Host cancelled less than 24 hours before check in

[Nick88]

I booked a room about 2 weeks ago and the pickings we're already slim then.  I've messaged the host right after booking with the usual "Hi, how ya doin?" stuff, and about a week before the reservation I asked about check in times.  The response was 6pm.  I was a little put off by the late check in time but didn't say anything and I figured we'd just find some way to kill time until then.  

Last night I went to sleep extra early (7:00PM) because I planned to get up early and finish packing so we could hit the road by 9AM.  I woke up this morning to find that I received a AirBnb cancellation message at 7:28PM that my reservation has been cancelled.  No message from the host, no appology or explanation, nothing.  

AirBnb obviously refunded my money and gave me what I think is a 10% credit.  But nearest thing available at this point is about 30-40 miles away from the booking that was already 25 miles away from where we are visting.  Now I'm suppose to accept this, or get a refund and book something else.  Booking even the cheapest hotel at the last minute is now going to cost us 2-3 times more than if we had just booked it weeks ago when we made this AirBnb reservation.

I understand that things happen, but how can I ever book with AirBnb again and have a resonable expectation that I won't waste a bunch of money planning a trip and have my accommodations yanked from under my feet at the last minute?  I'm stuck deciding between either cancelling my plans, or paying twice per night what the entire weekend would have cost me.  

This is beyond infuriating and AirBnb won't even give me the satisfaction of leaving a review because they left a "The host canceled this reservation the day before arrival. This is an automated posting." review on my behalf.

Cancellations like this are devastatingly expensive for the guest.  There should be a heavy penalty for host who do this without explanation.

[Michele551]

Does any of this happen if it is their first time? Because we were canceled on day of reservation yesterday and air B and B is waiving all their penalties bc it’s their first time. We even had to come out of pocket to find a new plce in the 10 minutes we had before boarding our plane with two very young children.

[Daniel2444]

Put yourself in a guests shoes. I believe the only things that should happen in the case of a host cancellation is that the guest be booked into a comparable place in the nearby area and if the price is higher than AirBnB and/or the host should pay the difference. If there are no AirBnB rentals nearby then the guest should be booked into a nearby hotel. Penalities on the host do not help the guest in their time of need. 

This is why there are I believe laws in many counties when booking hotels. Typically if you book a hotel and there is no room when you get there the hotel must by law put you in another comparable hotel and they pay the difference if the price is higher.  That's the fair and right thing to do. 

[Melanie33]

Nick, 

While I have every sympathy for you and hope you resolve your problems I think that all responses to you are very harsh without knowing the facts of why the host cancelled.  Unfortunately as a guest this is devastating at such short notice and if the host cancelled on a whim then I agree with all that has been said but we really don't know why they cancelled.

I hope that you find somewhere lovely to stay and have a really good time.

Mel

[Lauryn0]

The host had every opportunity to explain to the guest what happened and stayed silent. They deserve all the criticism they have received here plus some.

[Chris685]

This is a very poor response.

[Liz147]

This is so unacceptable.  I was due to check in at 3pm today - the airbnb advised me 45 minutes ago that the accom was unavailable.  I am sitting in our near empty house and with all the stress of selling, moving and looking for a new home this is the last thing we needed.  I am tired, frustrated and extremely disappointed.  If I have cancelled this long term booking for any reason the T&Cs state I would have lost my $2006 immediately.  I am about to check if my money has been refunded back to my credit card - if not...today started stressful now I'm so disappointed & tired.

[Linda108]

@Liz147 I hope you were able to contact Air BNB and request relocation assistance.  Sounds like you are in the middle of moving, which is stressful enough, and need a place to stay for a while.  I am sure you know that unlike a hotel chain in which individual host emergencies would not affect your reservation, Air BNB host can have emergencies that make it impossible to honor bookings.  However, Air BNB staff can assist with locating another acceptable listing.  That support is what you pay the Air BNB fees for.  

[Werner200]

Same thing happened to us.  Hosted by ** in Uitdam Netherlands cancelled 1hr before check in. We were already near the place after hours of driving. Broken and unreliable systems don't last. 

**[Name hidden due to privacy concerns - Community Center Guidelines]

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Werner200 what support did Airbnb give you. Sadly it is not possible to rely on 100% of hosts just as it is not possible to rely on 100% of hotels. What is key to me is the support that Airbnb give when this happens.

[Werner200]

For me what's important is that hosts are transparently reviewed and thus assessed by people booking. But hosts like this are protected. You cannot review unless you actually booked. So this behavior can be carried on with immunity. Even on this post, the name was erased, probably citing privacy. But their profiles are publicly listed on Airbnb - nothing private about their name. These practices render Airbnb unviable - a risk to would-be bookers. I won't touch them again.