Sent a message and now have a booking?

[Miriam220]

Hi all,

My mum made a booking for the weekend, I got a call from her saying she'd left the details at home and couldn't get in touch with the host to say she'd arrived. She doesn't have a smartphone so couldn't get in touch at all.

I sent a message to the host to let her know my mum was outside, but I had to select a date to send a message. Now, Airbnb is texting the host to accept the booking - but I don't want to book! Host is happy for me to cancel, but I have nothing appearing on Trips or anywhere else.

I've not added any payment details to my account or clicked on 'book' so no payment has been taken.

What can I do?

[Helen3]

Ask the host to decline your inquiry

[Matthew285]

@Miriam220 it can be confusing, because to contact that host you had to select dates and make it seem like you were asking about making a booking.

I am assuming you just sent an Inquiry (instead of a Booking Request).

If the host has already responded to you, they can 

1. Ignore the Airbnb prompts to Pre-Approve or Decline you
2. Pre-Approve you (which should not make a confirmed reservation if you sent an Inquiry)
3. Decline you (declining Inquiries is not a super-big deal, but not a positive thing either).

[Sarah977]

@Miriam220    Well, hopefully your mom is not still standing outside 10 hours after you posted this!

Did you have access to the info your mom left at home, or does she live far away? If you did have access, the host's phone number would be on the confirmation, so assuming your mom had some kind of phone, she could have just called the host.