paint damage, no notice, ignored by super host

[Cassidy19]

I recently stayed at a condo in hilton head owned by a **[Host]. Apparently they were marking doors for something with white paint and there was no notice from **[Host] and NO signage, and an article of clothing got paint on it, which cannot be removed and it is ruined.**[Host] was informed immediately and he kept saying he was getting in touch with management. 4 days later and no response after messages from me I had to dig for a contact and get some answers of my own. FOUR WEEKS later, and lies in messages and being ignored by the host, my case being closed, and speaking to endless amounts of Air Bnb reps, they told me nothing can be done. They cannot Force the host to accept my refund request. I have photos and videos of what happened. We received an email about making a liability claim, but this has been going on for so long and nobody seems to actually be doing anything so I just want to refund on the stay and not the articles damaged. Any insight/advice?

**[Name hidden due to privacy reasons - Community Center Guidelines]

[Ana1136]

@Cassidy19 why would you want a refund on the stay and not the article damaged? It should be the other way around. The host should have definitely notified you if there was fresh paint in the apartment, but in reality you don't have a valid reason to get refund on the stay. On the other hand if you requested a refund on the clothing item if it was something expensive you might get a partial recompensation. But since the case is now closed I don't think it is worth to waste more time on it. 

[Cassidy19]

I tried for 3 weeks for air bnb to assist me in information on how to get a refund for the damaged article. The case is not closed, they had closed it once for no reason and without resolution and even contacting me so they either reopened it or opened a replicate case. The host was not responding to my messages and he was not responding to the property manager about the issue. He completely ignored it and it ended up being too late for air bnb to do anything therefore I was advised to request a refund.

[Mark116]

@Cassidy19  That makes no sense, of course that doesn't mean airbnb didn't tell you this, but they are the ones who close the cases, so it is never really 'too late' unless they want it to be.  i agree you should be trying to get compensation for the item,not asking for a refund.  Some people say you should keep calling airbnb until you get a customer service rep who has common sense, that would be my advice.  

[Cassidy19]

@Mark116  thank you! Its been incredibly frustrating with them telling me they’ve documented things and someone will get back to me and none of that ever happening or taking days, but i will keep trying! we had been waiting to hear back from the host like he said he would, and we never did so it was too late for air bnb to “issue a full refund” is what I was told 😕

[Sarah977]

@Cassidy19  As others have said, why were you asking for a refund? Of course you aren't due a "full refund" because of a damaged item. You should be claiming for the replacement value of the item that was ruined. Maybe you did and just aren't explaining it clearly here.

If you did ask for a refund of your stay, that's ridiculous. If you damaged a host's sheets in some irreparable manner, would you think it fair to be charged again for the cost of the accomodation, or charged for replacement of the sheets?

[Cassidy19]

@Sarah977 thank you for your response! This has been answered already and the issue is still being dealt with.

[Sarah977]

@Cassidy19  Then it does sound like you're just dealing with an incompetent rep. Have you been dealing with them by phone? If so, try another route- Twitter, or Airbnb messaging. And when you communicate with Airbnb using the written word, I've found you have to be extremely concise and simple in stating what happened and what you are requesting. No parapraphs, just bullet-point form in chronological order. 

I stayed at xxx listing on such and such a date.

There was wet paint on the doors of the unit but no warning signs.

My coat was ruined by the wet paint and can't be cleaned.

I am requesting $xx for replacement value of my damaged item.

They seem to be dismissive of communication that isn't stated easily enough for a kindergartener to understand. And if you've been dealing with them via phone, they are known for never calling back, despite what sound like sincere promises to do so.

[Cassidy19]

@Sarah977 😂 It has actually been multiple reps! Every time I call they do the usual “let me take a look at all these notes” and then the “I don’t want to repeat what is already written down but...”

phone and the app have been my routes, I may have to create a Twitter just for this 😭 thank you so much for your advice!

[Mike1034]

@Cassidy19 How did you request for the refund or the damage? The standard procedure is to go through Resolution center and file a claim.

You can send a Request for money from the resolution center to the host. And send photos of evidence and amount of damage with invoice or online estimate of the item damaged. If you don't get a response from the host after 72 hours, you can click Invovle Airbnb button. Then a case manager from Trust and Security will be assigned to you.

[Cassidy19]

All of that was done. I tried to work with the resolution center for 2 weeks, during that time they had closed my case once (mentioned above). After 3 weeks air bnb just now sent me the email about the claim process and I submitted it. The only time I have heard from the host during this time was immediately after I requested the refund.