Host Rep attempted price renegotiation after booking was finalized

[Ken1917]

I had a recent experience with an airbnb "representative". Who said they ran and organised tons of Airbnbs for "clients" locally.  I booked and paid for the room, talked to the representative on the phone (as they mentioned was part of their screening process - which is understandable).  Then, I spoke to the actual host later on the phone who told me, "You're a great fit, I'll be happy to have you." 

Later, the representative calling me and began to try to renegotiate the price, after I and booked, had my confirmation and my receipt.  When I told her I found this suspicious, she became very irritate and started telling me that "Hosts lose 14% of what they make.  Did you know that?".  When I told her, I wasn't trying to be a pest, she threatened to tell her client to cancel my booking.  My booking was canceled.  And, I was left high and dry. 

Are people supposed to try to get more money outside of the BnB system?  Was I right to be suspicious? I have a recording of the phone call and, you can tell that my directness threatened her and she back-peddled quite a bit before hanging up.  Is there anything I can do about this?

[Susan17]

@Ken1917 @Emilia42 

As this was a CBA (cancellation by admin/Airbnb), it's a fairly clear indication that the pricing issue was down to known glitches in the system, as opposed to any fault on the part of the host/co-host. 

[Sarah977]

@Ken1917  Phone numbers of both hosts and guests are always visible to each other after a booking is confirmed, there isn't even a need to provide your phone number.

Phone calls and texts are fine for certain things. Like if you were held up in traffic and realized you'd be later than arranged for check-in and wanted to let the host know. I ask my guests to call or text when they arrive in town, as I pick them up at the bus station. But anything that could possibly prove to be contentious should be kept to the Airbnb messaging platform, so Airbnb can see the interchange at a glance. Otherwise, it could just be your word against theirs as to what said or happened.

[Ken1917]

How do I go about reporting this?

[Emilia42]

@Ken1917 

There is a little link underneath the red Reservation button. Can you post a link here to the listing?

[Ken1917]

This is this link to the listing:

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/42582779

"Amy" listed in the details as "co-host" was the Representative, as she said, for many airbnb hosts in the Kingston, NY area.  And, she did also say at one point, once again, after it was booked and confirmed that, "if this didn't work out, she would find me another place because she has many clients all over the area." 

[Susan17]

@Ken1917 

Thanks for posting the link, always much easier to get a clearer picture! 

So.. Amy is definitely not a scammer. She does manage 13 listings, almost all of them, private rooms (and usually does a pretty good job of it, actually) From what I can see, she has no connection to any dodgy management companies, and appears to be just a regular person, trying to make a living. To be fair, she did handle this situation pretty badly, but it's likely that was down to a combination of factors, rather than any shady intentions. 

Firstly, the host (Andrea) is a brand new host, and this is a brand new listing, so she's probably a little nervous, and Amy is possibly equally nervous taking on a new client. There's no mention of any other strange vetting procedures in her reviews, so I'd imagine this may be something the host insisted on, rather than Amy's usual procedure. 

The pricing issue could be down to a couple of different things - there are several glitches in Airbnb's system relating to pricing and the application of discounts, which result in bookings coming in at a much lower prices than the host has set, and I'd be pretty certain that's what happened here, rather than anyone trying to scam you. 

If the booking did come in at a lower price than intended, it definitely could have put Amy in a bit of an awkward and difficult position with the host (even though it was most likely not Amy's fault), which could have put her under pressure and may be why she didn't handle the situation as well as perhaps she could have handled it. 

All things considered, it's very doubtful that there was any intent on Amy's (or the host's) part to scam you, but more likely, just a series of unfortunate events, and maybe a bit of panic on Amy's part. We're all human :))🙂

Honestly, if it were me, I'd just let it go and find another place to stay. 

[Ken1917]

You sound like you know her personally.  I'm glad to understand it, rather than just be confused and suspicious, I will say.

"just let it go" is a personal choice.  And, the need for resolution varies from person to person hence, why we have a community. 

The great thing about it was the listing price.  It was right in my budget.  I was happy when I got to book it.  And, yes somewhat disappointed, in that it would be an exciting month to work there.  

I felt uneasy when I felt like things were going differently than normal on AirBnb. 

But, all in all.  I'm relieved to know that what looked like a duck wasn't a duck.  And, I feel bad to hear that someone with good intentions simply made a mistake, personally.  And, I do apologize for not giving Amy a larger portion of benefit of the doubt.  

[Sarah977]

@Ken1917  I doubt that Susan knows her personally. Experienced hosts are just good at reading through the listings and reviews and being able to determine if something is likely to be a scam or not, and Susan happens to be someone who is very good at research, she posts here a lot.

So yeah, probably just a new host who had no idea how to set up her pricing. There are posts here all the time from new hosts like "Help! Someone was just able to book my 4 bedroom house for $30/night, when I have it listed at $250! How could this have happened???"

But as a guest, it always better to question something if it seems strange,or even if the price appears to be way too low for what is being offered.

[Ken1917]

Well, I'm impressed.  You guys know your stuff.  I've learned a lot from this experience.  Awesome, feedback!