I was scammed in Airbnb by a Host

[Carolina-Alejandra3]

 I have been robbed $1,040 dollars via Airbnb platform. I booked a place in Hadera Israel ( Host) on March 5th, 2022 at 8 pm. I had an urgent situation so I was forced to book.
*host name* shared his phone details and he started contacting me via Whatssapp. I had no idea this is not allowed.
Later I found a better place, and I cancelled the booking on March 6th noon, meaning I booked the place for less than 20 hours.
I tried contacting the Host, requesting a refund. He didn't reply to me in a week.
I did contact your customer service, to try to sort out the situation, and chatted with someone. The representative said that*host name* is the only one that can process the refund as you have some policies that won't allow Airbnb. He tried to contact *host name* with no response. The representative offered me a discount.
I contacted my credit card company if there was anything I could do. They mentioned I needed to do it through Airbnb.
As actually*host name* started a conversation via WhatsApp on March 5th, I was forced to contact him yesterday via WhatsApp and phone. He actually replied and said we would do all the communication via the Airbnb chat. We did discuss the situation and*host name* insisted his hands are tided because of Airbnb policy. The representative said*host name* could refund if he wanted and*host name* says that Airbnb policies won't allow him to refund.*host name* also offered me a discount.
I later requested the representative to give me the opportunity to add a review, as Yoni simply cheated me and I want to add the review and the representative wrote it is not possible.
Some policies are in place, but the reality is that I was scammed . I want to talk to someone, do something about this as*host name* and Airbnb have been simply minimizing the problem here.
 I feel robbed and cheated and Airbnb supports this behavior with some policies set in place that make no sense.
Thanks in advance!

Carolina

*identifying personal information hidden*

[Laura2592]

@Carolina-Alejandra3 I am sorry you had this happen. 

A few things stand out:

1. What was the host's cancellation policy? If you booked last minute, you may not be entitled to any refund. That can be difficult to swallow I know. But in the future you may want to look more carefully at the listing you are booking to ensure that you are aware of the terms of paying for the space.

2. Why did you book something and then immediately book something else? That's not clear. If it was an emergency and you did a last minute booking, I am not sure I understand why you were still shopping for another space?

3. Did you stay at the place you booked? If you stayed and then decided to move, again, you need to read the cancellation policy. Hosts are not obligated to give refunds in cases where their calendars are blocked and a guest changes their mind after check in. Many hosts would not be able to re-book on such short notice and rely on the income. 

Again I am sorry this happened but I think you should take this as a lesson learned. Airbnb is not a hotel. If you need that level of flexibility you may want to look into booking stays at hotels instead.

[Mark116]

@Carolina-Alejandra3   It may feel like you were scammed, but it appears that what happened is you booked a place with a strict cancellation policy, then you cancelled, and the host is choosing to enforce that policiy, which means you don't get a refund.  It doesn't technically matter if  you booked the place for 2 minutes or 20 hours, the policy that you agreed to when you booked is what is in place.

It is of course not true that the host cannot refund you, he is choosing not to, but that is his perogative under the terms that you agreed to when you booked. 

[Carolina-Alejandra3]

Mark116 and Laura2592- https://youtu.be/aeKWk4_XV-w

Just watch the video. my case is very similar.... I don't need to over explain myself.

These policies give liberty for scammers to do what they want.

Customers should also have some options. Also many "Level 10" people are writing  defending Airbnb and the Host Yoni.

Do you work in Airbnb? The reaction of the people in social media is completely different.

[Mark116]

@Carolina-Alejandra3  You want Airbnb to be like a hotel, where you can block the host's property for 20 hours or a few days or weeks, while you look around to see if you can find a better deal, and then cancel penalty free and get all your money back.  This isn't fair to the host.  While your booking is active, the host property cannot be rented by anyone else, because unlike a hotel, there is only the one property. If you want the ability to cancel with no penalty, then you should book Airbnbs that have such a policy or stick to hotels.

[Laura2592]

@Carolina-Alejandra3 "level 10" refers to how much you post in the forum. Nothing else. People who have that rating have typically given quite a bit of sage advice for free. So no, no one works for ABB who has commented. No one is defending your host. We are only pointing out that you didn't read the cancellation policy and now you feel scammed. All of this can be prevented by your reading the listing in its entirety in the future. 

