@Kia272 - In addition to what @Sharon1014 wrote, if I am remembering correctly, hosts were also not given the opportunity to be able to work directly with their guests to offer / invite them to re-book at a later date. Also, some guests reported that they actually would have been reimbursed by their travel insurance for the cancellation, but because hosts could not speak to them prior to the refund, this option could not be explored - and was definitely not explored by Airbnb. No other short-term rental booking platform that I am aware of handled Covid-related cancellations in this manner.
I'm with @Ian-And-Anne-Marie0 and @Mark116 on this - Airbnb exhibits a pattern of unilaterally violating hosts' contractual rights, and this should concern us all. Link to the law firm handling the class action suit here:
https://www.classlawgroup.com/airbnb-host-class-action-lawsuit/
"Gibbs Law Group and Traverse Legal have filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of hosts who allege that when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Airbnb seized funds that belonged to hosts while claiming that the money would be refunded to guests.
Although Airbnb promised guests full refunds if they canceled due to COVID concerns between March 14 and April 14, 2020, Airbnb has now allegedly failed to provide those refunds to many guests—and to hosts, Airbnb has paid out a paltry 25% or less of what they were supposed to receive under their agreements with guests. This shortchanging of hosts flies in the face of Airbnb’s own insistence, in its Terms of Service, that all trip bookings are agreements solely between hosts and guests, and that Airbnb is merely an intermediary.
If you’re a host on Airbnb and haven’t been paid fairly for canceled trips, you may have a claim. Speak with one of our class action attorneys today."