A guest breaks my window on check-out. Next guest checks in and cancels a huge reservation. Airbnb offers a full refund to him, I lose my payout. Do you think it's fair?

Leonardo674
Level 2
Montreal, Canada

A guest breaks my window on check-out. Next guest checks in and cancels a huge reservation. Airbnb offers a full refund to him, I lose my payout. Do you think it's fair?

A guest of mine breaks a window. The window stays on the frame, cracked, but not posing a safety concern as there is a wholesome, double window protecting the guest from the inside and from the damage. property on the second floor so no risk of public breaching. I warn my next guest that it's a holiday, so as everything is closed I can't replace the window immediately, but we would safely tape and deal with it by the time he checks in. I send pictures of such window to the guest, the guest acknowledges this is ok.

 

The guest then checks in, can't find free street parking. He asks me for parking, I said I don't offer private free parking, but street parking can be found around the area. 

 

The guest then phones Airbnb, explains he feels unsafe about the window, Airbnb refunds 100% back to them a $1,200/2 days reservation right then and there, stripping me off my payout. 

 

I then find out an hour later that the window was protected from the inside, by such time Airbnb says sorry, we already refunded the guest (without my authorization). 

Do you think Airbnb's agent was fair to its host, on this decision?

6 Replies 6
Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Leonardo674  Judging by posts on this forum, my guess would be that 90% of the time in a dispute between a guest and a host, the Airbnb CS rep's refund decision is unfair to the host and rewards guests for abominable behavior.

@Leonardo674  I agree with Sarah, obviously, the reason for cancelations was not the window but parking. The window was just an excuse. Airbnb is very quick in refunding guests on behalf of hosts.

 

I am pretty sure all Airbnb CS reps were guests sometime in their lives but non of them, or maybe just a few of them are / were hosts. That's why their decisions are almost always on the guest's side. They think hosts earn a lot of money for doing nothing. At least that's what think an average person who was never a host or landlord and all people who never owned any property.

 

Exactly. Airbnb is pro-guest still on quite a bit. 

Emilia42
Level 10
Orono, ME

@Leonardo674 I wonder what would have happened if you never mentioned the broken window to the guest?

@Emilia42  They would find some other excuse, of course

Oh same thing. He did agree to come in regardless by "I dont mind the window". When he couldnt find parking, he used the window argument to get out of the reservation penalty-free.