Registered on Airbnb last summer and put up a listing. Not many hits on the listing, but I ended up renting out through other means. Then I had an upcoming trip, and I used airbnb to find a place to stay. Had a decent trip, after the trip left a review. Today, I wanted to find another place to stay in another city, go on to airbnb.com and what do I get? “To help protect your information, we’ve temporarily disabled your account. Please email us at account.inquiry@airbnb.com to continue.” “Ok,” I thought, probably some sort of glitch. Wrote them a quick email and 30 minutes later I got this: “Thanks for reaching out. We regret to inform you that we’ll be unable to support your account moving forward and have exercised our discretion under our Terms of Service to disable your account(s). This decision is irreversible and will affect any duplicated or future accounts. Please understand that we are not obligated to provide an explanation for the action taken against your account. Furthermore, we are not liable to you in any way with respect to disabling or canceling your account. Airbnb reserves the right to make the final determination with respect to such matters, and this decision will not be reversed. We’ll contact you if anything changes in the future, but until then, we won’t be able to assist you any further with your account issues. Please see our Help Center for further information: https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/432. Thanks, Eleanor W. www.airbnb.com/help” I don’t know if its me or not, but that seems very heartless and conceited to me. Sounds like a big “f off” to me. Oh well. Sounds like I am never using their services again. Or recommending them. And trying to make sure other people don’t use them. Your loss Airbnb. Your loss.
Account disabled for no reason
Posted in Airbnb Guest Stories and tagged account disabled, airbnb account, disabled, horrible customer service.
I am reading all ofnthese stories about how Airbnb justbdisabledntheir account etc, and I feel like it’s me that typed them! This seems to be how they operate. The best thing for the industry would be for them to be shut down and not allowed to operate anywhere!
I was a customer for over 2 years, far above 50 ratings, all 5stars, maintained superhost status for the whole 2 years (I did even receive 100$ gift voucher recently, because of “maintaining superhost for over 2 years straight”). Then miraculously my account was frozen, like mentioned above. I did also message their customer support and got nearly a 1:1 copy of the one pasted above in german language.
So it seems like my story with Airbnb is over now and I did not even receive an explanation what I should have done wrong … ?
Airbnb has the potential to make far more money if they would stop deactivating accounts for absolutely no reason. I love AirBnB, booked with them last month no problems, as always in the last 5 years I’ve been using them. This weekend I booked another reservation, only thing different this time is I wanted to use a different card to pay, AirBnb & deactivated my entire account and no one will help me. Customer Service literally said there is nothing they can do and hung up in my face. I am appalled at the customer service of this company. All over Airbnb Facebook and online are horror stories of them doing this to people and for no reason. Someone really needs to look into this error and get it fixed within their system, you’re losing a ton of good business!
I had never even booked an Airbnb yet, just browsed a few times. The first time I went to actually book a room, I discovered my account was disabled. After months of reaching out to customer service to find out how I “violated terms of service” without ever even using the service, I received an email telling me my phone number was linked to advertisements for escort services and other adult entertainment/sex work ads during a routine check of customer numbers through a search engine, and Airbnb’s decision was final and there was no recourse. Ive had this number for almost 5 years and I’ve never been involved in any kind of adult entertainment and when I ran my number through a few search engines I found no such results, so I can’t even see any evidence of a previous owner of my number causing it to be flagged and my account banned. Idk what to do
Same happened after being a long customer with a ton of bookings…
My account was deactivated August 5, 2019 with no reason cited. My work requires a thorough background security clearance, so I figured the deactivation was some sort of glitch in the system. At the very least, I was phished due to some sort of security breach as I had deleted two expired credit cards and added a current card while making my reservation. Airbnb ustomer service initially appeared to prove helpful, checking to ascertain my case had been placed in the review process. The Airbnb review proved to be an authoritarian process with no appeals process. AirBnB cites exercising discretion under our Terms of Service to disable my account. The company cites having no obligation to provide action taken on my account.
