Guest Refunds Should Not Be Insured Against Host Revenue

Guest Refunds Should Not Be Insured Against Host Revenue

I have written about this before in different contexts, but it continually happens, and with 33 rooms, I host here, it becomes a significant loss of revenue.

Guest reservations are insured against our revenue if the guest has an extenuating circumstance, weather, sickness, etc.. and can prove this with some magic paper we are not allowed to see they are refunded in full. We are not a travel insurance company; the guests should be able to opt-in or out of travel insurance to cover themselves for these types of circumstances. Air BnB takes the liberty of deciding what circumstance is worthy of a refund with our revenue. I am shocked every time I think about this, or it occurs, which is often.

Different Example same concept; We had someone rent a studio on the 5th floor. The heat broke one day before her arrival, and it needed apart. I reached out to the guest and offered her the penthouse two-bedroom suite with the same view on the same side of the building. She agrees to move and room. Proceeds to come to the Lodge and check in to the room calls air BnB asks for a full refund as she didn't like the view, and it was not her original room she booked.
She agreed to the move I held out this room for her and now am out of the entire reservation.  The view is identical. 

I spent 30 minutes with an air BnB agent reading of a script talking in circles like speaking to a robot frustrating, to say the least. This woman was refunded in full and should not have been. I gave her upgraded accommodations with the same view that she agreed to and checked into.

Frustrating at best, and it makes me think that I could spend all these refund dollars bumping up my SEO for my website and be done with this stuff and take my rooms and run.

1 Reply 1

@Stephanie892  Totally agree, hosts should not have to suffer loss of income because a guest failed to purchase travel insurance.