False ad for apartment

[David14498]

We booked an AirBNB that said *1stFL*.  First floor means street level.  This location had steps and the host was told handicap person.  Did not stay had to take an Uber to a hotel .  Charged for full amount of our stay. $600.

[Joelle43]

Hello @David14498 

I'm guessing that you booked a place outside of the US possibly in Europe?  I am a French host David and in Europe a 1st Floor is NOT on the street level but 1 floor above that.  I didn't know this until I started conversing with US hosts here on the forum but I quite see how problematic and inconvenient this would be if you were not expecting steps.

So am I right in thinking that you told the host that the person staying had mobility issues?  Did you ask them through the Airbnb messages?  Are there no photos of these steps on the listing or any mention of steps in the description?

[Bob297]

@David14498 

I think there may have been a misunderstanding about the floor numbering.

In most of Europe, the street-level floor is called the ground floor. The first floor is one level above street level, and the second floor is two levels above.

In the United States, the first floor usually means street level.

So “1st FL” can unfortunately be interpreted differently depending on the country. If accessibility is important, the clearest wording would be “ground floor / street level / no stairs.”