Desired Amenities Unavailable

Alec50
Level 1
Mariposa, CA

Desired Amenities Unavailable

I just stayed for three nights in a place that I picked for the pool, gym, kitchen and washer. But during the stay, there were issues with all of these. The pool and gym were closed for renovations (which I was not informed of at any point by the host). The kitchen turned out to be a microwave and hot plate, but the hot plate was broken. And the washer spilled water all over the floor when I used it (and it was not fixed during my stay due to the holiday). The water went into the neighbors’ suite, who said this had happened before (and I was not told to avoid using it). Because of these issues and a lack of communication (slow or no responses), I asked for a partial refund. I was given 15%. That doesn’t seem reasonable to me, but I usually don’t ask for refunds. 

Can I get some feedback about this situation? Should I request more?

4 Replies 4
Cheryl389
Level 7
Keyport, NJ

I am not sure about the refund aspect because you did stay, but it would be good to rate accordingly. Airbnb is driven off of host and guest feedback, so if the listing is associated with enough documentable issues it could likely get shut down. I am a host, and I would definitely have mentioned if ammenities were unavailable. I don't let guests use the washer and dryer also, for instance, and have them locked up because I know they are not the best.

Thanks for the perspective. I will rate accordingly. 

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Alec50  First, let me say thank you for being a guest who does not usually ask for refunds. There are so many guests these days scamming for refunds over the most petty things as well as made-up things.

That said, that's an awful lot of things to not be available or not working, coupled with an unresponsive host, so I do think you should have received a larger refund.

However, Airbnb protocol is this- if you arrive at a listing to find that it is not as advertised, or hasn't been cleaned, the first thing you do is to contact the host to give them an opportunity to correct the issues. If the host is unresponsive or unhelpful, you then contact Airbnb to report it, and see whether they can rehome you in a more suitable place, or contact the host and read them the riot act. If you simply stay for your entire booking, the assumption is that it was acceptable.

I do realize that sometimes guests will make the best of a bad situation because it's a hassle to move to another place or get a hotel room.

Sorry you had this experience. I hate hearing about these bad hosts- they give the platform a bad name, just like bad guests do.

This makes a lot of sense. Thank you. I think if I had known on arrival the amenities were not available, I would have tried to leave early, but I found out slowly, so I didn’t consider it. I’ll know the protocol for next time.