Misleading listing information

[Rob121]

Hi,

We are renting an aprtment in Chelsea London for 1 week from The London Club. The listing states under amenities:-

"Luggage dropoff allowed For guests' convenience when they have early arrival or late departure"

This implies that this service is inclusive. If it isn't inclusive then it should have stated "Luggage dropoff allowed at an extra charge"

I sent them an email on Monday confirming our requirement to leave the luggage until late afternoon. They responded but no mention was made about costs. They only informed us yesterday that there would be a charge. This is unacceptable and due to misleading advertising.

What recourse do we have?

Regards

Rob Hulme

[Sarah977]

@Rob121  You are quite correct- it needs to be stated as such in the listing- they can't tack on extra charges after the fact. I would start by messaging the host pointing this out. If you don't get a satisfactory reply,  contact Airbnb and ask them to tell the host this is not acceptable, that there was no fee mentioned for this listed service when you booked.

[Victoria567]

Directly ask the host if there IS an extra cost, payable for the times you want your luggage dropped off.

Ask the host what the cost is precisely.

Simples.....avoidance of doubt and all that!

[Rob121]

Hi Victoria, I appreciate your reply but it appears you are missing the point and that you condone misleading advertising.

They have just told me what the charge is and it is unaccptable. I am objecting to misleading advertising at the time I made the booking. Do you condone offering services that imply they are free but charge for them later after a booking has been made?

BTW they have just told me that the service is "subject to availability" - this was also not stated in their listing. 

It's up to the hosts to be transparent with their charges or do you also sneak in a few extra charges for your guests???!!!

[Helen3]

@Rob121 if you find the left luggage charge unacceptable, then vote with your feet and pay for it to be stored with another left luggage facility in London - there are plenty.

We can't see what 'advertising' you are referring to as being misleading, but surely you weren't expecting to have this additional service free of charge were you?

[Letti0]

@Helen3  I am going to disagree with you on this one. I have luggage drop off and allow it to remain after check out listed as an amenity I offer also. Since it's listed as an amenity I do not charge extra for this service. If they want to charge for the service it's no longer an amenty offered but a service they can provide for a fee and it should be listed as such with the fee clearly stated in both the description and Hose rules. On my website on guest rentals I have this, but I only offer it to my bridal guests:

At Extra Cost – advance notice may be required:

•  Guest House pre-stocking
•  Catering service
•  Laundry service
•  Child care service
•  Additional maid service

[Emiel1]

@Letti0offcourse there should be no charge, as it is not mentioned in the listing. So the listing is misleading and can be reporting for that. It is remarkable that both @Victoria567 and @Helen3 , also living in the UK, are showing a different opinion.

[Rob121]

I aggree !!

[Helen3]

@Emiel1 @Letti0

As I said in my response, we haven't seen the listing or the correspondence between the guest and host.

Obviously if the host said they provided a free luggage hold service for guests post check out, then guests should receive this service, but it is not clear that this is the case.

What I said is that if the guest didn't want to pay the left luggage charge offered by the host there are plenty of alternatives in London they could use as an alternative.

@Rob121 Please don't put words into my mouth and state as a fact that I condone misleading advertising.

[Rob121]

You are 100% correct and transparent - how refreshing !

[Rob121]

 Thanks for your response Helen, but it appears you condone misleading advertising for certain services. What services do you supply which you do not describe as being chargeable when in fact they are once your client makes a reservation? Is this not contrary to consumer rights? Transparancy of charges is the only ethical standard

[Helen3]

Don't put words into my mouth @Rob121 nowhere did I state that I condoned misleading advertising.  

What I actually said is "We can't see what 'advertising' you are referring to as being misleading"

I don't provide services. I simply provide a superhost quality listing.

If I was staying somewhere and wanted a service in addition to the listing being provided  that was mentioned as being available such as left luggage, dinners or babysitting, I would check whether there was a cost involved in them being provided.

[Victoria567]

Perhaps this was the entitled mindset shared by my 2 ladies this week who scarpered off without paying for use of my laundry service, perhaps the sentence available for a small fee” just was not clear enough for these entitled people ......perhaps my electricity provider Scottish Power will give me free electricity if I don’t pay my bill?......common sense applies here I’m afraid, as how can you imply a service is free?

You tick the box as a host that says Laundry available free or for a fee, therefore it is not clear if  it is free and it is not clear if it is payable, therefore it is up to the guest to ask before using the service on offer.

You have asked the host and you are not clearly happy with the response, therefore go elsewhere as this will end in tears.

[Sarah977]

@Victoria567  Yes, there is the option to check laundry facilities "free or for a fee". But there is no such option for luggage drop-off, so if the listing mentions luggage drop-off, they should make it clear that there is a fee for that.

"Luggage drop-off allowed for guests' convenience..." doesn't sound to me like something that will be charged for. 

[Rob121]

Aggreed !