Full refund for partial stay

[Laura1578]

Aloha,

I have a studio in Hawaii which I rent through AirBNB. A year round warm, tropical climate.

I had guests check out today because the A/C wasn’t blowing cold. First complaint was yesterday. 

I am in the process of trying to get a portable unit and in the meantime got an industrial fan for them until I could solve the issue. I also have a call out to repairman for the existing unit and am waiting for a return call. I spoke with the guests at length in person and explained this all to them.

The guests booked for 5 days. From the moment of arrival, complaints started coming in. I’ve dealt with picky guests before and handle them with kid gloves.

Today is 3 days into their 5 day stay and they messaged to say they were upset because the accommodations are not what was promised so they are going to a hotel and want a refund for the days they were no longer going to use it Then they asked for a full refund as accommodations were not what was advertised and then! asked for additional compensation for their inconvenience.

I explained that I would gladly refund them for the days they would no longer be using and would get back to them regarding the other requests. I apologized to them for not remedying the situation in a manner they considered timely.

What am I obligated to do?

     Fully refund?

     Days-not-used refund?

[Michael2413]

A/C would be a big deal for me because I sweat like a pig.  Was the A/C down for all the days?  I would probably refund them for any day not stayed and maybe a partial refund for days that they did stay. You're not the Sheraton so further compensation sounds CRAZY!  Plus you're bound to get a bad review if you go all out or do nothing any way.  Are you not able to put in a window unit  (maybe check craigslist for a cheap one)?  It'd probably be a good idea to just have an extra  one in times like these.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Laura1578

I see bad review coming no metter what you do 😞

Have you been there? Are you sure your A/C really broke ? Maybe the setting was wrong or bateries are dead? Or they just use it for excuse?

If A/C is really broken I would send them alteration request and change check out date. They have to accept it. They will be refunded according to your cancellation policy but you can refund them in full for days not spent. 

You can also offer them partial refund for previous days WHEN you find out if and why the A/C broke (maybe it is not broken or maybe they broke it ) . I would wait with this part of refund until review period ends / 14 days to prevent retaliation review.