Guest cancelling after one night due to "stress"?

[Laura2592]

We have several guests in March who are still planning on traveling. We checked in with everyone as soon as we heard about the extenuating circumstances refund to see if we had any actual stays. Many cancelled and enough said "we are still coming!" that we didn't just pull the listing for a bit. The current guests made a big production about that they were still on board. We set everything up. They checked in yesterday. Young couple.

She immediately started complaining that the governor of MD shut down restaurants and bars at 5 except for carry out and delivery. I made suggestions of things they can do and businesses that are still open. This morning she says she wants to check out early because the situation is "stressful."

The reservation started on the 13th. Is it my obligation to refund under this coronavirus policy? We have a two night minimum and they stayed one night. Customer service has a wait time of several hours. How would you handle this? 

[Tommy150]

Absolutely not. Stand your ground.  You did your due diligence.  Airbnb's extenuating circumstances policy clearly states BEFORE checkin.

I'm sorry, but we can't eat everything.  There needs to be SOME accountability for a traveler's poor choices when they had every opportunity to cancel penalty free. 

Summary

Reservations made on or before March 14, 2020 for stays and Airbnb Experiences, with a check-in date between March 14, 2020 and April 14, 2020, are covered by the policy and may be cancelled before check-in. Guests who cancel will receive a full refund, and hosts can cancel without charge or impact to their Superhost status. Airbnb will refund all service fees for covered cancellations.

The host’s cancellation policy will apply as usual to reservations made after March 14, 2020, and to reservations made on or before March 14, 2020 with check-in dates after April 14, 2020.

If a reservation has already begun (the check-in has passed) this extenuating circumstance does not apply.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Tommy150 @Laura2592 

Absolutely not. Stand your ground.  You did your due diligence.  Airbnb's extenuating circumstances policy clearly states BEFORE checkin.

I fully agree.

ALL the clearly stated parameters need to be adhered to. No deviation!

[Tommy150]

PS your place is adorable and looks like the antithesis of "stress" - hell, i want to go hide there and wait this whole thing out!

[Laura2592]

@Tommy150  thank you! My husband and I were saying that its probably the best place around to hole up and do just that-- well stocked, neighbors are a nurse and a police officer,  veggie garden, chickens roaming around from neighboring farms, stream with potable water nearby.  As we are both forced to work remotely with our jobs, we would have loved to grab the pets and headed over-- in fact, when we set up on Sunday night we were lamenting that we couldn't just stay ourselves. 

[Tommy150]

You're welcome! Stay strong, stand your ground. 

"I'm sorry you are stressed out given the current situation, it's a tough time for everyone, especially those of us in the hospitality industry.

We proactively reached out to all pending reservations, including yours, and you stated you wanted to keep the reservation.  While you are more than welcome to check out early, unfortunately I am not able to offer any refund.  Airbnb has initiated it's extenuating circumstance refund for current reservations, however, it is only applicable prior to checkin. 

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We hope you can enjoy our listing and get a little R&R before returning to your home. All the best, Laura.

[Ute42]

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@Laura2592 

I would do absolutely nothing in Your situation. Let the guests wait hours on the airbnb helpline trying to get a refund.

[Laura2592]

I just got a review from this guest...I have not written one for her yet as we have not turned over the cottage.  It will be interesting to see what it says!