We were first time AirBnB guests/users. NEVER AGAIN

[Misty33]

We were ignorant and didn't know the "rules" of AirBnB's.  First time users and booked an Unit on South Beach in Miami.  That week we left, our daughter had some health concerns, had to have a medical procedure completed and left her with an open wound.  Got the OK from the doctor to go on vacation with the open wound with instructions on how to care for it.  We arrived at the Unit early, went in, the elevator was broken (advertised with a working elevator), the stairwell smelled of alcohol, urine and just dirt, the Unit next to the one we rented had bags of garbage sitting by it.  When we entered the unit it was not clean, the bed in the bedroom was dirty and the pull out couch (where our daughter would have slept) had BLOOD on it.  THAT WAS TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE TO US!  Immediately we called hotels and found a beautiful and very very clean hotel room.  This Airbnb unit was not something we were comfortable in, even without our daugthers open wound.  We left, cancelled our reservation and stayed in a hotel.  Unknown to us, we NEEDED to take pictures and have evidence of the condition of the unit.  We did not contact the host or Airbnb prior to leaving and cancelling.  There was nothing the host could have done to make us feel comfortable staying there.  The HOST went on to communicate with me that he was able to accept a last minute reservation and he was able to rent the Unit out during the time we would have been there, YET he still refuses to refund us all of our money.  Airbnb says that they can't do anything to help us without pictures.  The host went to the unit immediately after he received our cancellation and he cleaned the soiled bed and the blood from the pull out couch.  Yes, we were ignorant with the rules about taking photots.  BUT, the host is out NO MONEY, in fact the host made a lot more than he should have with our lack of a refund and someone else paying for the Unit also.  NEVER RECOMMENDING AIRBNB TO ANYONE AND GOING TO MAKE SURE AS MANY HEAR ABOUT OUR DISGUSTING EXPERIENCE and the lack of Airbnb to back the customer.  It's pathetic that he's allowed to keep our money and take another reservation.  

[Jonathan6 · Accepted solution]

Sorry to hear about your experience, but the requirement by AirBnB is no different than in any dispute you may have when ordering a good or service, it's your obligation to be able to prove what you are stating and how else to do that other than pictures?  How else could ABB know?  If every renter that was unhappy could just say the place had issues with no proof, the entire model breaks down.  Further when you enter into a contract and have an issue you have an obligation to allow the other party to correct the issue, you chose not to do that.  You also chose not to contact ABB immediatly to see if they had another location for you, this is very common practice and ABB is very guest centric.

You do have recourse though, as you state the owner was able to mitigate his damages, if that is so, then you have a right to a refund to the extent that he mitigated the damages, he can't double dip.  I suggest you look at making your claim in small claims court, but be aware you have to bring your case where there is nexus, in this case in Miami.  If the sum is worthwhile, you may be able to hire a local attorney on contingency to take your case and only appear if it goes to trial.

Just out of curiosity, was this property reviewed?  If so what were the reviews?  I personally am aware of a few Miami based companies that notoriously rent out sub-standard locations.

Next time look at how long a unit has been on the market, check the reviews, find Superhosts, make sure there are plenty of pictures that represent the entire location (inside and out) and ask questions up front of the host (non-responsive hosts usually mean bad hosts). 

ABB is not for everyone, it's great many times to get more for your money or find a very unique situation, but most locations are not hotels or resorts and you need that mindset when using ABB.

[Misty33]

Thank you! We have considered small claims.  I appreciate your help and I know ignorance is no excuse for us, that is really the truth- we expected it to be just fine and when it wasn’t, we just wanted to find a place that was clean.  

[Mark116]

@Misty33 

Why would you expect airbnb to just take your word for something? 

If they gave people refunds without any form of evidence, airbnb would become a scammer's paradise.

[Misty33]

The point is he was able to book the place - if he were actually out any $$, but he accepted another booking and still refuses to refund us.  I can understand if he were actually out money,  but he was not.  So refund us because he is double dippping! That is allowed?

