Best cancellation option for hosts

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

A guest just enquired about cancelling a booking late in August, almost 6 months away.

Who knows what the situation will be then? So with this probably being the first of many, what do other hosts think the best way to handle this is?

Obvious options:

- Don't be daft, we've no idea what that far in the future will hold.

- We have a strict policy. You can agree to pay 50% and then you can cancel.

- I'll check with Airbnb to see if they will include it in their 'Covid-19, made up dates' policy for you so that you get 100% refund.

- Go ahead and cancel and we'll flip a coin on whether the strict policy actually sticks.

- If you're uncomfortable, we'll let you rebook dates later in the year.

Does anybody have any favourite plan of action, and can help me with mine?

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Susan17 

I'm getting endless reports of Airbnb guests trying to cancel right up until the end of the year Ian, invariably requesting/demanding the 100% refunds that they all now seem to feel they're automatically entitled to

That was my worry.

Your solution mitigates the endless confusion caused by the next spin being applied or rules being broken at Hosts expense.

In my specific case here, I did offer the 50% refund only, the guest suddenly raised panic alarm at the fact that they might lose money and wanted to book the same dates next year. Since my dates are not open for next year they couldn't be accommodated then although I did offer dates in October. 

In hindsight, the offer of a 100% refund is 'no skin off our nose' as such since we don't have the money yet and realistically, stand very little chance of actually getting all of it... Perhaps 12.5% chance at best.

[Ute42]

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@Ian-And-Anne-Marie0  , @Susan17  ,

Like Susan I believe that airbnb guests now have it in their dna that they can always cancel and get a full refund, no matter what.

For the future we will have:

• the flexible flexible policy

• the moderate flexible policy

• the strictly flexible policy

Makes live much easier for the CS people also. Refund = strictly 100%.

[Susan17]

@Ute42 

You forgot the refundable non-refundable policy. Oh wait.. we have that already...  ;))

[Ute42]

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@Susan17 

You are right, I forgot about that. What would we all do without You, You're the walking airbnb encyclopaedia. Good night.

[Susan17]

Lol! One day soon, all that previously useless knowledge will finally pay dividends, @Ute42 ! Night night ;))

[Jean-Pierre198]

We have to keep insisting that the cancellation policy chosen by the HOST ( for example - Strict 50% )  and hence Agreed up on by the Guest has to hold ground as a legally binding contract of service. and Airbnb have no right to Refund at 100% . They do not own the properties we rent and we use the platform and we/ and guest pay the fees on each booking . Airbnb can/ or should  only waive their own fees for 100% refund  if they want to

WE -  ( Us Hosts ) should team up to open class action ( Legal Action ) all together against Airbnb  ..Then we will have a solid foundation to stop them from  abusing us. They are favouring guest over Host and this is discriminatory. In our case we have been holding the accommodation for a long time - some guests booked way back in october and could have rented the property locally on a long stay. So we are entitled to at least 50% as per cancellation policy for compensation or the option to provide the guest  to book new dates is the fairest outcome. When we accept a reservation, we do not differentiate with whether the guest has to travel or is a local and we do not sell packages here. We sell the the rented time as accommodation. We are not at fault if airports are closed or planes cant fly or cancelled flights. This is not part of our offered service. So if the property has been held and cancelled - then we  are entitled to enforce the  cancellation policy as agreed.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Jean-Pierre198 

We have to keep insisting that the cancellation policy chosen by the HOST ( for example - Strict 50% )  and hence Agreed up on by the Guest has to hold ground as a legally binding contract of service. and Airbnb have no right to Refund at 100% . They do not own the properties we rent and we use the platform and we/ and guest pay the fees on each booking . Airbnb can/ or should  only waive their own fees for 100% refund  if they want to.

I agree entirely and recently stated this to Airbnb. Thats where it all went wrong in my opinion, I feel now that there will be little in the way of support for hosts and all the actions taken by Airbnb can only lead to one destination. That is: Guest cancellation, nothing for hosts, 50% cash refund for guest (what happens to the remaining 50% if already paid?) or 100% refund in vouchers, (Airbnb still hold all the monies), Airbnb sponsoring the idea of no guest liability cancellations by promoting flexible cancellations (Airbnb keep their fees), any and all cancellations Airbnb will take their fees from (unless vouchers provided from which they will obtain fees later), no Covid-19 peanut support fund for hosts.

