Airbnb not collecting rent

[Peter10]

I had a guest make a reservation for a 30 day stay in March for the following January.  About a month before check in I receive a message from Airbnb:

"The attempt to charge your guest, (guest name), for the amount due for reservation (reservation number) from (date range) was unsuccessful. The reservation is still active at this time, and we've sent (guest name) an email alert with a direct way to pay the balance.  
If your guest doesn't successfully submit payment or if they cancel the reservation before making the payment, Airbnb isn't liable for issuing your host payout. If you prefer to cancel the reservation, you can cancel without penalty at any time before the trip begins."

More messages followed:

"However, if we are unable to collect the payment for this booking by (date about 3 weeks before check in ), we will have to cancel the reservation for lack of payment."

Another:

"Since the check-in date is (check in date), you may cancel the booking in your Airbnb account and open your calendar to someone else who can complete their payment."

How can this be?  This is in violation of Airbnb's policy.  I can not enforce my cancellation policy in this case. Support told me they did collect but that there was a mix up with the credit cards.  This makes no sense.

Any suggestions for how to avoid this in the future and how to bring this up formally with Airbnb?

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Peter10 Airbnb is clear in its Ts&Cs that failure for it to collect payment is the hosts problem! My suspicion here is that there has been an unauthorised/fraudulent use of a credit card hence the late notice cancellation. You could try challenging Airbnb in the small claims court but I fear you will fail.

[Peter10]

Thanks,  I suspect that Airbnb does in fact not collect the money, or any part of it,  at the time the reservation is made.  Perhaps this is since its quite a bit (30 days stay) 9 months in advance.  When the cancellation period loomed (a month before the check in) Airbnb ran the credit card and it failed because the guest wanted to cancel (he told me he had an emergency).

[Shelley159]

Hi @Peter10 

As far as I know @Mike-And-Jane0 is right, but try not to stress before you know what's going on. It's happened to me more than once and turned out to simply be an expired card or processing issue. After a day or two I received an email saying all was well. Hoping your situation will play out the same way.

[Peter10]

This happened last year.  I have also received messages from Airbnb saying they did not collect on first try but this was different, as I described they kept sending messages about it.  I spent a bunch of time with support trying to get out the facts but there was alot of hem and haw from them.  The guest clearly violated policy but thats another matter.  My question is why did no money change hands.

[Frances3408]

@Peter10. Peter, there are so many parties (and thus agreements) to an Airbnb transaction that realistically our cancellation policies cant always be enforced.

It could be a card has expired since initial booking collection, as suggested above. Or, if a card holder can convince their bank that as they never received a good or service (without impunity) a charge back occurs, then it becomes an issue between Airbnb and the credit card company to uphold your cancellation policy. And I can imagine how many times that happens.

This is why Airbnb offered you a penalty free cancellation to free up your calendar.

[Peter10]

There is Airbnb and there is the guest. The issue is collection of the money when the reservation was made.  There was over 9 months  to do that.  Airbnb needs to clarify its actions since that was not done.  

This happened once previously with a short term rental and Airbnb sent me some money.