Air Conditioning Not Working - Reasonable Refund?

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Katrina27
Level 1
Toronto, Canada

Air Conditioning Not Working - Reasonable Refund?

Hi there,

 

I have been hosting for many months and had great reviews. Unfortunately, my AC was not working for my guests who left after a three-day weekend stay. I had a technician come prior to their stay (the night before) but he could not fix the problem. I made arrangements to come once they left. (The alternative was to have him come back during their visit!) Instead of canceling the reservation last minute, I let them know in a friendly and apologetic email. I got a response saying no problem and did not hear from them during the weekend.

 

However, upon check out, now they ask for a partial refund. Please note, my rate is extremely reasonable AND includes parking. What is appropriate? I don't want to be a jerk and pride myself on being a great host but I also go out of my way to accommodate guests and leave my house - it has to be worth my while.

 

Thanks so much in advance.

1 Best Answer
Ciarán12
Level 2
San Diego, CA

You need to give them a refund. You failed to supply them with what they had paid for and what you had sold them. All your excuses in the world are great but don't fix their problem. Why should they be out of pocket for your faulty AC unit?

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20 Replies 20

Same issue here. We rented a place for $275 per night (!) that advertised aircon in the living room and bedroom in a very hot area. We arrived to find both units broken. The owner claims she had no idea, yet there is a big fan placed in the bedroom. Hmmmmmm.  The owner offered to get a repair person out ASAP but they could not come until the following day- so we moved to a hotel on our own dime because at least she was trying to resolve the issue so I guess it is fair for us to pay for our hotel?? She has not offered us anything- no sort of discount or refund. She has a repair person there now. If it is not fixed I will want a full refund and we will just remain at the hotel with aircon. If a place is advertised with aircon, it needs to have aircon working- even if the local host doesn’t believe it is a big deal and that fans should suffice. We booked this place specifically for the aircon amenity. 

Tony-And-Una0
Level 10
Belfast, United Kingdom

The problem we have found is that even if you give refunds and sometimes quite generous ones,  they still give bad reviews.

 

They don't seem to understand that the refund is compensation for the problem and  agreement that the issue is settled. Otheriwse what's the point of being generous / reasonable.

If the guest and host agree on the discount compensation and the problem is resolved, a 5-star is appropriate because this would be a perfect host response. 

Just because a host issued a refund doesn’t make it right for the next person. The next renter needs to know what happened. Most people rent during a vacation. A few bucks isn’t fixing a vacation that is destroyed by sleepless nights. 

 

Refund is the least a host needs to do and a review is definitely the right thing to do. It’s on the host to provide the necessary accommodation. 

it’s like selling a cheese pizza without the cheese and then offering a 20% refund and expecting a positive review. 

Parker58
Level 1
Arlington, VA

We were recently guests in a nice house with a very friendly hostess.  The house was advertised as having a/c.  When we checked in on Friday night the owner apologized that the a/c was not working well.  Unfortunately, this was during two of the hottest days of the year so far.  She and I had specifically discussed the pending heatwave prior to the trip.  She said that she didn't know why it wasn't working and said it had been recently serviced.  She said that she was going to try to have looked at the next day (Saturday).  She said that there were fans in the bedrooms, and we could open windows at night.  Unfortunately, it was very uncomfortable, and my family members were pretty unhappy with me since I had chosen the property!  She later said that she had not been able to schedule a technician, as I had asked her to do both verbally and via text.  Had I known about the a/c problem beforehand we would have stayed somewhere else.  We were in town for a family funeral event and had two terrible nights of sleep.  The situation is especially frustrating because 1) she knew about the heatwave prior to the trip, 2) she lives next door and could easily have checked to be sure it was working properly, 3) if she had checked it a few days prior to our arrival, she could have time to schedule a tech to fix it, and, 4) I later saw that the outdoor compressor unit was 30 years old.  Aside from the a/c issue, she and the house were fine.  She was apologetic and gracious. 

 

I strongly feel that she owes us a partial refund.  I like the fact that another owner in the forum proactively offered a refund in the same situation. After reading these forums it seems that a 25-50% refund is reasonable.  I've asked for a 25% refund and am waiting for her response.  If she wasn't such a nice person, I would probably have asked for more.  I would be curious to get thoughts from the community on this.

Ciarán12
Level 2
San Diego, CA

You need to give them a refund. You failed to supply them with what they had paid for and what you had sold them. All your excuses in the world are great but don't fix their problem. Why should they be out of pocket for your faulty AC unit?