Non-refundable option doesn't show up and different cancel policies by season?

Nicole2223
Level 7
Gouldsboro, ME

Non-refundable option doesn't show up and different cancel policies by season?

Hello more-experienced-hosts,

 

A friend is trying to book my place. He showed me what it looks like on his end when he tried to finalize the booking in the app. He was presented with 2 payment options:  "Pay now" or "pay some now and the rest later" (those weren't the exact words). Our cancellation policy is currently set to moderate or non-refundable....yet this friend was not shown the non-refundable rate/choice.  That's question/concern #1.

 

My second concern is about using different cancellations policies for different times of year. Ever since the non-refundable option was introduced, we've used it (in combination with the strict policy). One of our places has not been booking up over the winter, so I dropped it down to a moderate policy, thinking the strict might be scaring people off at a time when things are still in flux with Covid. BUT, now that summer bookings are starting to come in, I want the 'strict' policy to apply to those. We use a rule set to get the rates and discounts right for the summer months, but I don't see the option of adjusting the policy for the selected time frame.

 

So I'm gathering that we don't get to flip flop between different cancellation policies for different times of year. Has anyone found a clever way to do this?

 

Thanks much,

Nicole

6 Replies 6
Emiel1
Level 10
Leeuwarden, The Netherlands

@Nicole2223 

 

You can choose 1 cancelation policy on a listing, used for all future bookings.

If you want another cancellation policy for a certain time period, then create a second listing.

 

Airbnb offers a payment plan to guest for specifc bookings, so they can pay in two installments.

 

Offering the non-refundable option has some limitations:

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2600/offer-a-nonrefundable-option

 

 

added:

Your listing with nr 44685734 offers the non-refundable option when i simulated some appropriate bookings

 

Please note your new listing offers 20% promotional discount fo first 3 bookings.

I am having a similar issue with booking and trying to fix with host. The non-refundable rate repeatedly appears with my specific dates but once I go through all of the prompts to the very end, that option disappears and I am stuck with only the higher refundable rate. 

This exact same issue is happening to me, booking only 3 weeks into future. I get all the way to "pay now" and the price suddenly update to refundable price.

 

This is an AirBNB bug and needs to be fixed.

I have the same problem. The host wants to offer me no cancellation and a 10% discount, or moderate cancelation policy. When the host calls Airbnb support the support insist to her that she is doing that.

 

I, nor my friend, see those options when we try to book. We only see moderate cancellation policy. When we call Airbnb support, they insist to us that everything is right on our end and the host is not offering the non-refundable cancellation choice. 

Because the same support person is not able to help us (me, and the host) the problem seems unfixable/horrible

Debra300
Level 10
Gros Islet, Saint Lucia

@Nicole2223,

 

I know you started this conversation several months ago, but I missed it.  Airbnb's non-refundable rate is not like those provided on other platforms.  We have posted on five platforms and our own site, and only Booking and Expedia give property owners non-refundable rate options and flexible settings.

 

  1. The non-refundable rate is only available for the upcoming 60 days.  It will not be presented in searches for stays that are more than two months away.  Booking and Expedia's non-refundable rate is available for the same periods as the standard rate.
  2. Hosts cannot choose to make specific dates non-refundable only, e.g., during special events or holiday periods.  Both Booking and Expedia offer this option.
  3. Hosts cannot set minimum or maximum length of stays separately from those set for the standard rate.  On Booking and Expedia, a host could set a 2 night minimum stay for standard rates and a 3 night minimum stay for non-refundable.

 

@Debra300 

 

i missed your reply - thank you for taking the time to respond. (I also missed the response from @Emiel1 - thank you too.). I need to find a better way to be notified of community activity!

 

The 60 day requirement explains the issue my friend was seeing.  I wonder why they don’t make that more obvious to the host when selecting that option in the cancellation settings.  

With regard to your final bullet point, perhaps  your other platforms have more functionality around LOS.   It looks like I can do this using the LOS discount feature in my Rule Sets, but perhaps that’s different than what route referring to.  

thanks again!