Refunds after leaving a rental for Safety issues

[Mariano341]

Hello, I rented a property for the month of July. On the first night of my stay another resident threatened my life and that of my pet. It was bad, truly horrible and I left.  I just did not feel safe at all.  Airbnb personnel refuse to refund me for the stay even claiming that I might still be at the property. The host even had the indecency of sharing my number with my attacker because she did not want to lose him as a renter because he is paying in cash every month. Nice. I have filed letters with the attorney general, the BBB and the California Department of Consumer Affairs. I have received no follow-up, no guidance, no timetable, nothing at all, not even sympathy. On top of everything your staff tried to trick me to book another stay at twice the price. Unbelievable.

[Karen114]

@Mariano341  Wow that sounds terrible.  You are going to have to continually call Airbnb to get this sorted.  It will take many phone calls unfortunately.  Hopefully your communication between you and host was on the app so they can check the messages.  

Were the police called? That would be helpful if you have a police report as well.  How do you know the host is collecting cash from the other renters? 

[Paula]

Hello @Mariano341, we are so sorry about this. Have there been any updates since you posted here? Has this been resolved?

Please keep us posted.

[Lorina14]

@Mariano341 
I’m so sorry about your experience. I’m glad you have filed with all those organizations. I hope you have the name of the person who threatened you as you may need that for a restraining order (I hope you don’t but just in case).

Did you report this to customer service immediately as Airbnb should have put the host’s listings on hold until the safety issue was investigated. They also should have refunded you for part/your entire stay due to the circumstances. Many guests have gotten refunds or discounts for missing amenities or inconveniences but this was uncalled for and a scary experience for you.

Did the event happen outside (did the host have security cameras?). At this point it is your word against theirs and usually Airbnb sides with guests (even sometimes when they play the system) so I’m confused why they didn’t handle your case more compassionately and investigate thoroughly? Please keep us updated as how things pan out. I do hope you are OK and get refunded and apologized to from Airbnb.