Montreal host wants me to cancel my reservation after finding out special event happening on the weekend I booked

[Vincent822]

I made this reservation about a week ago and it's planned for June 10-13 2021. She's charging about $350 a night and her place was available for instant booking. My friends and I are attending *potentially* F1 that weekend in Montreal assuming that COVID doesn't affect the dates. Her cancellation policy is full-refund only after 48 hours and I respected it as I was going to make a trip out of regardless if F1 happened or not.

Note: I still really want to keep the booking

Here is what our messaging thread is currently like and this is what she said to me about a week later after I booked:

"the price for f1 weekend 2021 will be different, please cancel the reservation. Thanks"

My reply to her was:

" I booked very well in advance and unfortunately prices around have skyrocketed. Had I known this on the day I booked, I would most certainly have cancelled on the spot and found another accommodation

I also don’t get my full refund by cancelling so I cannot do that. Your cancellation policy only allows for full refund if cancelled within 48 hours"

She then says:
"I will make sure that you receive a full refund."

I'm refusing to back down. The prices to book around the neighborhood have jumped a lot and I can't afford to book a new place. I still very much want my reservation.

This is her listing:

https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/41026316?source_impression_id=p3_1605481496_VUWDebvUhZTF7Uaf&guests=1&ad...

How can I ensure that I have my reservation? What are the consequences to her if she chooses to cancel on me? Is there a way AirBnB can ban or suspend her for doing these kinds of things?

What if she decides to do something really nasty such as not telling us how to check-in on the day of arrival?

Thanks!

[Stacie25]

@Vincent822 Do you really want to be hosted by someone who doesn't want you? 

She's not crazy to think she's within her rights to cancel your booking. She did make a mistake by using Instant Book and not setting the correct event rate, but hosts are told that if they use Instant Book, they are allowed to cancel 3 bookings per year penalty-free. That's supposed to apply "under certain circumstances" but that seems difficult to enforce, and if she does face penalties, they may be more palatable than sacrificing whatever additional money she'd earn by renting at the event rate. 

You seem to expect the worst- not telling you how to check in would be truly nasty but you could raise a pretty big stink with Airbnb and she'd benefit in no way. I don't think she's out to get you, she's just frustrated that she's not getting the event rate (which is how much, exactly? Did she tell you? Is there ANY way you could make that work?) 

Frankly, this trip sounds like it's out of your budget anyway. I think you should just get some mushrooms and go camping or something and put F1 back on your bucket list for better times, but that's only an opinion. 

Contact Airbnb support and tell them your host is not happy with the rate they charged you and is asking you to cancel. I doubt they'd tell her she needs to honor it, but maybe? And if not, tell them you want a full refund including fees as this is the host's fault, not yours. 

[Vincent822]

I don't think there's any rule against being frugal when you have the ability to. I make well over 6 figures but doesn't mean I'm going to buy a Ferrari just because I can afford one. I'm the type you would call  "money-wise". I can spend a couple thousand on an F1 ticket without an issue because there's really no way around a better priced F1 ticket however, you can certainly find savings in accommodation. That being said, it seems rather unethical that the host want's to gouge the customers now for finding out that the dates of F1 fall on the weekend I booked.

[Colleen253]

@Vincent822 There’s nothing unethical about higher rates (even significantly higher) for certain dates on a calendar.  The way this host handled this particular situation was a problem however, due to the fact they had already accepted your booking.

[Colleen253]

@Vincent822  You’re under no obligation to acquiesce to the request to cancel. The host is at fault for not paying attention and managing her dates and prices proactively. If she goes ahead and cancels it herself there isn't much you can do though. 

Hosts do incur penalties for cancelling. One thing to note is that hosts are allowed some leeway with canceling IB reservations, but her reason isn’t valid. If she tries this and you want to push the issue with Airbnb, keep in mind you have the conversation history as proof of her reason for wanting to cancel (which again, is invalid).

[Vincent822]

Thanks! So the news is that she eventually cancelled. The dates are no blocked off on her calendar so it seems like no one else can book it. I wasn't given a reason for cancellation but what's done is done. I've gone ahead and found another accommodation which turned out to be cheaper and better for a party of 6. 

[Debra300]

@Vincent822,

It's great news that you found a better accommodation, and got your deposit refunded.  Just because the dates are blocked on Airbnb doesn't mean that the host cannot accept a booking from Vrbo, Booking, Expedia, personal website, private referral, etc.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Vincent822 This host is being totally unreasonable. Hold your ground and refuse to cancel BUT do be prepared for the host to wriggle out of the booking as I fear they will find a way.

[Vincent822]

She cancelled on me. Angry at first that it happened but I got over it. It's also is annoying when AirBnB takes about 5-8 business days to refund you for the deposit. Lost opportunity cost.

[Sarah977]

Just to know in general- if a host has a reason to cancel a reservation, it's their responsibility to do so from their side. And vice versa. Also a host can't change the terms of the reservation after it is confirmed, whether it be the price, the cancellation policy, the maximum guest count, etc. (Although due to ever-changing COVID restrictions, hosts may have to limit the number of people allowed to stay)

It's also good for guests to be aware that Airbnb does have a lot of glitches on their platform, so it could happen at some point that a host tells you that the prices that were displayed were incorrect, and that might be quite true, due to a tech issue, rather than any inattention on the host's part. However, a host who is paying attention and who behaves professionally would notice that the price the guest paid was incorrect as soo as the booking was confirmed, and should let the guest know about the glitch while the guest is still within the free cancellation window.

And Hosts also report having some of their settings mysteriously change on their own, like their stated check-in time changing to flexible, or guests somehow having been able to book a one night stay when the host has a 3 day minimum set. So if a host ever coveys to you that something on their listing info was a tech glitch, while of course they could be using that as some excuse, it's also very likely to be true.

Glad you were able to find another place that's even more amenable to you than the first- as they say, sometimes things happen for a reason that's unknown to you at the time.

@Vincent822