I did want to refer all to a December 2018 Youtube detailing a dispute process available at that date. Apparently, AirBnB utilizes SafeDecision API product offered by Inflection Risk Solutions, LLC, a firm which provided information to make the determination to deactivate the videographer’s account. The address and contact information will follow this post.
This third party details any criminal background that may have been used in the deactivation. As in the case of the videographer, he had no criminal background and went through a process to reinstate his account (which proved successful). Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, anyone has the right to access such a report and have a 60 day timeline to file a dispute against whatever might be inaccurately be indicated on the report or to determine if the report used was in fact, you at all.
My feeling is Airbnb is no longer citing reasons for deactivation because of inaccuracies reflected in reports used to deactivate accounts. Complaints researched via the net indicate accounts deactivated for minor offenses, including traffic offenses! Also, in one case of a married couple, the husband’s account was deactivated and following his wife’s attempt to book under her account, her account was deactivated, so in my opinion, this is a severe overreach case of collateral damage on the part of Airbnb.
I was not told of the reason of account deactivation and since the airing of the above YouTube, no reasons are provided guests or hosts for deactivation; however, I plan to move through the above process and register mail all results to Aisling Hassell (Trust and Security Airbnb) and Brian Chesky (CEO Airbnb).
YouTube: Account Deactivation https://youtu.be/w0_C4mdVmWM
Inflection
Inlfection Risk Solutions, LLC
P.O. Box 391146
Omaha, NE 68139
Phone: 1-855-278-7451
Email: support@inflection.com
I had the same issue with airbnb I was booking a trip for my kids to kings dominion and needed a 6 bedroom house for 2 days I’ve never used them before my first time the funds cleared got the reservation number and all then received an text shortly that my account was refunded and account deactivated for me reason.. then my girlfriend did created a account using her information and her credit card and they did the same thing to her with no explanation saying that the photo I’d wasnt clear enough and just said that she could no longer pursue any future airbnb rentals the bank card Id and her personal photo all match and we were new customers to the site.. I dont understand what’s going on with this company but it’s crazy they are turning away future customers and alreadyoyal ones with no explanation there has to be a better site with better customer service out there I am truly disappointed in them for we are both in the medical field no criminal records and outstanding citizens it seems like they have some type of discrimination going on within this company and it should definitely be addressed with a class action lawsuit
did the same thing to me on two occasions and had to try and log in to even find out about it. This cannot be legal, you do not have the option to write a contract that is in conflict with the state and federal laws doing business in the state(s) you are in. It seems that a series of consistent similar complaints need to be filed with the Attorney General of the state where the primary HQ is located.
This is the second time they’ve disabled my account for NO reason. I’ve stayed at airbnb all over the world… More than 15+ and they canceled my account for security purposes, as per the email. It’s really sad that they won’t even speak to their customers to tell them the real reasons, or. Solve the issue. What a poor excuse for a company. Spread the word!
Same thing happened to me. A week ago, I received an email stating they were deactivating my account based on information from public media! What??!?
I have a Top Secret clearance! We can’t AirBnB discuss thier reasons for this action? I’m so frustrated and mad!!
Yikes – Same here. After a couple of years if not using Airbnb, for hosting or being a guest, I am now apparently permanently locked out of my own account. It’s disabled, and attempt to change my password, or get real help from Airbnb have failed. This is frustrating as I would like to book rooms someplace.
I have experienced same issue with Airbnb, they disabled my account without any reason or explanation. I couldn’t understand why they are abusing their loyal customers and turned down to give reasons for their inquiry to know the reasons. I never recommend any one to use Airbnb
F you airbnb!! shut down me “a super host” without any reason!!!
