Question - after successfully suing Airbnb for what they owed you, are you still able to host on Airbnb?
Overall, I usually get paid. Pretty sure my guests were scammers. I had a bad feeling about them after I met them but they were already at my house. They seemed very shady. So my guess is that this is an issue Airbnb doesn't want to talk about - because they haven't worked out a system to inform the host prior to the guest's arrival that payment has not been completed. They're a tech company, wtf?
In the end, when this happens and we're questioning who's the culprit - the guest or Airbnb - the answer is BOTH OF THEM. Nine times out of 10, the guests are probably con artists who figured out a way to get a free hotel, but Airbnb is also in on the con; scamming the very hosts that keep them in business.
Whether or not they actually collected anything upfront (in my case, Airbnb told me in writing that they collected the full amount upfront but not releasing it because the card for their alteration request was declined), Airbnb has an obligation to protect their hosts and certainly to pay them what they already collected. They are using a technicality as an excuse to steal my money. This WILL be a class action lawsuit eventually, and I think it has the potential to lead to Airbnb's demise, certainly if another company comes in and says they have the technology to protect hosts from con artists.
For now, I am making sure I have a week's notice minimum prior to a reservation, I will never again accept an alteration request, even if it seems like more money for me.