Pay half now half later

[Kalika3]

I booked a trip to Nashville for May a few days ago and chose to pay half now and half later, but my bank account got charged the full amount. I called customer service to ask why this was and at first he said that is not an option unless you do an extended stay. Then he said it was because it was an “instant book.” If that is the case why did it even give me the option to choose in the first place and how am I suppose to know it’s an instant book. I am feeling suspicious about the situation because I’ve had booking companies screw me over before in similar scenarios. Can anyone shed some light on this? My only other thought is that I could have accidentally selected the wrong option. 

[Sarah977 · Accepted solution]

@Kalika3  "how am I suppose to know it’s an instant book".

If you simply click on  "Book Now", that is an Instant Book. Not all hosts allow IB, in which case guests have to send a booking request to the host, along with hopefully a nice message, and the host has to accept the request before your card is charged and the booking confirmed.

If you aren't really sure whether you checked the payment option you wanted, I don't see how you can be upset about it. It could also be a tech glitch. And I don't know for sure, but maybe even if you check to pay half upfront, Airbnb might not allow it on some bookings.

Don't see that you have anything to be suspicious about- you have paid for the booking in full, even though you would have preferred to make 2 payments, and have a confirmed reservation. It's not like you were charged twice for the same booking.

[Thomas-And-Stephanie0]

If you are on a really tight budget the added amount could have a ripple effect. 

[Sandra4874]

Hi there, are you able to tell how I can set the payment to allow part payment now and rest before they travel? Thank you