Another airbnb “casualty” – with no explanation and no response to multiple inquiries – just resulted in a one week per month loss of business for one of their members. Clearly they have gotten too big to care. But the good news, there are other growing sites that provide the same types of accommodations with much, much better service. Using VRBO this month, and the next, and the next…
I am looking for somewhere to rent a room on a temporary basis, so obviously am looking at airbnb. It sounds like airbnb make a very quick judgement if there is a glitch of any kind on an account, and do not want to take any time to investigate an issue.
If they continue to treat legitimate hosts and renters so shabbily the word will get round and competitors will benefit. I certainly am not going to use airbnb for hosting or renting.
Same thing here!! Odd it had an email i never use in my profile. Had to locations that showed i logged in when i know i havent. Never been to Mexico City…
Same thing happened to us! My husband and I have been diligent Airbnb stayers for at least 5 years now, never had a problem, always tried to leave everything as neatly as we found it. When trying to book for the holidays, we both got e-mails saying our account was temporarily disabled and to email account inquiry. We emailed as instructed, and Airbnb replied (after a long delay) saying we were not allowed on the site anymore–with absolutely no explanation as to why. We are beyond baffled, and will be using the myriad of other home stay sites available, and will talk about our bizarre and demoralizing Airbnb experience to everyone we know.
I got the same letter, when I tried to understand why my account was disabled out of the blue. Basically, this whole thread points to the fact, that now nothing can be done?….
My account was just permanently closed — I only used it to book rooms when I traveled, I never rented out my own property. One day I started noticing weird e-mails from China and found out someone hacked my account and tried to book rooms on my account. As soon as I noticed this, I tried logging into my account only to see it’s been disabled. I have called and called and called some more only to get the run around and no real clarification on whether my personal information/credit cards have been compromised. Rather than actually solve the problem and determine where the hack was coming from, it turns out it was easier for them to permanently kick me off airbnb with no reason or disclosure. I had nothing but great reviews and fantastic experiences with Airbnb, I loved using the service wherever I traveled. I’ve never heard of a company operating like this.
This is crazy! I spent over 40k renovating a furnished suite and just as I was booking my 1st guest, my account was temporarily disabled. Same thing, emails phone calls to them no reply almost 2 weeks now. I have good credit own 2 homes, have a good job, pay taxes, travel all over the world and for some reason Airbnb doesn’t want my business. I was telling everyone what a great concept this was and now I feel like a complete fool for even mentioning their name to other. For my case the only scammers are Airbnb! Thanks for nothing!
Ditto. It seems like they just randomly ban people for fun, and then not provide them with any explanation.
Worst service ever.
I have contacted Airbnb by email and phone for the past 5 weeks, still now i havent got any reply.
I am getting really frustrated because i use airbnb extremellly often as i travel a lot for work and i have had to cancel so many plans due to this issue which nobody is even explaining, PLEASE HELP!!
Can anybody help? Can anybody at least explain why my account is disabled? And my MOTHER´S ACCOUNT is disabled too!!
I really hope who ever is reading this email will be able to help me. Please.
Since October 17th when i tryed to book a place in Hamburg, my reservation got canceled on its own and my account has also been disabled as airbnb trust and safety team needed to make sure there was no one else using my account without my permission.
This probably happened because i have logged into my account from different locations in a short space of time as i do travel very often or maybe because i added a new credit card into my account settings, and i also suspect it could has happened because my mother and i both have an airbnb account on our own but we have the same credit card registered in both accounts.
I have always been a great tenant, I have several good reviews in my account and there is simply no reason for my account to be deactivated.
I have already provided private information no one but me would know, as Airbnb asked me to do in a previous email received. And i am more than willing to provide any type of information you might need.
Airbnb said they would look into it and they would get back to me within 48 hours but it has now been way more than 48 hours, it’s now almost 5 weeks and no one ever got back in touch with me.
I urgently need my account to be back on running as this issue is delaying my travels and Its really affecting my plans.
i have even emailed a picture of my self holding my passport and debit card for extra reassurance to your team.
Please recover my account as soon as possible, I have travels arranged i need to make, please!!
