Airbnb Supports Fraudulent Listings in Scottsdale

My family and I planned a trip to Scottsdale, Arizona for my son’s graduation from college. I decided to try Airbnb for the first time. I searched their website for the exact location I wanted to stay in: “Old Town Scottsdale”. I found several locations with “Old Town Scottsdale” in the title.

We found one called “Upscale Townhome, Old Town Scottsdale”. It had enough beds to accommodate my family so we made our decision and booked the accommodations for four nights. I paid our deposit of $451 and paid the balance 14 days prior to our arrival (an additional $451). So in total, $902 for four nights.

We arrived at the property on the specified date, only to find that this property was not located in “Old Town Scottsdale” as stated in the listing. The location of this townhouse was in a group of apartment buildings, which did not fit the description of “upscale”. Using Google Maps we mapped how far we were from my requested area: fifteen minutes by car.

Immediately I contacted the host, told him of our disappointment, and informed him that we would not be staying in his townhome. I contacted Airbnb with our complaint, I also contacted our credit card company to reverse the charges. After a week of going back and forth with Airbnb, they decided that they were siding with the host of the townhome and we would not be refunded our deposit or final payment.

Not only am I out $902 from Airbnb but also the additional cost of having to find accommodations elsewhere for the four nights. After reading Airbnb’s cancellation policy, where it states that if the location is wrong a full refund will be awarded, I contacted them again. They are standing by their original decision of no refund. Now my only course of action is to contact an attorney.

Before you book this company for your vacation, check their background. There are multiple websites (Airbnb Hell, BBB, Airbnb complaints…) with similar or worse experiences, all with the same outcome of the guests being refused a refund. I wish I had checked before I booked. I will never use this company again and highly suggest that others do not either.