Major issues when canceling due to terrorism

[Robert8829]

Our host did not care about the safety and well being of their guests. We had a trip planned to New Orleans on Jan 1st but had to cancel due to terrorist attack at 3AM that day. The city of New Orleans website stated that the area was an active scene and to stay off of Bourbon from Canal to Dumaine and from Royal to Dauphine ( I had screenshots to prove it and show I wasn’t just making it up). The Govenor also declared a state of emergency.

We requested a refund from the host and was denied 3 times because the location was “not affected nor close” to where the horrific events took place. The host also told me that guests were enjoying their property within gated grounds and that the Sugar Bowl was still happening (which was later postponed 24 hours due to security concerns). The host cared more about their money than the safety of their guests. They were also unable to understand the severity of the matter, if you ask me nothing is more severe than terrorism happening in the same area you are supposed to sleep and take your family (with small children) to. That isn’t even mentioning the several IED’s that were placed and later found in the French Quarter.

The host refused the refund THREE TIMES violating AirBNB’s Major Disruptive Event Policy which includes terrorism and bombs which was the exact reason behind my cancellation. Oddly enough, I had to inform AirBNB of their own policy as well because they were allowing the host to deny the refund. I did end up getting the full refund after all, but the poor behavior didn’t stop there.

AirBNB sent me an email asking to review the stay- it stated I could leave a review even if I didn’t check in. I wrote a kindly worded review stating my concerns and the host disputed my review and made AirBNB take it down. Needless to say, I should be able to cancel a stay due to such events with NO QUESTIONS ASKED. The fact it had to go back and forth is absolutely unacceptable on both the host and AirBNB.

Host was very rude and it appears that they can’t take constructive criticism as they publicly argue with anyone who leaves them a negative review. 

[Helen3]

I lived most of my life in cities affected by terrorist threats and can understand why these are frightening if you're travelling to an area that recently experienced an incident even if it's not in an area that was directly affected . @Robert8829 

I don't believe you are correct in your analysis that the host violated Airbnb's major disruptive events policy as you weren't staying in the area directly affected.

personally as a gesture of good will I would have allowed you to change your booking  for a later date . 

your review was probably removed because you said something that didn't meet the criteria for their review policy.

why dont your claim on your travel insurance?