3 night stay in peak season which should have a 7 night minimum stay

[Serena216]

Hi all

I advertise on Airbnb and other websites for my holiday cottage.  I always have a minimum 7 night booking during peak season in summer and for some reason this was not reflected in the calendar on Airbnb for summer 2019.  A guest booked in for 3 nights July 26-29 2019.  I explained to her, immediately, that the property is only available for 7 nights and asked her if she wanted to amend her booking or cancel.  She has, via Airbnb, refused to amend the booking but will not cancel it.  I do not want to have to receive a cancellation fee from Airbnb of 50 dollars as this booking is 9 months away and I have explained to the guest (within 10 minutes of receiving her booking) that this booking will not be possible for such a short stay.  Does anyone know if Airbnb will definitely charge me this cancellation fee if I cancel the booking - I have been trying to contact the guest (3 times so far after the initial conversation) to ask her to cancel the booking so that I can initiate a refund for her but she does not reply.  What can I do?  Thanks in anticipation.  ps I have been with Airbnb for about 18 months and this is the first time I have had to cancel anyone.

[Susan151]

I am afraid that the guest is correct. You didn't update your calendar properly. They booked a valid reservation. There is no reason that they should be forced to cancel their reservation.

If this were me, I would just leave it be and fill the dates around their reservation as best as I could. Having a cancelation notice on your listing can have very difficult consequences.

[Jackie148]

Is it instant book can't you have up to 3 cancellations per year without penalty? This is an honest mistake or a glitch. 

[Serena216]

Hi Jackie

Yes, it's instant book and this has caused the problem but I think Airbnb will cancel with no penalties.  I don't know how it will affect me being able to be a superhost ...

Thanks for your comments

[Fred13]

@Serena216 Your calendar, if not mistaken, is still allowing guests to book only 3 days during next 'summer', I tried duringJune, 2019. A few times this has happened to me (my mistake), and I simply filled the other 4 days with someone else and left it at that.

   What would really bother me, is the guest totally ignoring my messages. And no I wouldn't worry about $50 if I didn't want them to come.

   I gather preserving the chance of being a Superhost is not a consideration, a chance killed for a full year by cancelling someone. 

[Serena216]

Hi Fred Thanks for coming back to me. Eventually I spoke to Airbnb and explained the situation and they cancelled the booking for me and waived the cancellation fee.  The guest has still not replied to me!  

Many thanks for your help and support.

Serena