Declining alteration request, price issue

[Omer2]

Hi, I'm wondering if anyone can answer this question-

I have booked a flat for 2 people, and the host approved it BUT made an alteration request and sent a message that the price she listed is for one person, and for 2 we would need to pay double, again, which was not what was listed. I declined the request, but the booking is still on.

So my question is- if I decline the request but the booking is still approved - do I just pay the original price, unless the host cancels it?

what is going on now exactly?

[James1]

You pay the original price as approved and accepted unless the host cancels your reservation. Do not cancel it yourself. If they cancel, then they will be responsible for fees and penalties to airbnb. Re-read the listing carefully and see if there was any genuine misunderstanding, but you made a booking request and the host accepted it. Done and done.

You might, just to be nice, agree to some reasonable increase/alteration in the price just to smooth things over. Otherwise just tell them, politely but firmly, if the host is unhappy with your booking and the price, they, the host, will have to cancel the reservation themselves. Then let airbnb handle refunds. Again DO NOT CANCEL YOURSELF regardless of what the host says. Let them do it and you should get a full refund. 

[Omer2]

thanks a lot!

[Mike77]

Just to make it clean on my listing, I require that the number of people staying in the treehouse is the number that are listed as guests.  If 2 people are staying in the treehouse then 2 people are listed as the number of guests.

Mike
AirBnB Treehouse for Rent
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/7292887

[Andrea9]

@Omer2

While all the other comments are true and it's the way Airbnb works, I would like to say something:

Did you as booking guest correctly check in the box that it's for 2 persons?

If that is NOT the case, then the problem would lie with you, unless you also mentioned in your message to the host that you would be coming with 2.

All 'legalities' aside, you may want to think about what sticking to your 'rights' does to the atmosphere of your stay and whether it' would disrupt any good relationship with the host.

This esp. in view of a possibly that the booked rate might in fact be ridiculously  low for two people.

In my very early hosting days I once in my enthusiasm for a new booking  didn't double check the number of guests and the total price, and thus accepted a young man's booking for a single guest while his message mentioned coming with his girlfriend. That booking for several days would have been ridiculously low for a city like mine. I was lucky everything turned out good and he accepted my change request. Other wise I might have possibly been tempted to skimp on the amenities, not provide my best bed linens, less towels.... 😉

I learned my lesson from that and now make sure I don't miss anything before hitting the 'accept' button!

That all being said, If your booking data was correct and the host is only trying to up the price after the fact, that's not correct.

[Sara2]

Re Omar

so I have a room that is suitable for one or two

do I need to price listings for single or double?

obviously the utilities etc are more expensive for two so any one else have this issue

i would like a single person to be billed much less than two but there is no way to publicly post that , if a guy brings his wife I can't then call him or her "extra guest"

[Andrea9]

@Sara2

Nothing simpler than that - you just adjust your settings to max. 2 guests and charge  xx more for "every guest after" first guest.

Yr listing will then show accommodation for 2 guests.

Yr listing comes up for anybody looking for accommodation for 1 person.

Also  for anybody looking for accommodation for 2 persons.

When typing in for 1 it shows the base price x nights . When typing in for 2 it adds up base price and extra pricing for that period.

[Sara2]

Thanks very much @Andrea9

[Omer2]

I totally said we're 2 people from the beginning 🙂

[Mike77]

If you told the host that 2 people were coming and then had 1 listed as the number of people then you made the error, or were you trying to cheat the host?  Either way, you should pay for the actual number of people staying.

If you don't want to pay for the other person, then they can stand in the corner and don't let them touch anything.  🙂  

Mike
AirBnB Treehouse for Rent
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/7292887

[Christa43]

I have a question on the same topic, I booked an apartment for 4 pax, 2 nights between Christmas and NY (instant booking)

I triple checked the booking, all persons are in there, dates are correct etc. As instant booking the reservation was accepted, however I received a request for price alteration that increased the price with 50%.

The host claims he barely ever checks the website and forgot to change prices for the holiday season. (I'd like to add this is not a cheap apartment to start with) He gave me in a message the option to accept the alteration or cancel the booking.

As I'm not unreasonable, but also think he needs to have his things in order, I declined the alteration and send him a message I'm willing to meet him half way. (which I think is reasonable, but correct me if I'm wrong)

He is not responding to my message, nor is he canceling the reservation.

Do any of you have tips on this situation? Thanks in advance!

[Camil0]

I'm facing a similar issue: four days ago, I made a reservation for four nights in Bogota at the end of December, and today I received a notification that my host is asking for a 25% price increase for those nights. She has provided no reason for this, but by looking at her reservation page, I see that she has raised prices for the whole period around the New Year's. 

Of course, it is a host's right to ask for whatever prices they want, but it is a completely different story to change prices *after* someone has made a reservation, and I am happy that Airbnb policies are protective of the guests' interests in these situations.

I replied to the host by gently suggesting that the price increase goes over my budget, and I hope that she will withdraw the alteration request in response to this. If she doesn't, I am planning to just decline the request and suggest that she cancel the reservation herself, because this is the only way that I can get a full refund from Airbnb. Moreover, from what I understand, the host will be penalized if she cancels: she will get an automatic review mentioning the cancellation, and will not be allowed to rent out her apartment to anyone else for those nights. If she doesn't cancel, I will just go ahead with the reservation. (I'm renting a whole apartment, so hopefully this won't lead to much awkwardness during my stay.)

[Camil0]

An update on my situation: the host responded two days ago by saying that "it's time to cancel" if I don't want to pay the higher price. (Note the impersonal form of the verb.) But she hasn't canceled the reservation yet. I sent her another message, explaining that she is within her rights to cancel if she so desires, but this is her responsibility and her decision to make: I made a reservation in good faith and am still happy to keep my end of the deal. Moreover, if I canceled the reservation myself, I would not receive a full reimbursement. I have yet to hear back from her.

All of this makes me think that the host is just waiting for me to get tired of the uncertainty and cancel the reservation myself, so that she won't have to pay the costs of cancelling as a host.

Fortunately, Airbnb has a procedure in place for these situations: you can submit a request through which the host is asked to cancel the reservation if that's what they want. You can find the link for submitting this request in the drop-down menu here: https://www.airbnb.com/help/contact_us.

Now the host has 48 hours to respond. If she accepts to cancel the reservation or does not respond, then Airbnb gives me a full reimbursement and she won't be able to rent out the room for those nights. If she declines the request to cancel, then my reservation remains valid.

I highly recommend using this option as soon as a host asks you to cancel for any non-legitimate reason (e.g. they want more money), to avoid the hassle and the discomfort of these situations.

[Jill252]

This was really helpful, thanks for sharing this Camil. I'm in exactly the same boat right now; just confirming, did you end up hitting the "Decline" button on the alteration request? Or did you just leave it be, and that's when the host messaged you saying "its time to cancel"? 

Did you receive a full refund from AirBnB in the end?

Thanks again, Jill. 

[Camil0]

Jill --- Yes, I did decline the price alteration request: this doesn't affect your reservation in any way. And I was fully reimbursed by Airbnb after the hospital ultimately canceled the reservation.