Opportunity guest cancellation is the best thing ever for Airbnb and their coffers, I see nothing to contradict this, anywhere.

[Lisa723]

@Ian-And-Anne-Marie0 I've had people cancel reservations several months from now, not because of health/travel concerns, but because their financial picture has been dramatically altered, and they can no longer afford their trips. They need their refunds now. I've granted them. My feeling is that if the situation improves, the dates will rebook, and if it doesn't they're going to get a refund anyway so they might as well have it now.

[Jean-Pierre198]

I know of some hosts that could loose their own rental property if Airbnb continue to take out 100% refunds.-  Even airbnb are downsizing on their staff with layoffs. So refunding guests 100% will leave many hosts without a property to offer next time guests want to stay or start to re book.

[Sarah977]

@Lisa723  I would imagine that is exactly why guests would be cancelling bookings now that are for much later in the year. Almost everyone has been impacted financially by the pandemic, and guests would be foreseeing needing the money for essential living expenses. I doubt they're cancelling because Cousin Bob offered them a free place to stay in Dec. instead.

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Sarah977 

Which is exactly why, imo, the refunds need to be refunds, NOT credit or vouchers. 

[Randa342]

I too have have guests cancel a 31 days stay in July . I gave my approval although this is a long stay which is non refundable. I thought people are stressed out already by everything that is happening and there is no point in adding to it by refusing them a refund. In any case I do not wish to host guests against their will. It is a holiday they have paid for after all not a fine! 

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Randa342 

Just playing devil's advocate...

So rather than you have the contracted and agreed cancellation fee you were due, you would rather Airbnb keep it to give your guests a holiday on them, which you will pay for?

In the meantime Airbnb will be banking your money, they send your guests a message that your cancellation policy doesn't permit them to refund cash but they can have another trip using an Airbnb travel voucher for elsewhere.

It really is no wonder that guests get to believe they really don't need travel insurance.

[Huma0]

Urgh. Seems like we will be dealing with these refund shenanigans forever. @Ian-And-Anne-Marie0  I would certainly not trust Airbnb right now to deal with cancellations. I would deal with guests directly in the first instance to try to reach some sort of agreement if at all possible. 

I have had four cancellations so far. That doesn't sound like a lot, but bear in mind I host long-term guests, so that's 7.5 months worth. None of these actually qualified for extenuating circumstances (except one that later qualified under the new date extension). So, in theory, they should have been straightforward, especially as in three of the four cases, the guest had agreed, without even being prompted, to pay under the normal cancellation policy anyway.

But nope, as soon as Airbnb got involved, it went **bleep** up in every single case, with mistake after mistake, and I am yet to see a penny from any of these. 

My next guest is due in a couple of months. She does not want to cancel now but wait and see. I am sure she will end up having to cancel, as I can't see things being back to normal by June. Her arrival is within one day of the current EC timelines, so will get a full refund anyway.

Of course, this means I cannot rent the room to a long-term lodger, so it's far from ideal, but I just can't face any more Airbnb cancellation balls ups right now. I am already dealing with too many of them and I don't trust that I will get my 12.5%, or whatever it ends up being, until I start seeing the payouts from previous cancellations in my bank account.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Huma0 

 I am already dealing with too many of them and I don't trust that I will get my 12.5%, or whatever it ends up being, until I start seeing the payouts from previous cancellations in my bank account.

For the fact that every single 'balls up' by Airbnb somehow benefits them, I really don't think there are any mistakes being made. 

If they can covert cash into promises as they are with our due payments into guests travel vouchers it will be in their interest to do that day in and day out. The longer they frustrate guests and hosts in prolonging payment, the better it benefits them until they make their mind up what they're doing.

Having observed their actions recently and compared those to their claims, I really don't think that ANY Hosts bank account will benefit from any 12.5% payout, rather, we will be provided travel vouchers - 'to the value of... '. After all, like you say there is no payment evidence to judge on and thats what they did for guest refunds.