Strict cancelation rule

[Henriette47]

Hello

How do I change for a reservation my strict cancelation policy to cancelation free of charge for the customer.....

Following problem

Case:

I did inform my guests one week prior to their arrival this Saturday, that I do have a hornets nest on my property. Hornets are protected animals and since this nest is not a direct danger to guests, I am not allowed to remove it. Since I knew that these guests are traveling with two baby I explained them the situation, telling them it is OK to stay but if they do not feel comfortable, they can cancel the reservation I will give them the Refund (I do have strict cancellation rules)

Guests informed me they would like to cancel. When they cancel from their side I refund them 100% of the fees. But who ist refunding them the Airbnb costs which make out about 200 Euro

Thank you so much for your help. Airbnb Helpdesk does not seem to exist anymore

Henriette

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Henriette47 Being this close to the stay I don't think any of the cancellation policies will refund the Airbnb fees to the guest.

If you really want to do this you will have to cancel the reservation which means you will get

1) Fined $50 I think

2) A review saying something like 'Host cancelled the reservation X days before travel'

3) The dates blocked in your calendar.

I would suggest that as this is out of your control you leave it to the guest to cancel if they want to lose there service fees. 

[Ute42]

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@Henriette47 

I would think that this is a situation where You as a host can cancel penalty free under the extenuating circumstances policy. I believe in this case Your guest will be refunded the airbnb service fee, but I'm not sure.

I'm afraid You will have to contact the airbnb helpdesk which doesn't exist anymore to get this going.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Henriette47 @Ute42 The danger of going for an EC cancellation is that Airbnb could possibly cancel all future bookings until they receive proof that the hornets have left the property. Given that they cannot legally be moved I guess that will be at least until the Winter.

[Helen3]

You can either choose to pay for Airbnb fees along with giving them the host portion of their costs back or cancel under Extenuating Circumstances.

If you are not allowed to remove the nest, you will also need to contact future guests and warn them of the nest and offer them the opportunity to cancel under the same terms. There are people who are severely allergic to wasp, hornet and bee stings so it's important that they know that there is this hazard.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Helen3 The hornets nest is on the property not in it. As such I am not sure disclosure is valid. I am sure we have nests in the garden of our property all the Summer and I don't see that this needs disclosure - In fact the bumble bee nest we had once was quite a tourist attraction.