I surprisingly found that my Airbnb account is locked this morning for security reasons. My listing is also removed. I have upcoming reservations. Should I still host them (I cannot see guests’ messages or contact information now)? Will I get paid?
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Could you have gotten hacked? You need to call Air asap. Good luck and be patient getting through to customer service.
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It seems the account was suspended for no reasons. Airbnb customer service said they needed to contact a specialist. And they had no idea how long it would take.
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It has been recommended here for years to get the cell number that’s on the reservation as soon as you get the reservation. As for hosting them, I don’t know.
Let us know what happens.
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I think I can still get their contact information if approach Airbnb customer service. I am just not sure if Airbnb will still pay me.
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What @KKC said is very valuable. I always, always keep my own record of the guest’s name, cell phone, and any pertinent details we’ve discussed (like who will be joining the guest, arrival time, etc.). I store all that information as soon as the reservation is confirmed. I keep it in my Outlook calendar, which works for me. Many others keep it in Excel or on paper.
Anything works, as long as it’s separate from Airbnb and not dependent on a working Internet.
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I would not trust that to happen, either getting contact info from AirBnb or getting paid. They have likely already cancelled the affected bookings
I would use twitter and try and get their attention there.
Good liuck
RR
We have guests coming tonight, but Air just could not confirm whether I will get paid.
Wow that really sucks. You have been hosting for a very long time and seen a lot of crazy stuff.
There seems to be a lot more of “Air does not care” these days, and their crappy automated systems locking accounts without human involvement.
In your shoes, I would post to Air’s FB and Twitter pages. This seems to get their attention much faster than the usual CS BS.
I would not be optimistic that they would get back to you anytime soon, unless you force an escalation.
Truly hope this works out for you quickly.
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I’ve called them four times this afternoon, and their customer service just told me they are not qualified for dealing with the issue. The case was escalated to a case manager, but so far I did not have any reply from the manager.
Usually when guests check out, I will receive an email that the Xxx amount of money would be paid. It was quite weird that I did not receive the email when the guests checked out this morning. And when I logged into the account, I found my account was blocked. And I am now quite concerned I will not be paid.
Wishing you the best - please let us know what happens.
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Oh dear. I would take a bet that the “lock” process was auto-generated based on some algorithm, and that the unlocking bit will require the intervention of overworked, underpaid agents with no authority; i.e., not happening anytime soon if at all.
Upvoting the tweet and facebook post recommendation.
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If that was me, I wouldn’t check the guests in. I would have contacted them prior to arrival and explained the situation, letting them know that if there was no guarantee of payment, then essentially I’d be considering their booking to be cancelled, by Airbnb.
Shift the liability for their stay, if you don’t get reinstated then you’ll never see their money I suspect.
JF
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Indeed, you should be concerned. Is there a reason that the last 1-2 guests might have blasted you with a horrific rating? These days, that can trigger a lockout.
Again, if you do not escalate this using social media, you may remain locked indefinately and may never get paid. Fingers crossed for you!
Airbnb finally said the account was locked due to an error. Now the account is restored.
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Good news!
Closed due to an error… This could happen to any of us at any time.
RR
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Whew! Yay! Fabulous you got the right response, and so quickly.
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Glad that it got resolved before causing any more challenges.
I would. I would not put guests in the middle of an Airbnb issue. Customer service first. I would however explain to the guests the situation, should I need to elicit their help w Airbnb.
I think it has less to do with not caring (I believe the do care) and more w/ understaffing / layoffs.
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I wouldn’t turn them away, but I would not let them have access to the property until the matter was resolved, and I would hope that it’d be resolved before check in time, hence why I said I would contact them prior to arrival.
Scenarios like this only appear to happen with Airbnb…
If you end up not getting paid for it, as in this instance with an account blocked “for security reasons”, then they become simply folks living in your property for nowt.
JF
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Thanks everyone here for the advice!!!
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