Airbnb refunded my guest who broke terms and conditions

[Nickolas3]

I have a guest who had full access to my property for almost 50 hours before she put in a complaint that she wanted a full refund for a variety of reasons, summed up below:

- Dirty stove top (which later took me less than a minute to clean, and which she could have easily caused since she had access for over 2 full days)

- Mould in bathroom (which was debatable as it could have been dirt, mildew or something else, and which took me a few minutes to fully clean up later)

- Heater not working (which was untrue, it was working perfectly fine upon inspection, it just needed a couple of minutes to get going (as all split cooling/heating systems do))

- No security screen door in front of front door (which I never claimed to have, however I did list the multiple security features the apartment and complex already have)

Also regarding the cleaning, I pay a professional cleaning company after every check out to do a full clean (which costs me more than I charge my guests), and have an average of 4.9 star reviews from all previous guests (in fact I have had 5 stars all round for quite some time).

The guest claims she did not stay the first night, but instead only checked in (using our self check in lockbox) the following morning. Even if this is true, that still puts it 30 hours before making her complaint, which violates Airbnb's terms and conditions where she needs to notify me within 24 hours of check in of any issues she finds with the apartment.

After doing some research, I also understand that she needs to give me a chance to fix any issues, which she did not do at all, instead demanded a refund without allowing me a chance to resolve things (notwithstanding the fact she did not notify me of any issues within 24 hours, which would defeat the purpose anyway).

I refused to give her a full refund, so she filed a complaint in the Resolution Center.

After a few back and forth messages between myself and Airbnb support, it was obvious Airbnb support were trying to find any excuse to give her the refund.

Initially Airbnb support told me she notified me within 24 hours, which was incorrect (and which they could have worked out themselves had they read through the messages between the guest and myself), then later support implied the guest didn't even stay one night, which was incorrect, then they totally ignored me when I listed all the terms and conditions the guest did not abide by, finally saying the guest will be given a full refund for the nights she didn't stay due to a "major cleanliness issue".

I find this appalling. I have asked for an escalation to the support staff's manager but have not heard back.

Has anyone else here had a similar experience, and if so, how did you go about making it right? I have superhost status but not sure if that makes any difference here.

This has totally soured my experience with Airbnb and will be looking at other options if I do not hear back from support with a favourable outcome.

[Alice595]

@Nickolas3  I am not clear about a few things

(1) Did the guest ask full refund for all days she stayed?

(2) How many days did she book and did she cancel after two days stay?

(3) Were you paid for any days!

Airbnb normally ask host to refund any unused nights even though there is no fault at host when a cancellation is requested by a guest. I understand that there should be no refund after guests have checked in.

Just be prepared to get a retaliatory review from the guest. In the worst scenario it is 1 star in all category. And the review will contain false accusations.

[Nickolas3]

Hi @Alice595 ,

Thanks for your response, please see my answers to your questions below.

(1) My moderate cancellation policy allows the guest a 50% refund for nights she does not stay 24 hours after she cancels, which is unfortunate for me since it was too late for anyone else to book my place,  but they're the rules so I have to live with that. However to answer your question, the guest wants a full refund for the entire booking.

(2) She booked for a week, and yes she cancelled after the 2nd night (that is, on the third day).

(3) I was paid for the first couple of nights, then only 50% of the remainder. However if Airbnb support rule in her favour then I would will a lot more.

And yes you are right, I am assuming I will get a 1 star review (my first ever, I have never received anything below a 4, in fact almost always 5s with a 4.9 average).

What makes this even more frustrating is that Airbnb support are saying they will give her a full refund because she notified me within 24 hours which is incorrect. I have explained to them numerous times that she notified me after 24 hours (and I listed dates and times), yet they totally ignore that.

[Nickolas3]

About one month ago one of my guests made a complaint about things that were not true, see this thread below:

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Help/Airbnb-refunded-my-guest-who-broke-terms-and-conditions/m-p...

After providing proof to Airbnb support about how my guest made false claims, Airbnb still took $313 out of my account!

I called multiple times to try and speak with the case manager handling my case (Graess), and kept being told she would call me back but she never did.

I also sent her multiple messages and still heard nothing from her.

Unbeknownst to me they automatically closed the support case and took the money out my earnings.

Absolutely pathetic Airbnb!!!

MESSAGE TO AIRBNB: If you continue to treat hosts with such disrespect and effectively steal their money you will have a class action lawsuit coming your way.

[Rebecca181]

This happens far too often, sadly. Have you thought of initiating the arbitration process?

[Nickolas3]

Not yet, have you had success with it?

[Anonymous]

@Nickolas3 Have you read Airbnb's Terms of Service? Broadly speaking, by using their service you have waived the right to a class-action lawsuit, so that final message won't be taken seriously:   https://www.airbnb.com/terms#sec19

Was the $313 equal to the amount of the five nights that the guest didn't stay after cancelling?

[Nickolas3]

It was almost $100 more than it should have been, even given the 5 night refund decision.

I've asked Airbnb to recalculate and refund me back the (almost) $100. Waiting to hear back.

[Nina75]

Waiving class action status doesnt mean anything. They can still be sued. Attorneys will just claim that it unfair and against the law. Anything can be litigated.

More importantly... is it worth $300 for the months of frustration... NO ITS NOT. Attorneys will milk the hell outta you or any class actions settlement and you will get $20 thats how that always works.

[Kenneth12]

Brief:  if you think that a guest has to notify you within 24 hours of any issues,  think again.

I have your side of the story (and sympathize if you got screwed by guest abust),  but if you really have that many problems and they are serious,    and the guest documents them with photos,  they are going to get some kind of refund whenever reported.

Keep in mind that guests have schedules and committments,  have to weigh options,   and the 24-hour *policy* (policies are guidelines) is there to eliminate unclear situations.  Photos are often pretty clear.

To give you an idea,  I recently stayed in a property for 4 nights before an intercontinental trip.  (People here sometimes underestimate how often I do this).  Problems included:

Dust accumulated to 1/4" or so along heaters and other surfaces
Dirt and smudges in multiple areas
Mold growing 1' (yes,  foot) up the shower curtain
Various mold in grounting
Dried yellow matter,  dust and hair in areas around toliet
Smoke detector lying on top of cabinet,  no battery

That's about half of the issues -- I didn't even include the unlocked door (from the outside) I discovered,  coming through the furnace room.

I had booked a week in advance,  it wasn't cheap (alas,  the last-minute inventory often contains the lemons!) and the only option was three times the cost in a hotel;   as so often happens,   I had no time-- a grad student was 90 minutes late to pick up a dissertation and comments,  which came out of my sleep time etc.

I reported two plus weeks later with pictures,  ABB's rep gave me an immediate refund for more than I asked with talking to the other party (who made the mistake of sending harassing messages after the report...),  combined with a profuse apology.

Passing all that,  if the guest was gaming the system,  insincere or just too touch in your case,  I'm not sure there's anything you can do other than try to avoid a bad review from them--  I'd definitely hold my review of them to the last few hours of the 14-day period and snipe it,  rather than post a review and remove any hope that you won't post if they won't.

You might call CS and complaint / attempt resolution,   but CSRs are almost guaranteed to eat your time.

Entry cameras are crucial,    and let you know what really happened.    Documenting with your own pictoral evidence to contradict,  can equally be valuable.

[Kenneth12]

* without talking to the other party