It would be nice if the host would refund you for a brief stay. But it would also be nice if you understood that he/she may not be able to afford to. Any comparison shopping for the cheapest place needs to happen prior to a guest booking. Period. 

[Carolina-Alejandra3]

Laura2592- I'm simply not dropping my case until someone listens.  

Many people have been scammed in Airbnb, I am just one of the only ones that is brave to speak out.

Again. the policies should be reviewed.

[Laura2592]

@Carolina-Alejandra3  failure to read does not constitute "being brave."

By all means speak out, but understand that you agreed to this host's cancelation policy when you booked. Now you want a different outcome. Could the host have been more responsive? Sure. But honestly thinking you are entitled to a refund because you want a cheaper place to stay while STILL obligating someone else's space and expecting them to offer it to you at no charge, is unlikely to get you a lot of sympathy.  

Best of luck.

[Carolina-Alejandra3]

Hi Mark116,

The Host at the time that I did a booking had a guest. At the time that I cancelled the booking he still had a guest. The booking was done evening Israeli time and cancelled noon the next day.  

Again, I am willing on paying a cancellation fee.

When I very respectfully requested the Host to discuss the refund, the Host  didn't reply for a week. 

I contacted Airbnb customer service. They tried to contact the host. The host didn´t reply either to Airbnb.

The Host eventually replied to me after I had to contact him very actively after a week of no replies.

Again, Airbnb policies shouldn't only take care of the Host.  Guests are left alone.

[Sandra856]

@Carolina-Alejandra3 You need to grow up or get someone who is used to book hotels, flights etc. (basically everything you can book) to explain whatever policy is attached to a booking before you book anything. Airbnb got extremely ordinary and common cancellation policies - nothing strange about them. When you book something you have to agree to the deal - including whatever policy is attached - otherwise you can’t book. 

[Mark116]

@Carolina-Alejandra3  That guy was not 'scammed' either.  This isn't even a grey area. 

When someone books something, anything, a hotel, a concert, an Airbnb, a rental car, there are a series of details of the agreement that are binding.  When that agreement is enforced, it may feel unfair, especially if you didn't read any of it, but it isn't a scam.  You and he assumed that cancelling an Airbnb is like cancelling a hotel, you can do it up to 24 hours before the trip and get a full refund.  But Airbnb cancellation is NOT like a hotel, and it is up to you, and that guy and every other guest to know what they are agreeing to when they book.

[Carolina-Alejandra3]

Wow Mark116,

Are you serious about saying that the guy in the video was not scammed?

You mean this one?- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeKWk4_XV-w&t=74s

So displaying fake images of a place is not a scam, what is a scam for you..?

[Kate867]

@Carolina-Alejandra3 @I took the time to watch that.  He was not scammed, He cancelled and did not actually go and stay so could not possibly be aware if the photos were fake.  He cancelled because after initially booking very quickly (which he admitted to) he then looked at the reviews on another listing by the same Host and did not like what he saw.  Airbnb upheld the Hosts strict cancellation policy which he had signed up to.

[Sarah977]

@Carolina-Alejandra3  That you "found a better place" so decided not to stay where you had originally booked is not called being scammed. Guests are responsible for reading the terms of the cancellation policy for a listing before they book and can expect that policy to be upheld if they cancel- it's a contract you are agreeing to when you book.

If you cancel a non-refundable airline ticket because you found a better flight, would you rage that the airline scammed you because you didn't get a refund on your non-refundable booking?

[Carolina-Alejandra3]

Hi Sarah977,

Thank you for your reply.

Again, I am willing to pay a cancellation fee. I understand how contracts work.

Here the problem is that as soon as I requested very politely a refund from the Host, he simply didn't respond to me for week. He was very rude.

I contacted the costumer service of Airbnb, they said a refund is possible if the Host wants to do it. They tried to contact the Host, The Host didn´t reply to them either.

The host eventually contacted me, after I actively contacted him. I had to chase him basically.

The Host lied to me saying "he cannot refund me" as Airbnb won't allow him to do it.

So Airbnb says he could refund if he wanted, and the Host lies...

This is not a case of me trying to jump the contract. I've been mistreated and lied.

Customer service and customer experience is fundamental to avoid this type of situations.

And I've seen online, there are many cases of people who were not refunded and they feel cheated.

It is not only me- Example here- https://youtu.be/aeKWk4_XV-w