[Mark116]

@Misty33 Every host has a specific cancellation policy, which the guest agrees to when they book.

If you cancel then unless there are extenuating circumstances, whatever the host's policy is, is what is enforced with regard to refunds.  Many hosts will give guests a refund if they are able to rebook, but that is outside of the policy, they don't have to do it, and it's not in any policy agreement.  

[Misty33]

Well they should have to refund, they should not be allowed to double dip.  That is just unethical anyway.  He was not out anything.  I understand NOW that proof should have been provided.  At the time, we were a bit of a panic wondering where we would end up.  Thank you for your input.  I still believe the guy is very unethical.  We were not educated on the whole airbnb process and how it all works, we trusted that this would not happen.  Our mistake for thinking everything is as it's listed and that people are honest and not unethical.  Misty

[Misty33]

Fraud, unethical and just simply greed are the reasons someone would not refund, AFTER they have been able to rebook.  Plain and simple.  

[Ann489]

@Misty33     So sorry that you had this experience.   As a host and frequent guest myself, I can assure you that this is NOT typical for an Airbnb experience.  One question comes to mind when reading your post.  You said that you arrived at the unit early.  Did you arrange an early check-in?  Could it be possible that the unit had not been cleaned yet?

[Ann489]

@Misty33     So sorry that you had this experience.   As a host and frequent guest myself, I can assure you that this is NOT typical for an Airbnb experience.  One question comes to mind when reading your post.  You said that you arrived at the unit early.  Did you arrange an early check-in?  Could it be possible that the unit had not been cleaned yet?

[Misty33]

No we were not that early-as I recall maybe 30 minutes or so.   It was cleaned already, or what the host considered clean.  

[Misty33]

So we were ignorant about that piece, obviously.  I assumed EVERYONE IS honest and we are honest people.  Obviously ignorance about knowing AirBnB policies is not excuse, at least not in your eyes.  Take our word for something - well we were actually worried about where we were even going to stay - so we were on the phones calling hotes as and frantically searching for a CLEAN place to stay.  We ended up in a beautiful hotel and did not cost much more than the AirBnB.  And when I read comments like yours, I believe hotels are the way to go.  We are not scammers, we are a normal family who heard about AirBnB and thought it was going to be a great way to travel.  I get what you are saying, but when you are the VICTIM in the situation like this, your words are pretty meaningless and harsh.

[Misty33]

So we were ignorant about that piece, obviously.  I assumed EVERYONE IS honest and we are honest people.  Obviously ignorance about knowing AirBnB policies is not excuse, at least not in your eyes.  Take our word for something - well we were actually worried about where we were even going to stay - so we were on the phones calling hotes as and frantically searching for a CLEAN place to stay.  We ended up in a beautiful hotel and did not cost much more than the AirBnB.  And when I read comments like yours, I believe hotels are the way to go.  We are not scammers, we are a normal family who heard about AirBnB and thought it was going to be a great way to travel.  I get what you are saying, but when you are the VICTIM in the situation like this, your words are pretty meaningless and harsh.

[Lisa723]

@Misty33 so sorry about your terrible first experience. You really got unlucky with that host. I hope you will give Airbnb another try, taking @Jonathan6's advice above about selecting the property. Personally I always refund any amount I am able to recoup with rebooking, but it is a host's right to adhere to their own cancellation policy.

[Heather133]

@Misty33 What an awful experience! Did the property have previous 5 star reviews? As @Lisa723 said, I hope you'll give Airbnb another try. And @Jonathan6 is absolutely spot on with his advice about reviews, communication and Superhosts. I always refund in full if I'm able to rebook after a cancellation and I suspect many other hosts do as well. 

[Misty33]

They have had good reviews and bad reviews.  It was listed as a 5 star I believe and it was described as "sparkling clean"     After hearing from good hosts like you and some others, we will try it again some day.  Thank you!  MIsty