Unpleasant Start to Hosting experience

[Stella40]

Hello all,

I'm a complete newbie in this Airbnb world...so much to know and so many details and nuances.

My situation pertains to Automatic Booking Feature - I didn't know I had it on (went live 2 days ago) and so people booked, but my price was set extremely low and I didn't factor in a security deposit and cleaning fees and other things. Now I'd like to cancel, but there I'm warned about cancellation fees and *negative* review of some sort. I'm so discouraged by this start that I'm thinking of taking the traditional route to renting and de-activating my account. I'm not sure why I am at risk of being penalized for wanting to cancel a listing a week in advance and another a month in advance. Most people have beginner glitches, these are mine. Can anyone suggest please how to go about it? Thanks in advance. 

[David126]

All you can really do is call AirBnB and see if they will accept your I did not know what I was doing.

In the meantime snooze your listing at least whilst you work out how the system operates.

[Stella40]

Thanks for the reply, David. I take it you're referring to their customer service dept. 

[David126]

@Stella40

Exactly, give them a call. Seems to happen a lot so not sure how understanding they still are.

[Helen3]

As @David126 says why not go in and snooze your listing while you understand how the system operates.

How would you feel if a week before a trip you find yourself without somewhere to stay because a host hadn't set up their listing properly and decided to cancel your booking.

It's not the guests fault that you didn't set the right price, add in a cleaning fee or tick to have a security deposit. Unfortunately now all a guest will see is that as a new host you cancelled your first bookings and this unfortunately put them off.

BNB rightly takes host cancellation seriously because of the impact it has on guests.

I do appreciate it takes time to find your way around BNB but it is a lovely community and you will meet some lovely people.

Have a look at the community guides and help sections.

[Stella40]

First of all, I decided to keep the booking. Second, I don't live in the desert, there are multiple offerings in my area. 

This isn't an ideal situation, but everyone is entitled to make a mistake -  even the hosts. 

[David126]

@Stella40

I think you are missing the point, mistakes happen absolutley, who should be the person to take the consequences of that mistake? Somebody has to.

[Stella40]

Agreed, which is what I'm doing. But one of the listings is a few months away, and it's hard to believe that the person will find it hard to find a substitute condo to stay at with all this time available. Anyway, thank you for your input. 

[Cynthia-and-Chris1]

This is often a problem with new hosts - they are so quick to put their listing live, they overlook the details on how Airbnb works and are left with problems.  It is the host's responsibility to be fully aware of how the Airbnb platform works and the settings on their listings.

Definitely SNOOZE your listing while you figure this out.  Then turn Instant Book OFF.  Then read up on HOW DEPOSITS WORKS here on Airbnb.  And finally, DO NOT CANCEL these reservations - chalk them up to learnine experiences - because you WILL be PENALIZED.

[Stella40]

Thanks for your reply. I'm keeping the bookings. Not so much because of penalty concerns, but primarily because it's my glitch and I've decided to take responsibility for it. Do you know if I can add cleaning fees and security deposit POST the reservation being made? I missed it initially and will agree to the low price I accidentally set, but I would like to add the cleaning fee and security deposit. The question is whether it's permissible, post factum. 

[David126]

You can and should amend your listing but they apply to future bookings.

[Cynthia-and-Chris1]

Unfortunately not - the settings at the time of booking are the settings that stick.  You can message your guest and explain your case and see if they agree to being charged more (most probably won't) and if they do agree, you can send them a request for money through the Resolution Center.

[Alice-and-Jeff0]

Stella, 

These are basic premises for listing an Airbnb property and you alone are responsible for understanding how it works.  There are hundreds of resources available to you to help you learn, including this entire Community Forum.  

That being said, if you only have 2 reservations, use this as a 'live and learn" opportunity.  If you cancel, you will be penalized - you can read about this in the Help Center.  You can also learn how to turn off Instant Book, how to price your property, turn on Smart Pricing, cancel those resevations if you decide to do so and, finally, add a security deposit, verify your profile, ask for levels of verification prior to booking, and other options.  You will also learn how to deactive your account and snooze it if you want to take some time to learn about Airbnb.  

You can try to plead your case with Airbnb.  Use the search box above to look for the "Contacting Airbnb: A Community Help Guide".  From what I can see, you are only talking about 7 days of "low price" bookings and a potential of $150 in fines for cancelling.  

Here are some additional resources for you to use to become acclimated to Airbnb and it's process: https://www.airbnb-toolkits.com/my_toolkits

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/toronto-to-propose-airbnb-regulations-as-short-term-rent...

Good luck and welcome to Airbnb.  

[Stella40]

Thank you for your reply; I have lots and lots to learn! 🙂 I also work multiple jobs, and so time is of an essence. I've decided to keep the bookings because "I've already made that commitment" reason, but do you know if a cleaning fee and security deposit can be added post factum, i.e. post the reservation set/accepted? Thank you!

[Alice-and-Jeff0]

Not without the guest's approval - and they do not have to accept so my recommendation would be to let it go for these two reservations.  Please learn to use the Help Center.  There you will be able to get answers to many of your questions.  https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1511/can-i-add-cleaning-fees-to-a-confirmed-reservation