I recently got one French couple coming from Hongkong, they booked 4 nights but left after stayed for one night by leaving one message to say, the bed is not comfortable and my house is dirty.
They sent photos which took undergroundly to a French agent of Airbnb, and the agent just refunded them 4 nights without confirming me the accuracy of those photos.
Actually, they took photos of my warehouse room and one tooth brush which I used for cleaning the lavabo, the agent might think the warehouse room was their room and the tooth brush was the one I provided to them.
They just rented one bed room but I did not see any photo of the room they rented. (My house is 164 square meters size with 4 rooms, I gave one option to rent the whole house but they chose to rent only one of them).
I am here doubting for standard and process which Airbnb agent followed to make the decision to refund.
As the agent wrote in explanation of his decision, he said:
âWe handle situations very pragmatically way.â
âI ask you one last time to understand that according to our very clear and strict rules on this point, when housing is in such a state of ânon-cleanâ on traveler arrival : Airbnb simply cancels the booking on the host behalf (thus committing a breach of its obligations Airbnb Host) and to repay the traveler.â
At first is the standard, can Airbnb make more it more detailed?
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Is the clean requirement applies to âthe room which guest rentedâ and âthose things (like slippers, towels) provided to guestsâ or âevery place of the houseâ and âeverything inside the houseâ?
If it is the former one, the couple gave photos of the room which they did not rent and those things not provided to them, I hope Airbnb agent reconsider their refund decision.
If it is the latter one, I hope if it is possible to exclude some parts, as the couple acted like a hygiene inspectors, they even took photos of some places I have not used for a very long time, undergroundly. -
Is the clean requirement is for the time when guests just arrived or is for guestsâ whole stay?
Those photos for my toilet were taken the next morning after I used the toilet for a shower at around 9:30am, they got up but didât show up (closed their roomâs door). I think they were waiting for the chance to take photo after I used the toilet and left my house.
Secondly, it is the process, can Airbnb consider the rights of the hosts when cancel and refund a booking?
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Can the cancellation and refunding proceed after the hosts were told to clean, but still cannot reach the requirements?
The couple never told me my house was dirty in person, I could clean those parts they thought âdirtyâ if they told me.
I even asked them if they needed me to clean those newly dropped leaves on their balcony, but they said âitâs OKâ.
I arranged a last minute airport pickup at midnight (arrive my house around 0:30am and I did not get paid), gave them SIM card, bus cards, powerbank, I am up to any cleaning but they said nothing. -
Can Airbnb agent ask the opinion of the hosts before made the final decision of cancellation or refunding?
I got the email from Airbnb agent then I was told that email was the final decision, I am surprised how a final decision can be made only based on those photos from guests. Photos can be far away from the fact like what happened in this case.
Also I have something to say about the guests.
7 days before they arrived, they booked my house for a room, I accepted their booking in the same day.
2 days before they arrived, they told me they will arrive at midnight(it was a later told), I gave them directions and information, in the directions, I told them 3 options to arrive my house including Uber and arrange pickup from me.
3 hrs before they arrived, they asked me to arrange pickup, it was not that easy but I did.
(After they left I asked why they did not tell me earlier for midnight arrival or arranging pickup, they said hosts should be âflexibleâ).
We had about 30 minutes talk when they arrived, I asked their needs and breakfast choices, I even asked them if they need me to clean the newly dropped leaves on their balcony, they said âit is OKâ.
I gave them local SIM card, bus cards and powerbank, as they said one of their phones was dead (no battery) and they are happy to have a local SIM card, I told them clearly they were free, just I am happy to help people and also want to make them happy.
The next morning, when I sent them very detailed directions (I totally didnât know they will leave), I got the message from them to say they will leave because:
- The inflatable mattress: âI didnât expect the bed to be inflatableâ.
However I wrote clearly in my list it is an âAirbedâ. - The dust: âI am very sensitive to dust and I canât breathe properly from time to timeâ.
This one I have no comment but again I am up to clean at any time.
As they told me in a following message that they cost a lot of time to find another accommodation and to text me, it is really hard to think âThe dustâ was the main reason they left. They knew I accepted their âlater told arrival in midnightâ and âlast minutes arranging pickupâ, I have no reason to refuse their requests to clean those dusty parts.
I suspect the reason of their leaving was something I could not change even they requested, like âThe inflatable mattressâ or my house was too simple to them, however those parts are written clearly in my list, then they used âAirbnb clean policyâ.
It is not one case of abusing âAirbnb clean policyâ?
I am afraid this timeâs cancellation and refunding will encourage this couple to use âAirbnb clean policyâ to force their hostsâ âflexibilityâ in the future as they look a little kind of random.
Even Airbnb system will record above case but cannot stop them from asking a deal offline, as they asked offline cancellation to me by sending message âI donât want to pass by Airbnb and would prefer a mutual agreement with you so that I can leave a good review about your kindnessâ.
BTW, I asked the couple to pay for the airport pickup through Airbnb system since they just left, and even this request had been cancelled together with the booking by the system.
After they left, I sent them message to invite them to a local cuisine as they asked me before their arrival, and said I can arrange another taxi to the airport for free to make them happy but it seems they didnât want to see me again.