Why Airbnb’s new cancelation policies are absolutely wrong

[Andrea374]

Many hosts woke up this morning having received an email from Airbnb informing them that there would be some “minor” changes to the cancellation policies on the website.

As you may know, the world-famous online platform for vacation rentals offers three different policies for guests’ cancellations:

• Flexible: Full refund 24 hours prior to arrival, except fees
• Moderate: Full refund 5 days prior to arrival, except fees
• Strict: 50% refund up to 1 week prior to arrival, except fees

The Airbnb commission for any of those cancellation policies was 3%.

The email received this morning informs us that the commission will change based on the cancellation policy we apply to our listing(s).

If we choose the Flexible one, allowing our guests to cancel with a full refund up to 24 hours before their arrival, the commission will remain the same: 3%, whereas if we choose the Moderate it will be 4% and up to 5% if we choose the strict one.

In addition, guests will no longer have to pay the service fee to Airbnb if they decide to cancel!

It goes without saying, that this unilateral change in the company’s policy is absolutely wrong, and here is why:

Airbnb has once again decided to overprotect guests in damage to the hundreds of thousands of hosts who literally are the backbone of the website and of the industry in general.

Management is clearly forgetting that we, house-owners and managers, are not hotel-like accommodations and that we do not have all the tools, nor the client-base, to have new reservations in a matter of minutes when a guest cancels only 24 hours before.

This new policy will only create damages to the whole system, with guests feeling free to reserve the house and then cancel at the very last minute by choosing another cheaper accommodation, without any consequence.

I, for one, am feeling very frustrated by this sudden change, and consider this only a subtle and not so honest way to simply raise the commission to the hosts, without really considering the consequences.

I do really hope Airbnb’s management will hear our voices, through the feedbacks we are sending to the website and through our social media comments on the official page, and will decide to take a step back and restore the old policy which has led this company the become the world phenomenon it has been for the past five years.

Andrea ***

[Marco253]

Thank you Andrea, this is exactly what it is and I really feel bad for such a tricky way Airbnb tried to let us swallow the additional cost for the same service, if not worse on the host point of view, than before. I am seriously thinking to leave airbnb

[Emanuela12]

Concordo.
Le nuove politiche di Airbnb, sempre più orientate a tutela dei guest, con grave pregiudizio di chi mette a disposizione la propria struttura, ci metterà in condizione di non considerarlo più interlocutore privilegiato, ma di rivolgerci a piattaforme decisamente più attente alle nostre esigenze.

[Silvia211]

I will have to raise prices to make up for the shortfall...by the way have any of you noticed that the 3% host service fee Air B&B charges is never really 3% of the total payout but always slightly more? Why is that? Do they add VAT? 

Silvia 

[Dario38]

Silvia, the Airbnb's fee taken from the host is 3,55%  (included vat).

[Ken-and-Mark0]

My first reaction to seeing this change was that it encourage hosts to change to a Strict cancellation policy due to the likely increase in cancellations.  I say that there will likely be an increase in cancellations from guests as they will not be penalised by Airbnb not refunding their fee.  If guests see no financial penalty they are more likely to cancel and book elsewhere if they see a 'good deal'.

We changed from a Moderate to Strict cancellation policy 18 months ago and we don't believe it has impacted our bookings.  We changed our policy after receiving  a couple of cancellations close to check-in (but more than 5-7 days before check-in) and loosing significant bookings (about AUD $5,000) for which we could not find a new booking.  We have had a number of cancellations since changing to the Strict policy and we never refund.  It may sound harsh, but we are running a business.  Our time is money and unless there was an extraordinary reason for cancelling we'll continue our approach.

If anyone is worried about the impact of the policy changes from Airbnb and what this will do to guest behaviour around cancellations, we strongly suggest you try a Strict cancellation policy.

K&M

[Andrea373]

In Italy they are going to change the strict one, so you will have the 50% of your rent only if the guest cancel the journey within a month from the check in. If you rent a property for the next season and they change their mind one month before the arrival you get nothing, and since everyone has already booked some property some months before, I mean nothing. This is unfair. 

For what I have understood is something they will experiment in Italy, but you can expect a global extension 

[Daphna0]

Not sure if I am responding in the correct thread of the correct place. I just got a mesage from airbnb saying that the guest requested cancellation and if I did not respond airbnb would cancel on my behalf. This is after the guest and I discuss her cancellation and I agreed that she would my take refunded. Now airbnb is penalizing me the full extent of the host cancallation policy, so $50, all the dates of her reservation blocked off, and a negative automated review. And there is no way to contact airbnb directly about the situation. I was trying to accommodate the guest and look what I got!

[Amy38]

Go to abnb Facebook, post brief facts....host canceled and now abnb is penalizing me....or some such. You will get a response quickly.

ditto twitter.

[T2]

Thanks for the idea.. I have been good with moderate so far but I will consider your idea.

[Carlos-and-Anita0]

We have a strict cancellation but anytime the guests leaves even a small complaint they refund them anyways. All the guest has to do is ask

[Andrea31]

I don't remember how many years I worked with Airbnb but I think that this is the moment to leave it for other platform. We started with the protection of the Host years ago and now Airbnb work in the same way of Booking or other platforms.
It's wrong that we pay for the problems of Airbnb and this is not a service that Airbnb give us! This is a protection that we decide to use versus the possibility of an unfair guest and we pay with the possibility that the guest choice could be another place

I'm really angry

Non so da quanti anni lavoro con Airbnb e per me si differenziava da tutti gli altri servizi simili per la sua capacità do proteggere gli Host. E' sbagliato che si debba pagare per quello che non è un servizio in più ma una scelta che noi facciamo per non prendere frgature all'ultimo minuto sapendo di correre il rischio che un ospite non ci scelga proprio per le condizioni

Penso sia arrivato il momento di considerare di cambiare piattaform. Sono veramente arrabbiato

[Emanuele17]

These were old strict terms:

Strict: 50% refund up to a week before arrival, excluding the cost of management

- the cost of cleaning will always be turned if the guest fails to appear

-... less important

These are new strict terms!

Even you are in my house you can cancel your reservation and refund is 50%!

If guests delete one day before arrival, they will be refund 50%.

If guests delete 30 days beforearrival, they will be refund 100% and hosts loose every hopes to earn something.

Are you serious AIRBNB?

[Carlos-and-Anita0]

Me too!!

[Carolina96]

I am absolutely agree with you.

Carolina

[Giorgia0]

I absolutely agree with Andrea's reasons. Why did they need to take this decision? One of the most peculiar and interesting thing of Airbnb method, up today, is the reciprocity of responsability between guest and host. With the new unilateral rules, all will became cold and professional, loosing the human and Inter-social relationship. Moreover, concerning in particular the italian hosts (I don't know how it's in other countries) the taxes amount we pay it's based on the whole income (our gain plus Airbnb fee): with these new rules, it means less gain and more taxes at the same time. Why?