Requested cancellation of guest stay on 1st day due to guest breaches

[Aaron690]

I am a host. My listing is a 2 bedroom which has a pool and allows max 5 people. I recently had a booking where the guest stated they would have 2 adults and 2 kids. They were meant to stay 2 nights. Upon checking they had the 2 adults and 2 kids plus an additional 3 kids which they stated were not staying, only there for a birthday cake cutting so I allowed it and proceeded with the check in. After checking them in and getting them settled I left the property. 

After about 2 hours I returned to the property to find about a dozen additional cars completely blocking access to the property, and after walking through and taking pictures, I saw there were about 60+ persons on the property (despite COVID concerns). I spoke with the guest and asked them to disband this party immediately as it was against the rules of my booking and far exceeding the allowed guest count, they agreed and said they would have everyone leave. A half hour passes and no one had left so I call the police and have them come to the property to remove the persons who are not supposed to be there.

At the end of this ordeal I told the guests that I was not comfortable with this reservation because of their complete disregard for my property or my rules and asked them to leave. I Immediately called Airbnb to request the cancellation of the reservation in progress, waited an hour before speaking to someone, who quickly heard my case and said they’d escalate to a team member who can assist. It has almost been a week and I haven’t heard back from anyone. 

I just want to have the reservation cancelled so the guest is refunded their money before they think I’m keeping it on purpose and leave me a bad review because of it. How long before Airbnb gets back to you on cases like these?

[Linda108]

@Aaron690   Hello and welcome to Air BNB.  It appears these guests and their disregard for your rules were your first.  I am sorry this has happened.  Under normal circumstances, Air BNB customer servicce can respond quickly but these are not normal times and the CS is quite overwhelmed.  From what you have posted, I don't believe the guest would be due any refund unless you specifically authorized it.  If you have received full payment and want to refund, then simply use the send money option for the reservation and send the appropriate amount.  They won't get their fees back, however.  Also, please do provide an honest review of the guest behavior.  Hopefully, your next guest will be the type of guest that enjoys not abuses your listing.

[Colleen253]

@Aaron690  I can imagine the guest leaving you a less than favorable review either way. They  broke your house rules with extreme disregard, LIED to you repeatedly, caused you stress and headaches, so why should you lose out on the booking fee ? JMO, and you know what they say about those....

Consider adding something to your house rules to address this type of situation, both as a deterrent and as a way to gain some leverage when dealing with the situation when Airbnb CS can’t be reached (which is always, these days). “Violating our no parties rule or our maximum occupancy limits is cause for immediate termination of stay with no refund.”

[Aaron690]

Thank you so much! This was a rough first stay... I may try the send money out. Was waiting to see if Airbnb would process a refund from their end but that may be the best thing to do - even though they broke the rules I don’t feel right keeping their money since I had them leave on the same day without staying a single night. Again, thanks for your help and suggestions!

[Sarah977]

@Aaron690  If you have not yet been paid out for this reservation, do not use the "send money" feature!. What can happen is that you send money and then Airbnb also refunds the guest. If you ever want to reimburse money to a guest, always wait until your payment appears in your bank account or Paypal, or whatever payout method you use.

And I would not be inclined to refund anything to the guests- they didn't care at all about respecting you and your property and outright lied to you- why would you be concerned about them feeling you are ripping them off? Why reward them for bad behavior, which just tells them it's okay to go on do this to other hosts?

[Debra300]

@Aaron690,

I am going to speculate that the guest was either a local or a returning Bahamian due to amount of people at the party.  Sometimes, folks take liberties because they "home", and they can do as they please.  You may feel compelled to refund money, because you don't want to get a bad reputation within your local community, but the guest was wrong on all fronts.  If you want to give a refund of the room rate, I recommend that you deduct any transaction fees that you have paid Airbnb.  Depending upon which option you selected, your fees could have ranged between 3% to 16%.  

[Huma0]

@Aaron690 

Did the guests specifically ask to be refunded?

I agree with others here that they should not be entitled to a refund. Sure, they paid for a two night stay for two adults and two kids and did not get that. HOWEVER, they got to throw a party for 60+ people in your property. I am not sure of the going rates in your area, but I am pretty sure booking a party venue for 60+ normally costs considerably more than booking accommodation for a family of four.

Even if you still think they are entitled to a refund, this should not be a full refund. You need to take into account any fees you have paid Airbnb but also cleaning and laundry costs to turn over the property for the next guests and YOUR time, which is not only about cleaning and laundry but also correspondence and admin. Why should these dishonest and disrespectful guests get all that for free at your expense?

[Nora86]

Unfortunately getting the kind of help a host needs in cases like that is no longer a choice with Airbnb. They don’t even have their own teams answering the phone. Basically they have an answering service.  In the last two months not once had I received a call back on pressing issues. Hosts are on their own. I have a contract and house rules that I have potential clients sign. So far it has helped me to deter many unwanted guests.