My original booking price was increased by host 3 months after my booking

[Michael7839]

My booking was increased in price by host 3 months after I booked. Host was adamant that the issue was with airbnb's system and insisted I should cancel the booking myself.

I contacted airbnb who told me the host needed to cancel the booking, as the price was unacceptable for me, which I was ensured they did and refund was returned.

Immediately after the host cancelled, the property was relisted as available for the exact dates with increased price.

I was under the impression that if a booking was cancelled by a host, the property could not be relisted and should be removed from calendar. 

I believe I was given false information during a telephone conversation with airbnb, who now appear to be at fault for the original booking rather than the host. All attempts to discuss this have been met by contradiction from airbnb, booking was with a professional host and usual consumer laws apply.

I had to book another property which was several miles away from original booking or scrap my travel plans ,which where already booked and non refundable.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Michael7839 Ah now your earlier post begins to make sense. In this one you say normal consumer laws apply. Is this a reference to the consumer laws that state if a product/service is clearly priced low due to an error then the seller is able to cancel the deal? If so then what has Airbnb/the host done wrong?

[Michael7839]

I am trying to find where the error lies, basically to avoid any further disappointment to myself or other users.

If the fault lies with the host, then the property should be removed

If the fault lies with airbnb's system then the original booking should have been made available at the original price.

Have airbnb given me false info during a call which confirmed the host was ordered to cancel the booking due to their own error ?, or was the error due to a fault with airbnb's system ? bearing in mind host was insisting I had to cancel the booking myself for several days.

Have I deliberately been given wrong info to simply resolve the situation ?, if so ,then I have lost a booking which may had meant I could not travel on these dates (very limited rentals due to an event) and may have cost me the rest of my travel plans which are booked non refundable.

[Michael7839]

Also, if this is standard practise, what is stopping any future host from increasing their price of a booking after booking is made ?

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Michael7839 we had a similar situation where a guest booked a weeks stay over Christmas for £90. It turned out that the Airbnb system had input a weekly price equal to our nightly price. I guess we were lucky that this guest, when we explained the error, was kind enough to cancel.

So, in summary, the booking system does have glitches and if a price is really too good to be true then it is likely that it is an error.

[Michael7839]

understandable, although this should have been explained during the call I received instead of insisting host was to blame. I suspect your experience was rectified at the earliest possible time, not 3 months after giving confirmation that the booking was live and taking payment ( seems I've loaned money to a stranger with an interest free rate).

This now fills me with zero confidence regarding my new booking, will this be increased and then cancelled using same methods and excuses ?

If I wanted to be petty I could re-book the original booking at the current price, then cancel 1 day before arrival with full refund, just to ensure the host has no guest for that particular time, although it does now seem that the host was not to blame, even after giving confirmation.

 All these issues are brought to light through airbnb's own incompetence and refusal to accept responsibility and it does now appear that the guest has no guarantee of lodgings until the key has been handed over !  

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Michael7839 indeed we cancelled/arranged the cancellation within minutes of the booking. Just one point - Hosts only get the money released to them the day after a guests checks in so it Airbnb that has benefited not the host.