Airbnb hast not released payments of USD $61,500 and counting! Need help and alternatives

Mario-and-Cata0
Level 4
Medellín, Colombia

Airbnb hast not released payments of USD $61,500 and counting! Need help and alternatives

Hi Hosts team. 

 

My name is Mario, I'm a proud host for 8 years now. I'm facing a critical situation and need help and alternatives:

 

Airbnb is not releasing payments for my Airbnb account since April 5th. To date, we are talking about USD $61,500 that Airbnb has not released. They all appear on the upcoming transactions, but Airbnb is just not sending the payouts (no issues with the banks, but with Airbnb not releasing them). 

 

We have more than 70 listings and hundreds of Airbnb guests every single day to host and support, but our cash flow has stopped since April 5th. We won't be able to properly host them very soon. Our operation is big and expensive, we always want to offer great experiences to the community, but without money, no business in the world can operate. Plus, we channel everything through Airbnb, all our places are listed exclusively on Airbnb. We don't even receive direct payments , so basically 100% of our cash flow stopped suddenly.

 

We have followed the right process. We created a support case since April 18th, they escalated it to the Payments department and they assured us we were going to have a resolution within 48 hours, but we have received no more than a few copy-paste answers.

I have also posted on Twitter to Airbnb officials accounts but same copy-paste answers.

 

At this point, I'm considering alternatives. I know Airbnb has tons of cases, but this is not a normal case, I have around USD $20.000 payouts every week and they are not being released. I'm thinking of:

1. Hire some individual/company with good traction on social media or press that can call the attention of Airbnb

2. Hire some individual/company with legal alternatives. I don't want to sue or something like that at this point, but create a legal requirement that gets the appropriate response and support

 

I'm clearly desperate and frustrated, and I'm reaching out to Hosts community. I'd greatly appreciate your suggestions, advices and help. I still love Airbnb and I plan to grow with this Company and community, but I need the entire Airbnb team more than ever. It's a rough time for us.

25 Replies 25
Mike-And-Jane0
Level 10
England, United Kingdom

@Mario-and-Cata0 some people report that approaching Airbnb via Twitter could help. The only other thing I can think of is to send an apologetic message to all future guests informing them that their booking may be at risk as Airbnb has not payed for previous guest's stays. Perhaps ask the future guests to contact Airbnb and ask them why their booking is at risk.......

Emilie
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hi @Mario-and-Cata0

 

I'm sorry to hear you're still awaiting support regarding this payment issue. I've raised this on my end, and will let you know should I get any more info!

 

Thanks, 

Emilie

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Merci de jeter un oeil aux Principes du Community Center/ Please follow the Community Guidelines

Thank you Emilie. I really appreciate it. I just want to hear a real update to make my decisions. I'm thinking that, If I was banned or something (which wouldn't make sense and no one has informed me anything), My alternatives is to cancel all the upcoming bookings and move on with another platform. But I'm still receiving new bookings and honoring existing reservations. But if I won't be paid anymore, I need a true voice to see what I can do. And if this a technical glitch or something, I want someone to confirm this, as I understand (I'm a software engineer) and I know I'll get paid and I'll keep honoring my reservations and waiting, even if that costs me money I have to borrow. But it's just frustrating when you have no kind of real, true update.

Emilie
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

@Mario-and-Cata0 Completely understand where you're coming from!

 

I'll send you a message shortly here on the Community Center to share a bit of an update. You'll be able to check it by hovering over your profil picture in the top right corner and clicking into Messages. 🙂

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Merci de jeter un oeil aux Principes du Community Center/ Please follow the Community Guidelines

My dear Mario, what Airbnb is doing now is not due to a computer glitch. It is an intended scamming/FRAUD. Because of my own situation with them now. They knew that my payouts were put on pause because the guest cannot finish the stay at my house due to circumstances which they libeled safety issue. Which was actually not.

 

Yet, they have the NERVE TO TELL ME THAT I MUST PAY BACK THE MONEY, $7,854.33. How does that make sense?

