Misleading description

[Sam3605]

I booked an air bnb for my birthday weekend in Dalat. The photos looked beautiful but it was actually quite dirty. I’m not usually one to complain so I decided to just clean to my own standards. There were spots all over the wall as well but it didn’t occur to

me until today that it was black mold. I was upset but willing to let everything go until I went to check out and they handed me a bill for 60 more dollars for coffee and wine I had drank during my stay. In the listing it says “bonus authentic coffee and Vietnamese wine”. At this point I am really upset and want to ask for a fraction of a refund. What is acceptable in this situation?

[Helen3]

If the property was not as described you should have done what it said on your booking confirmation and contacted the host within 24 hours of arrival, point out that it was not clean and give the host an opportunity to fix things - in the case have someone come in and clean again.

The cleanliness of the place (which you are not raising till post check out) is a different issue from you being asked to pay expenses associated with your room. Did you check with the listing before ordering the coffee and wine  that it was free of charge or did you just assume this.

It could have meant bonus - you can order authentic Vietnamese coffee and wine as this premises. I wouldn't take the word bonus to mean free.

In terms of cleanliness,  you can mention it in the review, but do remember you didn't provide the host with an opportunity to rectify the issue.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

I would assume bonus means free. I think its too late to deal with the cleanliness issues except through reviews to which I would add that bonus doesn't mean free

[Anonymous]

@Sam3605  Airbnb hosts are not supposed to demand cash payments outside of the system that are not clearly disclosed in the listing. I can't tell from your message how the presented you with a "bill," but if the payment request was sent through Airbnb you do have the option of disputing it. 

I don't know if the word "bonus" was used to be deliberately misleading, or if it was just a bad translation, but if something was put in a space dedicated to guests without any notation of prices, it's understandable that you assumed it was included in the room rate.

As @Helen3  says, this is an altogether separate issue from the fact that you didn't find the cleaning satisfactory. You could have brought this up at the beginning of the stay, and either given the host a chance to rectify it or asked Airbnb to re-house you. But in deciding to complete your booking, you forfeited any recourse you might have had over the cleanliness issue, so it's now only relevant in the context of the review. 

[Helen3]

I think @Anonymous  that hosts are allowed to charge extra for items that don't form part of the listing such as food and drink not included in the listing price.

Similarly to what a hotel does if you take food and drink from the minibar in a room.

I agree prices should be displayed.

It's not clear from @Sam3605  post whether these items were provided in the room, or whether they were ordered separately.

[Anonymous]

@Helen3   Yes, I'm pretty sure you can charge extra for add-on items that weren't included in the listed amenities.  But my understanding is that if there's an additional charge for something that's included in the offer, it's supposed to be disclosed.  I'm basing that mostly off this sentence in the ToS  (8.1.1):

All applicable fees, including the Listing Fee, Security Deposit (if applicable), Guest Fee and any applicable Taxes (collectively, “Total Fees”) will be presented to you prior to booking a Listing. 

It's not entirely clear how this would apply in this particular situation, since it's more ambiguous than a host surprising guests with an undisclosed linen surcharge or utility bill. But I would think that if coffee and wine were offered in the listing and stocked in the guest space, the host would have been required to present the "fee" for their use prior to confirming the booking. If they were delivered on special request, it would probably be considered an "additional service." Even then, if the host didn't communicate prices it's hard to see Airbnb siding with him in a payment dispute

[Helen3]

I do see your point @Anonymous .

However this is not a fee relating to the listing.

What we don't know is if the guest requests the items or if they were already in the room and if they were in the room whether there was a price list for the items either in the visitor book or elsewhere.

I agree that if there was a cost that it should be communicated with the guest.

[Cathie19]

I think @Sam3605 ,  @Anonymous  & @Helen3  have offered great advice. Like you,  @Mike-And-Jane0  would consider  “bonus” means free...  For me, unless the word “complimentary” is used, there could be a language word misuse or barrier.

(I am basing this assumption on the city Dalat, assuming it’s in central highlands, Vietnam, where written  English use,  can be grammatically incorrect, as happens in any country with English not a first language.)

“Bonus” ?                    Maybe you could have contacted the host and confirmed via the Airbnb message board, that the wine and coffee were complimentary (free of any charge). Simply solved when English is not a first language. Respond with a thank you for the clarification.

Cleaning issues?     Take photos on arrival of any possible concerns. You can forward written concerns within 24hours of check in, but you now, also have photo documentation.

An extra precaution for me on Checkout:      When I leave an AIrbnb homestay, I always take photos just on departure, so I have images available for any complaint that may be wrongly addressed at me. I can prove I didn’t leave the space dirty, or break any appliance. Delete images once the review period has been completed satisfactorily on both side.

[Sam3605]

I contacted the host and tried to come to a compensation agreement. The host admitted to being aware of the black mold problem and is in the process of rectifying it. In my opinion this is a safety concern and the room should not have been rented out, but I am taking this up with air bnb. I also addressed the host over the fact that the listing said free breakfast was included, as well as bonus coffee and wine. The hosts response was, word for word, “For the breakfast, as the price you book are our super sales deal (25% cheaper than our rate as you can re-check on our calendar), my apologies for not telling you sooner on chatbox that this price not included breakfast. I already told the helper to tell you as well but seems like she forgot.”

The host sent me false photos of price tags on the wine that were not there during my stay. Unfortunately I did not take photos of the bottles of wine but the fact that they are sending me false photos is proof that this is a blatantly deceitful situation, not a simple misunderstanding.

i am taking all of this up with air bnb as the host refused to comply.

[Sarah977]

@Sam3605  Re the mold- yes, the host should have made sure it was cleaned off. But in a hot, humid climate, mold forms quite quickly and is a constant battle. Just because there is some mold present in a tropical climate doesn't mean the place is dirty, although in your case, it sounds like the cleanliness issues extended beyond that. But as others have pointed out, the proper protocol when encountering an unacceptable situation in an Airbnb is to first notify the host to give them an opportunity to correct it. Sometimes hosts are unaware that their cleaner didn't show up, or that they didn't do a proper job. 

Also, just so you're aware, there are many types of mold, including mold which appears black. Not all are harmful to human health. A spore test is necessary to determine what kind of mold it is.