Refunding

[Emma213]

Hi,

I'm not really sure how this works. But i am feeling absolutley awful and so let down by Air bnb I'm unsure what to do?? Last weekend i stayed in Kirkcaldy at a listed hotel on here. It looked great and said was a family run hotel, and as a young girl travelling down myself the whole weekend to an unusal part I thought it seemed perect. I cannot begin to express awful the time I had and what i experienced here. The hotel looked nothing like it did in the photos, there was no WIFI at all which was advertised which I really needed as I don't have internet on my phone, the toilet wouldn't flush, was unlcean, and the only host was one lady left there that didn't have a clue what was going on and locked me out for 40 minutes. I didn't get any sleep at all as an alarm was going off the whole night and there was no one around to resolve this with. The hotel seemed like it was shut and i was the only one there. Even the local people i spoke to had very very negative things to say about the place. The lady there "running it" kept referring to a Boss. For example when I came in she kept asking me to pay cash and then said she would have to phone her boss and make sure was ok to go in room without payment as I explained it was paid through pay pal. Then when she locked me out of the hotel writing a note on the door saying call this number to get in and the number was a number which wasnt in use.. and i had no way to get into the hotel and was outside in my shorts sweating in the cold after being on a run. I walked down the street and got some wifi and messaged the air b n b host who didn't respond untill 30 minutes later and when she came to let me in she was angry that i had called her "boss".  After a horrible sleepless night I felt really uncomftorble being there and felt like I couldn't stay. I could not cancel the reservation as I had no internet but I told the host i would not be staying the further two nights and could she cancel. She was very rude to me and even came to where my course was being held and gave the key to reception and said i was staying there and I owed them money even though I explained it was paid for already on paypal. She kept demanding i pay cash. I went onto the app as soon as i got internet connection on the course and cancelled the reservation. She phoned the course two times demanding to speak to me and i had anxiety for the whole day of the course worrying she would come in and make a big scene. I was stressing so much trying to find somewhere else to stay and eventually found somewhere which was 50 minutes away by bus. I had to fork out even more money to stay there but all i wanted was a clean room where i could have a good nights sleep. I can't even begin to express how unclean the hotel i was staying in was i felt it wasnt possible to even shower there. I then discovered when i was home they charged me the full amount  for the 3 nights there. I asked for a refund and was only able to get the money for the Sunday night and still charged for the Saturday and all the fees. So £258. This is so much money, especially when i did not stay there and didnt sleep the first night and tried to cancel. I feel like this has been an extremeley bad experience of air b n b as afterwards i have tried to find a way to speak with them and air my concerns and annoyment at this but can't fit anywhere to contact. Do they not check the places that they advertise on here? This place has put up a completley incorrect listing and I have went there in good faith of them and air b n b and it has been a fraud. It is not fair to do that and i feel completley washed off my money. Is there nothing that I can do??? I don't want to use Air b n b again if this is how it works, it seems there is no security in your money. You pay you go and if it is horrendous that is just tough luck?? It's not even like it is cheap this is the most i have ever paid for accomodation whilst at a course but all the guesthouses in the area were fully booked and I was recommended to use Air b n b... Ughh please advice anyone?? Would be extremley grateful.

Thanks

[Linda108 · Accepted solution]

@Emma213  Your story is a worst case scenerio for a traveler. So sorry this happened to you. Your posting is a bit hard for me to follow, but my understanding is that you stayed in what in your opinion was substandard and did not stay the whole booking due to that.  You contacted Air BNB to cancel but was not able to get another Air BNB booking due to lack of available places.  You were refunded for one day out of the three days booked. Is this accurate?

Now you are seeking advice  for how to report this listing and for how to get more refund.  Right?  If so, then you can flag the listing by clicking on the flag under the profile name and select that the place did not meet listing description.  Also, you can contact Air BNB seeking a refund for the substandard experience, but you must supply evidence of pictures and messages on the Air BNB messaging system supporting your claim.

In answer to your question about whether Air BNB as a booking platform checks out the listing, the answer is no.  A host is responsible for accurate description and the travelers provide accurate reviews.  If this place was so horrible I would think there would be reviews that reflected that.  If there were no reviews, I would not book a reservation, but perhaps you did not have a choice.  

In case you need help with how to contact Air BNB, here is a link to guide 

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Community-Help/Contact-Airbnb-A-Community-Help-Guide/m-p/16165#M...