 

That is intentional wickedness. I will have to cancel other confirmed reservations. I wish the guests good luck to reclaim their money from Airbnb for the cancelation. And I will not host for free only for Airbnb to be using my payouts to repay the debt I never owed.

 

 

Mario-and-Cata0
Level 4
Medellín, Colombia

Hi. Just a sad update:

 

I have received no solution, and now it's more than USD $70,000 in non released payments!

Multiple contacts to Airbnb Support, Airbnb Help twitter account and emails are only answered with copy-paste templates. Even worse, my support case was closed yesterday with no update, explanation or resolution! I'm speechless

 

It's just disaster. It's not about me as host, we're talking about 20 employees with their families, about hundreds of guests with upcoming reservations that we won't be able to host if we no receive payments.

 

I'd really appreciate any advise. At this point I'm considering hire someone to help me with this somehow. What do you think?

Emilie
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

@Mario-and-Cata0 I've checked with the team and can confirm a ticket is open, with someone working on it. I'm really sorry I can't help any more than this, the person working on this issue will follow-up with you as soon as possible to find a solution - I hope it'll all be resolved shortly now!

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Merci de jeter un oeil aux Principes du Community Center/ Please follow the Community Guidelines

@Mario-and-Cata0 @Emilie @Mike-And-Jane0 

 

Hello Mario !

 

My two cents i(my advice to you) is you cancel all future bookings and channel your frustration to make a YouTube video to expose the ordeal Airbnb put you through.

 

My first ever guests on Airbnb checked in to my new villa on the 3rd March 2022.

 

Their 28 night booking was completed successfully.

 

They were completely satisfied and that is expected especially as I offered them a price that hardly even covers my fixed costs (my villa has a swimming pool and is almost 400 square meters).

 

They stayed the entire 28 days but today is the 5th May and I still didn't receive a cent of the thousands of dollars owed to me by Airbnb !

 

I have not one, not two but THREE verified payout methods and that I even had five VERIFIED payout methods in the past 45 days (two I deleted in the meantime) and that I spoke on phone/messaged Airbnb support team with 14 tickets of which 2 are open but they don't provide any solution or convincing explanation as to why I am not getting paid.

 

I revealed to them that I am taping all conversations with the customer service representatives (I am also being recorded by them. It is entirely my right to do the same as they do) and screenshoting all written communication on Airbnb support platform because I plan to dedicate a YouTube channel to shine light on this fraudulent company and use my ordeal as supporting evidence.

 

As you are owed thirty times what I am owed I actually feel lucky not to be in your shoes.

 

Such a long delay in payment (several weeks to several months) to hosts is an indication that someone with authority decides to delay your payment for as long as he/she pleases.

 

The Airbnb support team simply follow the instructions they see on their screens (most of them work from home and their main qualification is that being from the Philippines they speak English and are friendly and warm by nature as most Fillipinos are).

 

Perhaps something on social media (ie a comment or post on your Facebook page of a political nature the people who make the decisions on the level above the customer service team level on Airbnb didn't like) orr maybe you were entirely randomly selected to go through this horrible experience.

 

Whatever the case may be it is wrong to 'put all your eggs in one basket' especially in these inflationary times with utility bills and fixed costs rising.

 

Airbnb is an American Corporate and so 'they' don't care about twenty famillies of your employees or the very prospect of you becoming a financial wreck if payments are not sent to you in the month of May and June.

 

I know to lose income is a horrifying prospect especially if you dedicated years of efforts to build your reputation on line and toiled with your sweat and tears to qualify as an Airbnb 'superslave' but maybe the gods know something you don't and are trying to open your eyes to the necessity to diversify or move to a different business.

 

I wish you all the best Amigo and I hope you will send a follow up so we know if and when you were finally paid.

 

Have you thought about seeking legal solution? The same happened with me. When I closed the trip short all was paid well. When I asked Airbnb support I got ripped off £578, saying it is too late. Nonsense! 

