The lies of the Host referral program

[Nicole2592]

@Airbnb I have called and called about this issue and no one cares to help. I’ve been given reason it’s paused, I used another API (not true), they didn’t click on the referral link until after the listing was created (also not true as I sat next to them helping create their listing). 

I am so disheartened about this entire experience with Airbnb support and this program. The entire process was smooth until it was time to give me $702 per referral. $1,404 is being kept under false promises and for reasons not one single host support can agree upon. I love Airbnb and it has been a terrific experience overall. This is false advertising at the core and only has resulted in anger, frustration and hours of time wasted trying to get an answer with still no reason. 

I put my own money into my friends homes relying on this money. I paid for their photographer, first cleaning and more to help them get started. Now I’m sitting here at a loss to help build up the Airbnb brand. 

[Sudsrung0]

@Nicole2592 

I just checked and it's back on for me, How much are they supposed to pay you? Here in Thailand it's just less than $24

[Emilie · Accepted solution]

Hi @Nicole2592 and all, 

Thank you again for sharing your experiences and feedback on the Referral program here. I've relayed all of your comments to the team!

In regards to the initial issue, I have found more info on this page: https://www.airbnb.co.uk/refer

I hope this helps!

Emilie

[Sudsrung0]

@Emilie 

I wonder why mainland China is not eligble? 

Before covid China was our biggest market maybe some government laws,

[Helen3]

Just ask your friend for the money to cover the costs you laid out for them @Nicole2592 

[Andrew789]

AirBNB has an obligation to their hosts in the terms laid out in their referral program. A friend shouldn't have to cover AirBNB's referral fee.

[Mary-And-Sergei0]

I am navigating this now... 

First they told me that I had to refer 25 people before I got paid. My husband called and they told him the same thing.

Now they are changing the story saying my friend didnt use the link.... however  she absolutely  used the link. 

So either there is a programing error that is causing links to break.... which is common or they are just lying so they dont have to pay. 

So frustrating and I will reach out to the Better Business Bureau if we can't resolve this. 

[Sherry517]

they’re gonna say whatever it takes to get to the next customer service rep. Please hold on we’ll call you right back. I’ll let you know I’ll get back to you I really feel for you. I understand your situation. I would do the same thing they’d say please give me a moment. Please let me refer this to a specialty team. Please let me help you with this please I will get right back to you. Let me make a couple calls of it. It’s all lip service. These people will not help you. We are not a concern of theirs how we don’t get money is what they promised to do that’s their job is to bypass any whatever it takes not to deliver. That’s who they are now and anyone you’re calling is in a country in the middle of the night it’s 3 AM their time and it’s 5 PM your time and those people have no power. Their power is to get you off the phone after a specific amount of time and they will not be helping you they may say that they will, but it will not happen  not happen if they tell me as a guest that I have to sign up as a host in order to get my refund for a disgusting despicable, smelly filthy, pathetic rental that I paid for and flew 18 hours to walk into if I have to be a host to get my money back as a as a guest  that’s illegal that’s lying to the internal revenue service that’s me setting up the fact that they’re telling me I have a business I have to be a host that has a business renting out a unit just to get the $950 back that they owe me for two nights in another country  that’s the only way they’ll give me my money back the only way and their rules say that’s not even it’s not anyway that’s just disgusting. These people are pathetic. They don’t care it’s illegal and try to find a lawyer to fight that. Unbelievable no one wants to play because these guys have it all covered and I’m gonna guarantee it’s the two little children that started AirBnB don’t even know the half of it. Someone else is running the show. They’re on some stupid boat somewhere or in an Airbnb but all the Airbnb that I’ve stayed in or disgusting. I’m in one right now where I cannot breathe There is no air. The windows don’t open there’s no garage. I chose it because it had a garage and when I tell AirBnB that  they don’t care they wanna know if I video the garage is a storage unit it will fit storage items. It doesn’t fit an automobile and it’s listed as a garage is still listed as a garage it says it has central heating. It does not have such lead. It says it is off street parking does not street parking. It’s so bad in here. I want to vomit every day. It says it’s private it’s not private  it’s disgusting and this is a whole different one. I’ve I’ve 45 different Airbnb. I’m only staying like seven and all the five have been pathetic disgusting sick and you know how AirBnB hides the address so you can’t do like a Google Earth walk so you can’t see like oh this looks like a nice neighborhood you can’t see if there’s homeless people you know, pooping in the front yard  you can’t see there’s some guy sleeping on your doorstep probably with a knife you can’t see that the guy who’s walking past your truck that you’re renting is gonna slash your tires, which happened to me smash the windows which happened to me, smashed into the back of the truck which happened to me all within a 2 1/2 week period Staying in this pathetic awful neighborhood AirBnB that actually the host is 18 years old  18 he doesn’t understand the fact that when he checked the box sheets that’s specific to them being made of cotton and if you check the box cotton sheets, it doesn’t mean sheets it means they’re made of cotton. His are 100% polyester. I tell AirBnB they don’t give a **bleep** I have to go spend $149 to buy brand, new sheets, pillows and a mattress cover cause there’s not one of those either what he’s got is a plastic mattress cover for like when babies with the bed  the lightbulbs in the lighting are wattage so that the heat in here is unbearable. I had to get a ladder I had to buy lightbulbs. I had put the lightbulbs in trade out the lightbulbs for the ones I bought. He said he had a barbecue there is no barbecue the legs are broken off of it so I had to go buy the parts to use the barbecue cause there is no stove oven. It’s unbelievable it says there’s a garden, but there isn’t a vegetable garden you’re not allowed to touch the vegetables and is the size of the whole backyard, and when they describes it as the beautiful garden  and there’s a garden that comes three days a week so that’s the privacy that I have some man is gonna be 3 feet from my face every day three days out of the week for 31 day minimum rental whereas in the bathroom, there is one roll of sandpaper, toilet paper and in the closet there are five hangers and when I brought this is this guy’s attention saying if I have to stay here for 31 days why wouldn’t you have 31 hangers at least provide hangers there are five he says, and I said and your points  so I’m disgusted $4000 I’m out here and they wouldn’t even recognize that any of this stuff is considered misrepresentation this garage he said he has it. He says it’s 7 feet wide I said well what do you want to do with that? The average car in America is 6 feet wide so let’s see not including the mirrors. Let’s just say they’re 10 inches altogether so that means you’re 6‘10“ so let’s imagine in a perfect world that you can get your car into that space without damaging the size now, how the hell you get out of the car he looked at me like he was blind, deaf and dumb and I thought you know what you are a child you should not be even managing this kind of money and you should shouldn’t even be in a position where you would think that just because sheets are on your bed that they’re cotton and you can’t even think your brain passed the fact that the garage “” that you’re renting out as a parking space that is too small to fit any car  you don’t even see that you just measured it and put it online it’s 7 feet he only measured it after I drove my big truck up there and I said I can’t put my truck in here. Oh well I’m sorry but your average small car let’s just look that up I said that’s what googles for  children don’t think past their nose so he checks box like garage Orey, Parking, privacy garden, toilet paper, one roll hangers, five cotton sheets, polyester hotter than hell windows don’t open anyway that’s all I’m saying that’s a lot but you know what if you can read it. I voice texted this. Good luck. AirBnB sucks 

