BEWARE of "Guest requests that you cancel"

BEWARE of "Guest requests that you cancel"

It happened to me. And I'm seeing that there have been many others like me.

 

All hosts~ please be aware~

 

Upon receiving the message "GUEST requests that you cancel" you will be faced with 2 options (1) Cancel (2) Keep reservation.

 

Unless you DO want to be penalized for a host cancellation - DO NOT click on cancel.

 

Click on "keep reservation" because the guest does not need the host's consent or approval or agreement to cancel. This is just another ploy to TRICK hosts into taking the blame.

 

Guest requests that YOU cancel - the second you click CANCEL this will become a HOST CANCELLATION. 

 

This will negatively affect your commitment rate, and Airbnb will do nothing about it. They will say, you (host) agreed to cancel so this is a host cancellation - and you only have yourself to blame for agreeing to cancel. 

 

 

182 Replies 182
Janine330
Level 2
Banff, United Kingdom

I have a guest wants just to cancel, I have 48 hours to respond! The problem fir guest Is I have  a no refund policy. They are in Northern Ireland which has been out under lockdown- how do I sort this one...? 
I gave contacted support and awaiting response...  I’m a super host and have worked card to let one Person  ruin its or have me charged!  

@Janine330  If the guest wants to cancel, they can cancel, the end.  There is nothing you have to do.  If the guest wants you to cancel to get around the $$ issues related to the cancellation policy and terms, that's on them. 

@Janine330 Just decline the request to cancel as it is not you who wants to cancel. The guests got another option to choose to cancel all by themselves and they will then get refunded according to your cancellation policy - and it all happens automatically. If the guest booked after March 14th Airbnb's policy explains to every guest that it is on them if they choose to book - Covid19 related cancellations are not considered an extenuating circumstance  (the pandemic is no longer be a surprise to anyone). Guests are even encouraged to choose listings with a flexible cancellation policy and are explained that it will be the host's cancellation policy that counts if they have to cancel due to Covid. 

Thank you for your input, I’m still waiting on support to get back to me!

my email just had a red button saying Cancel Or keep reservation ?

soooo complicated!  Seems more fir the guest than just! 

Zacharias0
Level 10
Las Vegas, NV

Thats nothing new although the wording may be. To the fly by night hosts or those who are new it may catch them off guard the first time. To those who have been doing this awhile we are use to keeping our guard up and reading everything twice.

@Zacharias0

I was informed that for guest cancellations, the host is not penalized. Then when I got the message, I thought to myself "strange wording~"

 

But in any case THE GUEST sent the request and I personally did not want to host that particular guest anyway (so of course I did not want to click on "keep reservation")

 

Despite the icky feeling I was getting from the wording I clicked on cancel. I'm sure some people will not fall for this..... but I did and I have seen that there have been people like me. 

 

Great if you already knew~ but not everyone has your level of experience 🙂 

 

I'm a new host on my 4th month of hosting.....and just wanted to warn new hosts to be careful so they can learn from my mistake. 

@Jessica-and-Henry0 actually you have 24 hours to respond, I try not to accept too quickly. 

if your multitasking you can make a mistake real quick. 

once a was driving I gave my guest an 50% discount.

the sun was hitting the phone screen at the time.

we all have some funny stories I'm sure 

 

@Bruce43

 

Very true about multi-tasking which I personally find a bit difficult to suppress in my personal life because my job as an interpreter is ALL about multi-tasking 🙂 

 

Anyhoo, in that particular case, it was an instant book (my first) and I didn't really want to host that person so when I got that message soon after the IB notification I was actually kind of relieved - which led to a hasty "cancel" click rather than trusting my gut that something just didn't feel right. When I contacted Airbnb Help later, they told me I should have just declined to host claiming "not comfortable hosting". It was a good learning experience that cost me ONLY my commitment rate. 

 

@Jessica-and-Henry0      I think you are learning fast.Airbnb's platform is guest friendly.ot plug and play more like plug and pay.

 

lots of trick questions.i was wondering is Airbnb private or a public company because I see pressure to pay the stockholders some dividends. 

I didn't think you could decline an instant book for ANY reason??  You can if you are not comfortable? I get third party bookings all the time where the person is using someone ele's accountant, has no reviews or verifications and I got penalized by "A". They hid my listing for I don't know how long it will be and the account holder got refunded meanwhile I lost out on the chance to book the room that night and probably for the next two weeks.

Jiw0
Level 10
Chiang Mai, Thailand

"Funny story" is one thing, losing Superhost status, losing all income due as per the cancellation policy plus some cancellation penatlies on top when it was the GUEST who went back on the original booking agreement is SOMETHING ELSE. 

I agree! "A" is hard on their hosts.. We are punished every which way.

@Jessica-and-Henry0 actually I am sure there are many quotes about learning from one's mistakes. 

Thank you very much for posting this information. We are new to hosting, enjoying it a great deal, and we have had really nice guests. I am sure this information will come in handy at some point in time. It is great to know before the situation arises and before I hit the button.

Mary