Help, my host won't refund me after an accidental booking

[Esther755]

My husband and I have been planning a vacation in Taos NM. It's our first vacation since the start of the pandemic and we have a tight budget to stick to. Over the course of a few days I had been looking at the options under my search for "Taos" on the air bnb site and one day I spotted a new location that seemed cute for a great price. I sent the listing to my husband and he agreed so we made the reservation.

Not 20 minutes later did I realize my mistake. The location was not even in Taos but in Red River, a small mountain town nearly an hour away. I can't understand why this listing would be included in a search for Taos. This is definitely not the vacation we want and would really prefer to experience Taos. 

I contacted Air bnb right away and they tried to mediate with the host but they have a strict cancellation policy and they has refused to refund us. At this point we would only receive $100 of the $800 dollar fee. This seems rather cold and heartless in my opinion. I've tried contacting her in an effort to appeal to her humanity, explaining my honest and yes, totally stupid mistake but so far she has not responded. 

Is there anything else I can do 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Esther755 probably the only thing you can do is vacation in Red River. I am afraid you have fallen foul of Airbnb's flexible search concept where they give non matching results. It is not really the hosts fault but they are a bit dumb to force you to vacation with them as they will likely get a bad review for their efforts.

[Mark116]

@Esther755   You could try with Airbnb to get a cancellation based on the fact that the map/search was misleading as this is an Airbnb issue.  But, Airbnb can't make the host give you a refund, you might find the hour trip is not so bad if you really like the place and end up staying there.

[Anonymous]

@Mark116  As far as I can tell, Red River is in Taos county and probably labeled by the algorithm as the Taos market, so it's not outrageously misleading. But that "show results as I move the map" feature sure is helpful to use in Search.

@Esther755  On the upside, the hourlong drive to Taos probably passes through some lovely mountain scenery, and you might even find yourselves unexpectedly charmed by the contrast between the towns. Try not to be too hard on the host - she didn't do anything to deceive you, and she's only upholding her policy. That $800 is a vacation budget for you - you've already decided to part with it - but for her it may well be urgently needed income. You and your husband both liked the listing, it's easier on your tight budget than Taos, and you still have a convenient base for a beautiful region -  even if it's not exactly the vacation you envisioned, it still sounds like a really good one!

[Emiel1]

@Esther755 

So i assume the check-in date is within 14 days in future ?

Otherwise this would apply as part of the strict cancellation policy:

For a full refund of the nightly rate, the guest must cancel within 48 hours of booking and at least 14 full days prior to listing’s local check-in time (shown in the confirmation email)

https://www.airbnb.com/home/cancellation_policies#strict-with-grace-period

[Sarah977]

@Esther755  Just because a listing is grouped in a certain area doesn't mean that you don't need to actually read through the listing info and zero in on the map to find out exaactly where it is.

And you can send an inquiry message to a host to ask before committing to a  booking.

[Jessica2466]

Hello I accidentally misinterpreted the cancellation policy to mean that I had until December 13 to cancel for a full refund. Mistakingly it was actually only 50% of the $7000 amount to be credited back when I asked for a refund the host refused despite even re-booking the property for those dates. Airbnb has not been of assistance and I have had to file a bit Better Business Bureau dispute. I just don’t see how this is OK it’s taking advantage of someone’s Miss fortunes and it’s simply wrong to charge someone such a large amount when you already are earning the amount back and more. It is un ethical. I really hope Airbnb does the right thing here I feel like they have no compassion or care for my misfortune or inability to pay this amount. It makes no sense I receive no service no product they should at least have a maximum amount if that can be charged I understand if they couldn’t rebook the home but they booked the home for a much higher amount due to it being two months closer to the holiday I am devastated

[Jessica2466]

 If anyone has any recommendations for further assistance I would appreciate it.

[Sarah977]

@Jessica2466  I'm sorry you find yourself in this position. But your failure to thoroughly read the terms of the cancellation policy of the listing is not a valid reason to receive a refund. When you book a listing, you are agreeing to accept the cancellation policy in place- it's a contract.

While many hosts would refund you the days they were able to rebook, they are under no obligation to do so, and it doesn't constitute being unethical nor taking advantage of your misfortunes for the host to uphold the cancelleation policy you agreed to.

Did you ever ask the host if they woukd be willing to refund any days they managed to rebook, or just go straight to reporting them to the BNB? (which will do you no good, as the host has not breached any regulations by not refunding)

While I am honestly quite sympathetic to you losing that much money, you just don't have a case here for a full refund.