I need help

[Maria12289]

I booked two places by mistake. Last night I requested one. It was not answered. This morning (I have very bad mornings due to a nervous system injury), I instant booked another and got accepted by the first one at the same time ! I tried to call air b and b right away, they would not do anything. I canceled the instant book, for sure the host would return my 1600.00 , I thought. She refused. It is 1600.00. She did nothing to earn that money, it was a mistake. It was canceled right after.  What can I do? I am dead broke.  I just started recovering from this brain injury and this is all the money I had. I cant get over a person keeping 1600.00 just like that.  It was a mistake and this is theft. Please help. 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Maria12289 If you are travelling more than 14 days away you should have had 48 hours to cancel the booking. What were your travel dates?

[Maria12289]

@Mike-And-Jane0  It was June 26-July 10. I booked exactly June 26. She lost nothing by this instant book , I lost 1600.00 and air B and B has sided with her . 

[Gordon0]

As horrid as it is, @Maria12289, the rules mean you don't qualify for a refund in these circumstances. If it were me, of course I would have refunded, but no two hosts are the same. Have you considered speaking to your credit card co about this?

Hoping you have some luck coming your way.  

[Maria12289]

@Gordon0Yes . It’s disgusting . I stopped payment on my debit card . But once they see that this is their rules , they will take the money back ? I can’t believe this woman is doing this . Can I take her to small claims court ? 

[Helen350]

@Maria12289 I too would have given you  your money back.

But you would not have a case in court because this woman has stuck with the agreement you both signed up to. You booked her place, - same day booking, by the look of things, - then you CHOSE not to stay, not to honour the booking.

What was the host's cancellation policy?- If it was 'Strict' you are not entitled to any refund if you cancel  on day of arrival or 7 days before.  If it was 'moderate' or 'flexible' the first night is non-refundable, but you get back 50% of the remaining days from  Airbnb. - I'm assuming your booking in error was 'Strict' if Airbnb gave you nothing back?  Sorry, but it's what you signed up to, so you can't sue!

https://www.airbnb.co.us/home/cancellation_policies#strict-with-grace-period 

It's not completely true that "this woman has lost nothing." When you booked, you blocked her calendar & prevented someone else from booking, before your cancelling unblocked those nights.

You DO have my sympathy, over an honest mistake, but your host IS acting within the rules. Would you get the cost of a plane/train/bus ticket refunded if you cancelled same day?

[Maria12289]

@Helen350 it was within half hour that this was canceled.  Where is the grey i n this? I didnt change my mind, I had two bookings by mistake at the same time. NYC laws state that she cannot rent for less than 30 days, is that correct? It was an entire apartment.

[Helen350]

@Maria12289 I DO feel for you, in your mistake, & I personally would refund fully in those circumstances- tho Airbnb would keep their 15% service fee, that is outside the host's control.

You say it was cancelled within 1/2 hour? The 48 hr free cancellation only applies to bookings made 14 days before travel. - The problem is that it was a short notice booking, and IF the host's policy was 'strict', you signed up to a non-refundable agreement, intentional or accident! The host is WITHIN HER RIGHTS to keep the  money!

Where you went wrong was to send a 'Request to book' & then Instant Book another BEFORE the 'Request' was answered, - you made 2 bookings.  Presumably you are new to Airbnb, & don't know that when you send a 'Request to book' the host will answer with 'Accept ' or 'Decline' possibly without further messaging..... You wrongly assumed the  'Request' host's slow response was a 'No' - completely YOUR error.

Whilst I completely understand your distress, both Airbnb and the host have acted within the stated policies, so there is nothing anyone can do, except sympathize.

[Maria12289]

@Helen350 Thank you. I do not agree however that air b and b has acted within guidelines. I have used them over thirty times in the last year, and this was the last straw. Why? The person I was going to rent from is a "verified" profile with no real name or picture. I have realized now how much of a scam air b and b is, only after getting burned one too many times.  These NYC apts are illegal and many of them rented by people not even living in the country, using fake phone numbers and no real identifiable information, including picture. I have had more than enough of air b and b. This incident was the last straw for me. I appreciate your help.

[Helen350]

@Maria12289 - YOU booked TWO places for the same dates! How is that anyone's fault but yours? You should have done as @Sarah977 said, & PLANNED better.... Not left it till the day of arrival to book, not booked in panic cos the host you preferred was slow in replying... Airbnbs are not hotels, they are one man operations, the host is not awake & on duty 24/7, not everyone has a smartphone, not everyone can reply when they are out & about, they have to get home first!

DON'T try to turn this round to illegal listings... you weren't bothered by that when you booked!

