Smart pricing switched itself on . Festival dates snapped up for 1/3 of normal price.

[Jude56]

Just spent over an hour on the phone as just received a booking for the Edinburgh festival and the price was only £100 per night.  Airbnb have reported the issue to the technical team but I am not hopeful.  I am unsure what to do.   I know I did not turn smart pricing on and it is not something I could have done accidentally.

If  i cancel the booking will the dates be blocked and will I be fined?  Airbnb said I should ask the guest to cancel but I really cannot see that happening.

i am a new host please help

[Jeff158]

@Jude56 

You are not the first one today, its a bug in the system, read the post below.

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Hosting/Smart-pricing-activated-by-itself/m-p/1032937#M255293

[Airbnb]

Hello @Jude56 ,
Thank you @Jeff158 ! A few hosts here in the Community Center reported that they have seen prices on their calendar change and received some bookings that did not reflect the prices they expected given their current settings.
Our engineering team has identified the issue and is presently working on fixing it. We realize that this is frustrating and are handling it with urgency. 
Thank you for your patience.

[Sarah977]

@Airbnb  I have seen you (and who exactly is Airbnb4?  Are the forum moderators now becoming as anonymous as the guests?) post this message to a few hosts who have experienced this problem. But you aren't offering them any solution for the bookings they've received at the wrong price. Are they just supposed to host for 50% of their normal rate because of a glitch in the system?

[Airbnb]

Update: thank you all for your patience. We apologize for any confusion or inconvenience the Smart Pricing issue is causing you. We know some of you received bookings during the time of the disruption. For those of you who received bookings that were affected by the disruption, we are in the process of reaching out to each of you individually to ensure appropriate compensation for those nights. You should receive an email with next steps within the next few days.

[Jennifer1804]

Is the issue ongoing? I am listed a base price $50/night and just booked at $45 for 2 nights. That $10 loss is the cost of cleanup.

[Adela57]

Happens ALL the time I guess they're hoping you'll just eat the difference. 

[Jennifer1804]

Is it always a mistake that causes a loss? Shpuld we buffer by simply upping prices by 10%?

[Gilbert124]

Dear colleagues, my advice is to keep the lower side of the smart pricing at the same value as your own pricing to avoid such a loss should the system auto changeover. If you want to charge £100,  also set the auto pricing rage to £100 - £200 and you will be safe!!