email asking if you agree to cancel this guest, Airbnb interprets it as you cancelling and penalties apply.   Aside from that I do not know,  it's a tough position to be in and calling Airbnb is fraught with peril as they may interpret it as you cancelling even if you provide them with a message from the guest saying he wants to cancel but has refused to do so.