Airbnbs are NOT hotels! They are ordinary HOMES, or spare homes. So what if someone lives outside the country? Yes there are scam listings, but most are genuine... The best thing is to book a place with many good reviews, which show it exists & is OK.

You are exactly the moaning, whinging, entitled guest which no one wants to host. I've lost all sympathy with you.

 YOU made a mistake, your financial loss is 100% your fault, the host is entitled to keep all the money cos you booked & CHANGED YOUR MIND ON DAY OF TRAVEL. ( You could have stayed there & cancelled the other one? Or half & half. Maybe both hosts would have given half the money back if you'd stayed one week in one, & the second week in the other?)

- You say Airbnb did not act within the guidelines.... BUT THEY DID! Had you booked 14 days in advance, you could have got all your money back by cancelling within 48 hours! But you left it till the SAME day to book, & did not acquaint  yourself with how it works, the terms & conditions, the cancellation policy, before rushing in.... READ the cancellation policy I posted in a previous response, for'strict' then click the tabs for 'moderate' & flexible' - you'll see even the most lenient 'flexible' policy makes you pay day one in full for day  of travel cancellations, then refunds 50% of subsequent days. You must have booked 'strict' if you're getting nothing I'd check this out, in case you booked 'moderate' or 'flexible', in which case you'd get 50% of days 2 - end.

[Maria12289]

@Helen350 @That is not what happened although I can see why you think this. I did not just change my mind .  Ugh the whole story is a mess , I have super extreme sensitivities - due to a compromised nervous system . I was staying in California in another place and it was a basement apt - two small windows . Neighbors smoking pot coming in through my window in a really confined space . My nervous system was a mess and close anaphylaxis. I had been doing really well until this trigger . Unfortunately,  it causes brain and body inflammation and massive confusion . I got focused through the text stating both were accepted . I totally get what you’re saying , but on my part it was accidental and a strange disability , though I’m working on it .  On the hosts part its intentional even though I explained all of this .  I had 0 idea about legalities . I get that technically it’s my fault, I don’t get others lack of empathy . 

[Helen350]

@Maria12289 I DO get what happened.. & I DO understand brain injury....

I say  you 'changed your mind' cos that's what happened from the legal point of view. You booked, entered into a binding contract, then cancelled. That is the facts regardless of whether it was a mistake or what you call a change of mind.

I was empathetic, & so were the other hosts who commented. But your attitude of blame & entitlement has caused me to lose sympathy. We, Gordon, Andrew, Sarah, myself are ordinary HOSTS. We don't make the rules, we can't change them, we don't work for Airbnb.

[Anonymous]

@Maria12289  A Reservation Request constitutes a binding contract at the moment it is accepted. You as the customer agree to the full terms of it - including the cancellation policy - at the moment you submit it.

If the host is not responding quickly enough and you need to make other arrangements, Airbnb does give you the option of withdrawing your request. If you contacted customer service before making the second booking, they should have told you that - and if they didn't do so, Airbnb should be held accountable.

But if you booked the second property without even attempting to deal with the first commitment you made, then technically you are the party in the wrong here, so I'm afraid you might have made an expensive mistake. Some hosts in this situation are amenable to refunding the cancelled guest for the dates that they're able to rebook. Knowing there's a significant chance that you'll have no luck with your bank or with small-claims court, I would recommend keeping your communication with this host as cordial as possible to leave a door open for negotiation.

[Maria12289]

@Anonymous yes I understand.  I disagree, I will be taking the host to small claims court. This is not ok to do to someone. Her profile had no real phone number , just an internet number and no real profile picture. The more I discover, the more I realize what a scam air b and b is. NYC apts are not legally rented less than 30 days. This person does not even live in the country.  I have used air b and b a lot in the last year and have had some pretty horrible experiences , this is enough for me.  

[Anonymous]

@Maria12289 New York's city government has recently won its battle to force Airbnb to supply them data on its local hosts. They don't need your help enforcing the laws. And you're being transparently disingenuous here - if you were really concerned about the rental being illegal, why did you request it in the first place? It's obvious that you're thirsty for revenge; nobody would believe for a second that you're just a conscientious citizen who cares about New York STR laws.

Go ahead and take the host to court if that makes you happy, and please report back on how that turns out! I'm no legal expert, I don't know one way or other what kind of results you'll get in small claims court, but one thing every judge I've met has in common is that they have no sympathy for people who can't admit that they screwed up and refuse to accept responsibility for it.

And yes, you screwed up. You didn't pay attention to the cancellation policy, and you didn't withdraw your booking request before booking somewhere else. The host's actions were fully compliant with the terms of the contract you voluntarily entered into. So on what basis do you think the court will agree that you should be exempted from the consequences of your own mistake?