Airbnb same day cancellation

VJsmum

Hi, wonder if anyone can help.  My daughter and friends booked an Airbnb in London in order to go to a Cosplay convention starting today.  They went to check in yesterday at 1pm only to be told they couldn't because there was an issue with the boiler.  They were told Airbnb would give them a full refund and pay the difference on anything else they booked.  Not being able to get a response from hosts they booked a travel lodge.

Air bnb are now saying they will give them only £67 in refund when overall they are spending an additional £900 (only a travel lodge but it was all they could get at such short notice).

Anyone able to advise on a way forward?

Airbnb sent them a message saying "we can offer a reimbursement up to 3 days and this refund can cover the cost of the previous amount spent for the cancelled reservation and if exceeds a plus 50% but only up to 3 days". 

p00hsticks

Ouch!

You might be better off getting this moved over to the 'consumer rights' part of the forum

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/consumer-rights

Who told them that 'Airbnb would give them a full refund and pay the difference on anything else they booked' ?

Do they have it in writing ?

I imagine there must be some conditions attached to a statement like that, otherwise what was to stop them booking a suite in the Savoy ?

Out of interest, how many nights and how many people are we talking about here ?

Was £67 the total cost of the Airb'n'b (I'm don't use Airb'n'b but that seems very cheap for even a tiny room in London, even for just one night#) ?

 

Sandtree

Would have assumed "what they booked" would have been via AirBnB not via other agencies or hotels etc. 

Upsidedownandaround

Your post is a bit vague on who told who what.

Who told them they couldn’t check in? 

Who told them Air BNB would cover the costs of alternative accommodation?
Who are the hosts they tried to contact?

I’m assuming the person providing the accommodation cancelled it and told them Air BNB would reimburse them for alternative accommodation. 

If that’s the case and there is nothing in AirBNB’s terms regarding covering accommodation costs then I doubt there is anything that can be done.

onashoestring

Sandtree said:

Would have assumed "what they booked" would have been via AirBnB not via other agencies or hotels etc. 

Agreed - Most likely that Airbnb offered to help them rebook something via Airbnb rather than a “blank cheque”that could be spent on any accommodation without any limit . 

Your daughter needs to check the exact wording and any links in the message Airbnb sent regarding reimbursement and rebooking - 

VJsmum

Hi, thanks for the responses.  it's a bit vague as DD is at 'con' and only giving us intermittent information.  I've seen text or messenger messages to DD's friend saying that they will cover any excess up to 50%...  but now they're saying only covering an extra £67 

Upsidedownandaround

The way forward then is to establish what happened and who said what and what they have in writing and what they don’t.

onashoestring

Airbnb have a guest refund policy which covers last minute cancellation by host. When the host cancelled - The person who made the booking should have received an e-mail from Airbnb with the details of how to contact Airbnb so that they could arrange alternative accommodation. 

“What happens if a Host cancels before check-in

If a Host cancels a reservation prior to check-in, their guest will automatically receive a full refund. If a Host cancels 30 days or less prior to check-in, and the guest contacts us, we will also assist the guest with finding comparable or better accommodations.”

https://www.airbnb.co.uk/help/article/149

The T&Cs say that Airbnb need to be contacted within 24 hours of check in 

If your DD and friends have contacted Airbnb within this timeframe - they may still be able to get Airbnb to arrange accommodation for the remainder of the trip - 

TELLIT01

How many people is she travelling with if Travelodge costs £900?

VJsmum

Hello all, thanks for the replies

to update - they were finally reimbursed the original cost + £268 which is, I think, 50% on top.  The travelodge was expensive because it was close to the con(vention) and it was last minute.  I think, in the end, they had to pay £135 each extra which could have been worse.

I guess it's the chance you take.

onashoestring

Thanks for the update - it’s good to know Airbnb are quick to reimburse in these circumstances.