Extenuating Circumstances, Unreasonable refunds! Airbnb just continues to take our money!

[Jeffery5]

I am so tired of the airbnb policies. I have been running my business for 20 years, have 50 properties and almost all 5 star reviews.  But somehow, Airbnb with only a few years under their belt, thinks they need to step in and take control.  No other rental channel interfers in our businesses like Airbnb. 

In life, we as adults, need to be responsible.  We buy car insurance, homeowners insurance, health insurance and trip insurance.  But Airbnb believes that we, as hosts, should also be insurance companies. I can't understand how an illness, a dealth in the family or other "circumstance"  by a guest, somehow makes me they one who should suffer the losses. Yes, it's unfortunate when those things happen but this is business.   People have to insure themselves when they travel, unless they travel on Airbnb.  I even put in my house rules that guests should be trip insurance.  But to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars every year, Airbnb just cancels bookings for almost any reason.  Sometimes they even pay me and then just come back and take money away from me weeks later.   It's out of control.    

Guests who use airbnb are learning how to do it.  Once they get thier first free cancellation, they learn how to set everything up for the next time. 

Then what about these totally unreasonable refunds  Life is not perfect. But again, somehow Airbnb thinks that nothing should ever go wrong in our homes.   If an air conditioner stops working, that's part of life.  So we as responsible hosts, address the issues immediatily and get the repair people there ASAP and fix the issue.  That's how it works in any home. That's a reasonable situation in an hotel or vacation rental.  But Airbnb will refund for anything.  It is there stance that nothing should ever go wrong in any home.  If a guest is without AC for a few hours and the home is still cool, they can easily get a full refund for thier trip.  Infuriating.   Guest are learning how to set up the airbnb thread to get their refunds.  They arrive and start the complaints in the thread.   It doesn't matter what the host does to address the issues, the guest always wins.   Airbnb interrogates hosts, treating us like criminals, demanding we show evidence of everything.   It's infuriating and very expensive to do business with Airbnb. 

All that being said, 98% of my Airbnb guests are wonderful, love our properties and give us great reviews. But the others who know how to game the Airbnb system cost me thousands of dollars a year. 

Hopefully professional property managers and homeowners will start to band together and demand change.  We are not insurance companies.  If Airbnb wants to offer thier guests 100% asssurance of a perfect stay or coverage for any "extenuating circumstance" then Airbnb should sell trip insurance. 

[Jill2]

Just going through this right now.  Had a 6-night $1700 reservation on my calandar for past 6 weeks.   I have a strict cancellation policy but guest is asking/demanding 100% refund because their exchange rate is down and they can no longer afford to come.  I understand and sympothize that their country is in a bad state of polital and cival unrest...however it was when they booked...nothing dramatic has changed in past 6 weeks.  Now the lovely Airbnb CS rep steps in to notify me this is propably  going to fall under the "extenuating circumstances".  I reply 'how'?   NOTHING has changed since they booked!  CS then proceeded to patronize me.  I reply according to this airbnb logic any guest from a country with troubles could override any cancellation policy.  CS just repeated back to me same old S*#@.  Grrrr.

I nicely and calmly asked her to please take a quick look at how much revenue my 4 listings (2 of them are a plus listings) generated for me for May ($19000) for one month!...thats alot of comission!  I make them alot of money.  Am I not important to them!  Appaently not!  Grrrr...makes me sooo angry.  Ahhh feel a little tiny bit better after that vent.  Thanks!

[Dana31]

I am a superhost who recently had a last minute cancellation due to illness for 1 of 4 guests (not the guest who did the booking).  The guest filed for a refund because of an "extenuating circumstance."  It was granted and the guest's payment was refunded.  I agree with everyone that this is unfair.  Airbnb should carry insurance for refunds granted under its "mitigating circumstance" policy.  My response to Airbnb is printed below.  The response I got was basically "sorry, case closed."   Do hosts have any way to pressure Airbnb to deal with this issue?  (I don't have a Twitter account").  

"I understand the 'extenuating circumstances' policy and, as a host, I might be considered "lucky" because the last minute cancellation was only for one night. However, I'd like you to convey to the Airbnb policy makers how unfair this policy is to Airbnb hosts for 2 reasons. First, we chose the type of cancellation policy (strict, moderate etc) and Airbnb should abide by that and not surprise us with loss of income after payout. Second, Airbnb determines what's "extenuating" and therefore should carry insurance for bookings that are deemed to be that. Airbnb carries insurance for other events that impact hosts so there is no reason not to extend it in cases where hosts could lose thousands of dollars with a single cancelled booking. It is clearly NOT a fair policy."