[Matthew1198]

I wish I would have checked this forum first. In fact, anyone that is interested in hosting on Airbnb, I should have them just read some discussions on this forum. The overall lack of support from Airbnb to their house, who make their revenue, is interesting.

I also recently completed a referral process. I read up on it pretty well before hand. After the new host completed the requirements, I was told that it was invalid because they didn’t host their entire place, even though they hosted an entire attached unit.  Nonetheless, there is zero benefit… And I just say that the program is misleading and false advertising. Not quite sure how it’s even legal with all of the hidden requirements. Definitely a sales gimmick, and makes me less likely to refer anyone to host. 

[Sherry517]

these money offers and any money coming back to you for whatever reason from Airbnb is a lie . Farce , false untrue to real you in the tire you out as you ask when what where. The tactic is designed to make you give up trying. 
all of those feel good things your experiencing are things you’ve done on your own. That’s who you are . But Airbnb is not about anyone anymore . Help line . Customer service is specific to making you drop the whole issue . 

airbnb owes me 930$ for a 2 night stay in a disgusting studio in Spain I would not even walk into

they said oh why ? Price it ?  Did you take video ? We need video

 WHAT . yah I drop my 4 75lb trunks I’d flown with for 18 hours and broke out my camera and because a photographer. 
NO I don’t have video 

we can give you your defend if you set up a form if  “PAYOUT”. 
IM SORRY WHAT ? Payout us how host get paid I’m not a host I’m a guest 

WELL NO ITS HIW WE GIVE REFUNDS 

NO IT IS NOT A REFUND IS A REFUND AND A OAYOUT IS WHEN A HIST GETS PAID FOR RENTAL OROPERTY LISTED THROUGH AIRBNB 

THEY WANT ME TO LIE TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE STATING I HAVE A JOB AND I OWN RENTAL PROPERTY WORKING AS A HOST FOR AIRBNB THAT IS A LIE.

“ well  if you don’t then you won’t get your money “ 

[Sharon1893]

I am going in circles with them, too. I sent my friend on a referral link January 17, 2024. I sat with her and helped her create her listing the same day. We clicked on the link from the email and then clicked “Get Started”. She’s had FOUR completed reservations, each for over $100.

You should hear the ridiculous excuses I’ve been given as to why they aren’t paying up. I keep asking to escalate my case to someone with the authority to approve my reward. Every time, I get a message from a “supervisor “ who presents yet another excuse. They started out with, “the link you sent was expired”. How is that possible when I took it from my dashboard the day I emailed it to her and she set up her listing  the same day! I even sent screenshots of the email with the date, and screenshots of her listing with the same date.  Then they tried to tell me I sent an invite in 2018 which she didn’t accept and that precludes me from inviting her again SIX years later!

The most recent one is that my friend was a host in 2012 and then stopped hosting. My friend had never even heard of AirBnB in 2012!  

Each time I reply that their response is unsatisfactory and I give more evidence and argument as to why I and my friend should be paid. Follow f that, I will get a call from a representative, who has no authority to approve squat, and we start all over again. Told the last one to read the chat thread or check the notes of the last two representatives and then give me someone higher up the food chain who has the power to pay up.

They are squirming and I’m not letting them off the hook. I am looking for others who have been denied their referral reward. I am speaking with an attorney friend to see if we have a class action suit for deceptive business practices. Let me know if you or your friend is interested. No obligation.