Sister-Mariam0
Level 2
Montreal, Canada

Sorry for your bad experience. It's like Airbnb is trying to shift their losses during pandemic onto hosts. And they are getting creative on how they do that. They pocketed a guest's $7,854.33 refund and now insisting that the reimbursement will be paid with my present and future payouts money. Who does that? Why should they make me pay the money which was not given to me in the first place? The money in their coffer/pocket already.

 

Below is what I posted in the community conversation section. Maybe this would make Airbnb wake up and do the necessary things. 

 

{Hello Community. My name is Mariam and I am a host. Airbnb is getting untrustworthy. In October 2021, a guest reserved to stay one year at my house for a total of $9,358.48 as my payout. But due to unforeseen circumstances Airbnb cancelled the reservation at 1 month and 2 weeks ( guest stayed from Oct. 14-Dec. 1, 2021). I was paid $1,504 approximately for the short stay. To my surprise I just found out today, May 5, 2022, that Airbnb office did not refund the guest the remainder of $7,854.33.

 

Airbnb pocketed the guest's money and now insisting that I must pay the refund of $7,854.33 to the guest with my present and future hosting payout. The $7,854.33 which WAS NEVER PAID TO ME IN THE FIRST PLACE. Airbnb office is now saying that henceforth my payout for my other and present reservations will be used to reimburse the guest whose reservation was cancelled on December 1, 2021.

 

Why should I cough out the money I never received from Airbnb? What sense does that make? Why is the big fish Airbnb trying to swindle small fish like me who is trying to use what I have worked hard for to make a living? Why should I not be paid for my present hostings? Why should Airbnb pocket the guest's money and make me to pay? They are saying that they will only start to pay me for my present and future hostings only after September 2022. Who does that?

 

Please help me community. Give me a suggestion, what should I do? I need my money. I cannot afford to pay back the money, $7,854.33 which I never received from Airbnb for a reservation that was canceled by them.}

Emilie
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

@Sister-Mariam0 Just to add to @Mike-And-Jane0's advice, I see here that my colleague Sybe has nudged the team for you today - I hope this helps and things are resolved shortly! 

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Merci de jeter un oeil aux Principes du Community Center/ Please follow the Community Guidelines

Hello Emilie. 
I had same problem too. 
my guest already stay for 11 nights but until now we didn’t receive any money.

how we work without money? 
we only run small businesses to alive and we didn’t get the payout guests already stayed here. What we use for pay our employees and the electric and etc???

please help me. I already contacted airbnb support from 5th but until now they didn’t give me right answer 🙏🏻

Emilie
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

@Jody-and-Okta0 Sorry to hear you're having a similar issue! I can try to ping the team for you as well. If I get any updates, I'll let you know. 🙂

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Merci de jeter un oeil aux Principes du Community Center/ Please follow the Community Guidelines

@Jody-and-Okta0 @Mario-and-Cata0 @Emilie @Mike-And-Jane0 @Sister-Mariam0 

 

Hello Jody and Okta !

 

When you sign on to Airbnb you should expect the unexpected.

 

It is advisable to have a cash cushion of at least a few thousand dollars because by reading the comments of frustrated and bewildered hosts it is common practice for Airbnb to delay payments to hosts under the lame excuse of 'technical issues' and 'glitches' for several weeks and even several months.

 

On twitter there is even a hashtag #glitchtrap for this !

 

I understand that as a small business owner a delay of 11 days in payment is challenging but don't be surprised if it turns out to be 111 days.

 

Keep in mind that Airbnb is an American Corporation and that the US in past decades invaded and intervened in dozens of countries and territories stealing hundreds of billions of dollars in gold, oil and other natural resources so if you think they care about an Indonesian with limited income trying to run a small Airbnb successfully I have a few Planets in the solar system I will gladly sell you.

 

Seeing that you are facing financial difficulty I am willing to sell you Saturn for 400 USD.

 

If you have some savings I can also sell you Mars for 600 USD, Jupiter for 700 USD and the illustrious and mesmerising planet of Venus for only 900 USD (Yes, it really is a bargain!).