I made a booking few weeks ago, in the website it was only written that I was required a deposit of 24 euros in addition. I found it ok.
6 days before the booking I received a message where the host tells me that I need to pay 300 euros extra as deposit if I want to receive the key because according to them the last time I booked with them, my family damaged the bed and the stairs.
This statement made me really upsent since, first of all, I had never booked with them before and therefore this was not totally true and second, she is sending this message when cancelling will lead me to 0.00 refound. Why is she accepting people that, according to here, damaged her property? is she not checking the guests before approving them? I was so upset, because if she would have the time to had a close look, she would have noticed that it was not me the person who she thought I was.
Either way, I contacted airbnb support center and they basically told me that they can not do much. They advice me not to give the 300 euros since it was not oficially stated there in the website (which either way I was not planning to do) but somehow they could not helped me to cancel and get my money back.
I assume that they contaced the host because after some days, she wrote back that I do not need to pay the 300 euros deposit and that me and my family are welcome. By the time I had already booked another accomodation and made new plans.
The airbnb agent advice me to cancel the reservation and ask for a refund however she also made clear that this is on the side of the host, who will decide if I get something back and how much.
I do not want to cancel because the only thing I have left is the chance to write a review.. I feel so dissapointed and angry. The arrival would have been tomorrow 18 of december.. I wish I could warn more users, because the way that she behaved gave me a bad feeling. I can't believe she wanted me to give her 300 euros in cash for the key..