My son booked an AirBnB (that I'm paying for) about 2 months ago for 3 nights for a small wedding of 30-40 people in April. It is a large 8 bedroom house with several acres of land that specializes in events and even has a gazebo for weddings. The wedding plans were all disclosed to the host prior to renting to ensure we wouldn't have any issues. We also paid an additional $400 for 1 dog. Since then, the host has been attempting to add multiple fees.
1) Over a month ago, we decided to board the dog instead of bringing her along. The host refused to refund that $400 we paid up front and said "we'll see how things go after your stay", which made us think she's going to keep that as a deposit. I don't expect to ever see that money again.
2) Two weeks she asked for an additional security deposit of $500. I think that is unreasonable and unnecessary, especially considering she won't return the pet money.
3) Three days ago she said she's now requiring we rent a portable toilet. I'm not opposed to this and feel this is reasonable but should have been disclosed up front and in the contract.
4) Now today she is requiring an additional $500 for USE OF THE YARD!! The yard is part of the rental and should not be an additional fee. Who rents a house with a large yard and then charges extra to use the yard?
It is clear to me that she sees wedding dollars and is nickel and diming us for as much as she can get. Or course the big concern is that she'll cancel the reservation, which would be a major problem since wedding invitations have gone out and everything else is already booked. How can we protest all these bogus fees without risking losing the house due to a vindictive host?
