Unresolved amenity issue

[Kari22]

I had a guest have to leave early bc of a death. She asked for a refund which I understand but it was labeled an unresolved amenity issue. What does this mean and does it affect my listing or rating? I'm very new to this and haven't had the best luck so far.

[Helen3]

Hi @Kari22

Have a look at Extenuating Circumstances under Airbnb's Help section.

Your guest will need to cancel and make a claim under extenuating circumstances providing evidence to back up their claim.

You do not under any circumstances refund your guest or cancel the booking. This is handled by Airbnb.

This will not affect your ratings.

Also have a look at the tips for new hosts and community guides on these forums to help you understand more about hosting works.

[Kari22]

Thank you for getting back to me so quickly. They already refunded her money (she was here on the 12th). I got an email from them but it wouldn't let me open it. I guess it was the amenity issue that I didn't understand.

[Mary167]

I am surprised Airbnb refunded a guest's money after she arrived.  Did they deduct the money from you or did Airbnb cover it?  I have allowed a guest to cancel a booking weeks before the date of arrival (I have a strict cancellation policy) but my understanding from Airbnb is that you should always wait for the guest to contact Airbnb and request moderation of the circumstances.  It would be unfair to you to have a guest cancel in the middle of a stay, when you have no opportunity to re-rent your space.

[Kari22]

Mary,

I was going through my emails and she said she was unable to check in... She did check in and I still have the messages on airbnb from her saying she had to come back and leave. I don't know whether to contact airbnb about this or not. They refunded her money immediately from my account. When I found out she did that I was extremely upset.

[Mary167]

I would definitely have contacted Airbnb to let them know she checked in.  I would be furious if somebody got their money back after checking in, unless there was something about your space the guest and Airbnb felt was unacceptable, which I don't think was the issue here.  Have you called them?  I find them very helpful every time I call, and that was the case before I became a superhost.  We have to always speak up for ourselves; otherwise Airbnb just accepts what the guest says, and especially if the guest checked in (and then lied about it) you should not have to forfeit payment.

[Kari22]

Yeah, her friend / coworker died and she decided to drive back instead of meeting friends here. I'm going to have to find airbnb's phone number. I couldn't believe she did that. She seemed like a really nice woman. Since then my guests have been great!

[Mary167]

Kari, Airbnb phone numbers in San Francisco are 

415 800 5959

855 424 7262

[Kari22]

Thanks so much. Called them. Not sure if they're going to refund my money but they are definitely investigating her  to make sure she doesn't do this to anyone else. It's not even about the money... It was only $32. But she shouldn't have said she couldn't check in bc of me.

[Mary167]

Absolutely, Kari,

We have to be careful to protect ourselves from any kind of negative reviews or input, and it's important to always let Airbnb know your perspective.  Otherwise they will just accept what they get from the guest.  This kind of thing can affect your Airbnb ratings, so please don't just let it go.  The only reason she could have to justify leaving, or even not checking in on the day of the booking, is if there was something wrong with the space that made it uninhabitable, or if you did or said something unprofessional and unacceptable.  This doesn't seem to be the case. Sounds like she changed her mind at the last minute (for whatever reason, and not necessarily the one she gave)  In any case it doesn't matter what her reason was.  If she had cancelled weeks earlier, giving you time to re-book, it would be different.  Hope you get it sorted out.  As you say the money is secondary to having Airbnb understand you are a victim here.

[Kari22]

It wasn't even about the money. I just didn't want any negative feedback or for her to do it to someone else. They are going to investigate on her side.. I feel like a tattle tale a little bit but it needed to be done. I'm glad I saved her responses so they could see she did check in and leave for whatever reason she wanted to give. I hope they let me know how it goes on her side.  

[Mary167]

Kari, I also feel a bit guilty when I give private critical feedback to Airbnb about a guest.  But we don't do ourselves or our fellow hosts any favors when we fail to report negative behavior by guests.  I almost never post anything negative for the publc to see.  If the people don't take out the trash or leave stuff in the kitchen for me to throw out or clean up I don't appreciate it, but it's not terribly serious. In those cases I just leave a very brief review that neither praises nor criticizes.  I had three girls here recently, and after they left I found a very long, jagged, deep scratch in my oak floor.  Probably a a bad wheel on luggage.  But they had to have seen it, and should have told me when I waved them off.  Unfornately I had already posted positive feedback so I was only able to text the guest and say I was upset about it. She didn't respond.   I have just added a $200 security deposit so that if something like that happens again I can report the damage and seek compensation.  But I do let Airbnb know about it, because they specifically ask us those questions for a reason. In your case the guests action could damage you if you didn't speak up in your defense.  I'm glad you did.

[Kari22]

I have yet to give bad feedback on anyone. It bothers me because this isn't a large town and she has friends here..and she knows where I live. I hope this issue gets resolved quickly and she isn't upset by it. I worry too much about what others think. I haven't done a security deposit, or even a cleaning fee.  I think if someone did real damage to my house I'd be really upset. Or if they hurt one of my animals. I've had people leave stuff in the trash and not recycle but it's what people are used to I guess. Thank you for all the help and if you have any more advice, I'll take it!