Tremendous leak in property, forced to cancel stays...

[Tim789]

Hi All,

As you can see from the subject there is a massive leak in my property which has put the Airbnb room out of commission for over a week. I am trying my best to avoid cancellation fees by asking guests to cancel and doing my best to find guest alternate accommodation. Is there any support from Airbnb on this?

[Ana1136]

@Tim789 you can't ask guests to cancel. You just need to call Airbnb and have them cancel the reservations, this falls under extenuating circumstances and they won't charge any fees. 

[Emilia42]

@Tim789 

This spring I had an ice jam on the roof and there was some water running down the walls into my apartment. The guest and I both agreed that we should cancel (2 hours before check in.) I called Airbnb and sent them pictures while I was on the phone with them. The situation qualified for their extenuating circumstances policy so they were able to cancel the reservation (with my proof) at no penalty to me. The problem stopped once the ice melted (a few days later) and I opened my calendar backup to guests. 

If you can send proof, try calling Airbnb and asking them to help you cancel/relocate guests.

[Helen3]

@Tim789 

You absolutely shouldn't be asking your guests to cancel. You are doing them an enormous dis-service.

Although you are an experienced host with over 100 bookings, it sounds like you haven't familiarised yourself with the basics around how Airbnb works.

You can ask Airbnb to cancel the bookings under their Exceptional Circumstances policy (see Airbnb Help Centre).

They will offer the guests a complete refund, 10% credit to help them find somewhere else and help in finding alternative listings. 

Call Airbnb now and stop asking your guests to cancel.

[Tim789]

Thanks @Helen3, I appreciate the advice and have raised with Airbnb. As I'm sure you can appreciate it can be quite daunting to risk cancellation fees, as despite hosting over 100 bookings, this is my first time cancelling one. You'll also be horrified to know that the only option Airbnb gives when cancelling bookings that doesn't risk cancellation fees is to ask guests to cancel. 

I appreciate the help from @Ana1136 , @Susan17 , @Emilia42  delivered in a way more fitting to what I assumed the Airbnb community was made up of.

[Susan17]

@Tim789 

This falls under the Extenuating Circumstances policy, as @Emilia42 and @Ana1136 mentioned above. Here's the specific clause from the EC policy. Make sure you have it to hand, and quote it directly when dealing with Customer Support, because they're very often unaware of the details of the policies themselves. Hope you manage to get the leak fixed soon!