Price Discrepancy - Between AirBNB & Host, on a Confirmed Booking.

Deb3497
Level 1
Martinez, CA

Price Discrepancy - Between AirBNB & Host, on a Confirmed Booking.

My question is regarding pricing.. between the AirBNB site price and the Host.

I have a confirmed stay, May 1-July 31, 2022 in Lucca Italy set up in August 2021.  It was a great price, actually awesome, at 61% savings per the posting on the AirBnB site.  I paid the first of 3 payments in August and now, September 19, 2021 the host emailed that the price is too low during a stay in peak season.

Per AirBNB she must honor the price. However, I do not wish to experience issues when I arrive and not have accommodations.

I do feel to be fair to the host, I wish to work with her - shorten my stay and meet somewhere in the middle on price. It is a beautiful property and worthy of increased cost.

Has anyone experienced this sort of issue on AirBnB? 

Can anyone offer suggestions or insight into resolving this issue, as a host or a guest? Please.

1 Reply 1
Elena87
Level 10
СПБ, Russia

@Deb3497 

 

It's a delicate matter and a grey area.

Airbnb will say that the host must honour the price.

However, it isn't airbnb's property. They can't force this, so no cast iron guarantee.

 

Hosts  - without excusing them - can make errors when setting pricing, or become inattentive as the calendar automatically opens up or inadvertently fudge the amount of discount applied.

Perhaps if a host made an underpricing error, they might decide to 'suck it up', but for a booking of three months duration in high season, this measure is likely to be unpalatable. 

 

Sure, you can try to renegotiate with the host over price and duration to try to come to an agreeable outcome as a pragmatic solution. Contacting airbnb helpline might provoke them to mediate and in turn to contact the host to urge them to 'do the right thing'.

The host will have to option to cancel the booking, probably without penalty if it was an instant booking, which will now hang ominously over your booking. Airbnb only help rebooking at their discretion under certain stress conditions.

 

If it were me, I'd probably consider asking the host to cancel this booking and look again, perhaps entering into pre-booking correspondence with an alternative host for a reliable landing.

 

On a practical level, don't cancel the booking from your side, you would be on the hook for the first payment.

You can amend the booking duration without host approval, check the guidance first for nuances.