We are new hosts this summer and unfortunately our pool has sprung a leak. Service company won't be able to take a look at it until tomorrow, and we were advised that it would take at least 48 hours to fully determine the problem. Our next booking is 12 days from now. Not knowing how complex the problem might be, we gave the next guest the heads up on the issue. Since we can't guarantee that the pool will be in working order by the time they check in, we wanted to give them the option to find other accommodations and offered to refund them 100%. The guest graciously understood and was willing to cancel on their end. Turns out, the guest couldn't cancel due to the Strict cancellation policy. Airbnb support is advising that we hosts cancel the booking, which comes with all the host penalties.
We're trying to do the right thing by letting the guest know of an issue that arose concerning a major amenity that was out of our control. What is the best way to handle this that would hopefully not penalize us as hosts?
Thanks in advance.