How can I get a Super Strict 30 Days Cancellation policy for my property?

[Prospect0]

Hello, 

My property is in The Exumas and is fairly remote. It is also fairly seasonal.

Getting there usually requiers a good amount of plannig and time.

We do not feel comfortable with the exisiting offer of 50% refund up until 1 week.

Someone canceling at one week is NOT enough time to get other bookings who could even reach our property on time. 

We would prefer the 30 day cancellation for our protection. How can we change that?

Please advise. 

Thank you 

[Andrew90]

You may need to look outside of AirBNB to manage and book your property as from what I can tell they dont' allow this any longer.  My suggestion would be to use other sites to market your property and use AirBNB to fill in with more last minute bookings to fill in holes. You can do this by blocking the calendar more than 60 days out on AirBNB and then releasing dates you want to make available. 

[Carlos293]

Hello, Thank you for your suggestion. I want to follow your idea. Could you suggest other websites where I can put my properties in the market for vacation  with cancellation policies closer to the 30 days.  I run into high risk of losing money without a 30-day cancellation policy. This is business and it is not gambling. Would you please share some other places where I and many of other owners I have read in this community board are in very much need of?

AirBNB may help us only in those last minute situation.

[David126]

Seemingly by invitation, but I agree with @Andrew90, there is limited configuration on the ABB site but not to do what you want to do. And the cancellation policies are due to get weaker.

[Clare0]

@Prospect0 Airbnb grants this cancellation policy very, very rarely.  Typically a listing that has it has a nightly rate of $10,000 or more and the host has multiple properties of this type. That said, not all $10,000 listings have this policy.  Note as well that the listings that do have the Super Strict cancellation policy also pay a higher host Airbnb service fee.  You're better off with a Strict policy. 

[Christine357]

Hi

I have just added my cottage in the New Forest (UK) onto the Airbnb website.

I am not happy with the cancellation policy of 50% refund up to a week before arrival.  My chance of getting a replacement booking in a week is pretty much zero.

I can't see how I make contact with Airbnb to ask about the Superstrict 30 Day option.

If this isn't possible then I will have no choice but to severely restrict the dates that I make available on my calendar (or even remove my listing completely).

Any ideas would be welcome?

Thanks

[David126]

It is by invitation only and from what we know of who gets invited, you would not.

[Christine357]

Thanks for your comment.

It looks as though I'm stuck with the standard 'strict' cancellation.

Does that mean that I'd get 50% of the rental figure (less the 3% Airbnb fee & obviously less the cleaning fee)?

Is the fee charged to the client also deducted from the 50%.

I guess I'll just have to run with it for the moment & see how things go.

If I get my fingers burned then I'll have to re-consider & probably remove my listing or reduce my availability considerably.

There must be a lot of potential hosts who are put off by this bad cancellation policy.  It just doesn't fit with the industry 'norm'.

I have been holiday letting my cottages for 30 years & have never come across such a lax cancellation policy which allows a client to cancel so close to the holiday date.  The 'strict' policy is a week beforehand but I think there is also a flexible one of just a day - that is surely a joke!

[David126]

AirBnB seem to be moving in the opposite direction, they are trialling much less restrictive policies in Italy.

Also look up extenuating policies, quite possible for a Guest to cancel with a full refund last minute.

Somebody posted on here that he uses AirBnB for his last minute bookings, he uses other sites for his long term advanced booking business. Keeps his AirBnB calendar only open a month or so ahead. Seemed to make sense.

Certainly my AirBnB business is mainly booked within a month and you never know which will cancel.

[Christine357]

Thanks for this information.

I will definitely read up on the 'extenuating circumstances'.  That is crazy if someone is able to cancel at the last minute & get virtually all of their money back.  Surely, that is what people are supposed to take out cancellation insurance for?

I think that Airbnb are a bit short sighted regarding this cancellation policy.  It is going to put a lot of potential hosts off.  

I am certainly having serious doubts now about continuing with my listing.

My own T & C's for direct bookings require a low initial payment of just 50 UK pounds which is non refundable.  The balance is payable 6 weeks before arrival.  Once this is paid, I would only refund (in the form of a credit towards a future booking with me) if I was able to re-let.  If I had to reduce the price then they would get less of a credit.  I encourage my clients to take out cancellation insurance.

If I continue with my listing on Airbnb then it certainly looks as though I'll be crossing off a lot of dates, especially the forward dates & will maybe just leave the dates for the upcoming month or so.

This is such a shame as it will dilute the offerings through Airbnb.  They will lose hosts.  

I think that perhaps their business model is a bit flawed on this issue.

[David126]

I do not know what the ABB vision is, what they are trying to achieve.

There are a wide variety of hosts using AirBnB, with very different business's.

One cap certainly does not fit all.

The comment that has been made here is that there have more than enough Hosts to Guests, they need to focus on Guests and are making things more Guest friendly. Sounds logical but nobody can be certain.

[Christine357]

Thanks for all of your comments which have been very helpful to me.

It seems as though they don't want more Hosts at the moment especially if they are trying to make terms better for the guests.  That is all well & good but when they want more Hosts again then they won't return.

I definitely won't be adding my other (bigger) cottage onto the site as the rental prices are much higher & a last minute cancellation could prove serious to me.

I also won't be adding my apartment in Spain on the site as a late cancellation would be impossible to fill.

My existing smaller cottage will probably stay on the site (especially as I have spent several hours getting it on!).  However, I will just release dates in the next month or so & will block everything else.  

I'm also pretty hopeful that I have been able to put enough detail onto the site so that people will be able to do a Google search & find my own website anyway.  They can then book direct which will be cheaper for them & safer for me.

Thanks again for your input.

Regards

Christine **

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Christine357 just to calm you down.....guests very rearly cancel on ABB. It is because on ABB they have to pay when they book and for example on Booking.com they pay later, depending on hosts cancellation policy.

[Christine357]

Thanks for your input.

Even though guests are unlikely to cancel as they pay the whole amount upfront, if if happened on a week or fortnight's booking in fairly high season then that would be a substantial amount of money to lose.

I think it is a bit short sighted on the part of Airbnb to skew things so much in favour of the guests.  Perhaps they are biting the hand that feeds them.  The holiday let business of self catering could be very lucrative to them.  These sorts of bookings would produce much higher fees for them.  Ultimately, they are turning away business/profits.  As things stand, there must be a lot of potential future hosts who have looked into advertising on Airbnb, seen the cancellation situation & decided 'no thanks'.

I will continue on my planned course of advertising just my smaller cottage on a very reduced calendar & see how things go.

It is such a shame as it doesn't look as though they'll be getting my bigger cottage or my apartment in Spain.

[M-L0]

Guests DO cancel on Airbnb, and when they do, it is only the host who loses.  Guests get a refund, Airbnb gets their fee and the host is just out of luck.  It is highly unlikely that hosts will get a replacement booking within one week's time, so we lose money that we had counted on to help pay the mortgage.