Exactly, Fun, eh? 
1 Like
yupā¦ now you are getting it!
2 Likes
disappointing 
1 Like
In their best interest to side with the guest on cancellations. They need to keep the guests booking and happy, over keeping the host happy. The guests are the ones with the wallets. The hosts will continue to be treated as an afterthought, because they know we will put up with nearly any amount of nonsense so that we can keep our cash flowing in.
If the guest has a valid reason for canceling, Airbnb will refund their fee. I had two instances of guests canceling at the very last minute in the past few months - the first was a pregnant woman who came down with shingles and was told by her doctor not to travel and the second was a couple coming from Argentina that had their passport stolen on a stopover in Brazil. In each case, I called Airbnb directly and explained the situation and asked that they refund the guests completely and they said they would do that for both. I noticed in their guidelines that they require some type of proof (e.g., letter from doctor, etc.) but they didnāt say anything about that when I called.
In the first instance, I immediately reset my listing to allow same day bookings and someone rebooked the entire timeframe within the hour - at a higher rate. So that one worked out well. On the second, I didnāt get a replacement booking, but it was a very young couple who stayed in close touch throughout the whole ordeal and I know they were already devastated by being robbed and having their trip interrupted so I wasnāt about to add to that nightmare. Anyway, I feel good about being able to alleviate at least a small part of a bad situation for them so Iām glad I could do that.
1 Like
Well those both sound like good stories that are āprobablyā real. But you never do know. Guests have been known to lie. How do you know they arenāt lying about the stolen passport? Pregnancy shingles sounds like a good one. Havenāt heard that one before. 
As always go with your gut. I have caught guests outright in lies (Grampa died, have to cancel Hawaii trip and need you to refund) then check on those guests later and discover they didnāt cancel their trip to Hawaii after all, they just found a place they liked better than yours. Isnāt it funny that they were not so broken up about Grampa after allā¦ and still managed a trip to Hawaii and stayed in a place down the street from you.
Or the time a guest said she had to shorten her trip to Hawaii due to business reasons, and I later she let it slip that she stayed at the Marriott on points, during the days that she asked me to refund. That cost me $1000. I might have even refunded her if she had told the truth. But no, she had to make up a story.
So the sad fact is, guests can and do conjure the most fanciful stories to get you to believe them, and refund their money after you have done your part and blocked your calendar for them. So call me jaded but Iām pretty tired of being played the fool and eating it because you found another place to stay.
If a guest writes wanting to cancel or me to issue a refund for unprovable reasons, I will decline. If they want to take it to Air and they rule in the guest favor, then so be it.
I contacted Air, they said I will still get a payout for the 2 nights. However if the guest wants to dispute matters she has to contact them herself. Then, iām assuming if she does prove she was in hospital then they would offer her a refund or, she wont go through Air at all and her credit card insurance may cover it.
Too be honest she didnt seem to bothered about the money, and she told me she was aware I couldnt refund because of the strict cancellation policy.
1 Like
In my experience, they do not request proof.
Donāt feel bad. This is business. She knew what your cancellation policy was when booking. If she didnāt purchase trip insurance she assumed the risk. It doesnāt matter if her story is true or no. Her misfortune is not your problem.
3 Likes
Exactly, why actions of guests is suddenly hostās responsibility
just got that thingy through, to write a review for the guest that cancelled with me, but didnt cancel through airbnbā¦silly, even though i let air know 
Ugh, that probably means she got the same thing. Well if she does write something bad you have grounds to get it removed since it was not for a completed stay.
1 Like
I know 
but i had a good feeling about her, so hopefully itāll be all goodā¦but it cant really be a proper review as she cant score me out of certain things ā¦
1 Like
She canāt score you on anything because she didnāt stay!
2 Likes