I will ones again provide you with personal information in this email, If you need any other details in order to speed up the process please dont hesitate to let me know.
email address: josua@live.co.uk
telephone numbers registered to the account: +34617648775
+4527498121
Hey Cole-
Just found this page through Google search. Did they every get back to you? Airbnb screwed me over in the exact same way and disabled my account just because I used ApplePay. I was in desperate need of a place to stay for a month in NYC and ended up having to stay at a seedy hotel. I sent them 3 screenshots showing that it was indeed my credit card and still no response from their automated system 5 days later.
This is the ABSOLUTE WORST customer service I have ever received from a supposedly “great” Silicon Valley company. Even uber has better customer service than Airbnb. I have posted to all 1600 of my friends on Facebook about this incident with screenshots of the absolutely terrible customer experience their automated system gave me. In addition I’ve alerted all 4762 of my twitter followers about the incident. Will Airbnb do anything about this? I’m guessing not.
However, I will make it my life’s mission to tell every single person I meet about this incident and organize a community of people who have been treated the same way. I’ve registered the domain name “AvoidAirbnbAtAllCost.com” and will be setting up a quick community site for people to organize against them. Give it a few years and they will learn the harsh lesson of bad customer service.
I have probably booked through Airbnb 30 different times in the past 3 years and I have an excellent guest record. I’ve had absolutely no problem with Airbnb in the past. I have always used the same credit card to make reservations. Today, I tried to book a reservation, but that credit card had been put on a temporary hold by my credit card company because they were questioning the legitimacy of a previous transaction. As a result of the payment not going through, Airbnb disabled my account and required me to send them a bunch of information, including a page from my recent credit card statement. I did that immediately because the booking I was looking for was time sensitive. It’s a Saturday and I have not received any response and I suspect that the booking will no longer be available when and if Airbnb re-activates my account when they all get back to work on Monday. I understand that they have to be careful with bad people that try to use fraudulent payment methods. However, I am astounded that a company that relies so significantly on a review system for guests and hosts does not have some method themselves of distinguishing between long-standing, loyal customers who are using the same credit card that has been used for 30 past reservations and new customers with whom they have not established a pattern of trust. It’s insulting to be tossed on the heap of suspected customers for this – especially when temporary holds on credit cards have become commonplace these days. Wouldn’t it be better to inform a loyal customer that their credit card payment did not go through for some reason and give them a chance to clear it up with their credit card company before disabling their account? I think Airbnb is losing its way. I look forward to working with one of their competitors in the future.
I was just scammed by them last night when I booked a room through them and I am very disappointed. I really thought that it would be a great service. After I booked and paid for the room through them, I received a confirmation message and than for no reason they immediately disabled my account with a message: We’ve discovered that the payment method used for this reservation isn’t valid, which means that we aren’t able to support this reservation. I used my Visa card and the funds cleared! Now they are issuing a refund with no explanation. This is very unprofessional and a bad way to do business. I will not be using that service again and am now disputing the charge with my bank!
Airbnb deactivate guest accounts all the time, and they did it to me also. No reason, no explanation, no apology, no refund, no possibility of appeal, and it all seems to be based solely on SUSPICION of inappropriate activity on the account. What is more, you are barred from ever holding an account in your own name with them again. It is the most unprofessional practice of any company I have ever dealt with.
True experience. Very poor, actually none-existing, customer service. On which basis do they claim doing business?
I am also having this problem. Being sick and horribly frustrated by the absence of an answer, my wife created an account. Great. We booked three stays in July for which we collected very positive evaluations, obviously, and … suddenly her account was as well disabled. We are travelling a lot, had a great experience with our stays, but have a horrible one with Airbnb customer services. In spite of the dozens messages sent to account.inquiry, not a single answer. Very rude and customer unfriendly.
non riesco ad attivare l´annuncio!! perche si continua ad inviare email se la colpa é vostra?
same here. why airbnb service going down like this???????????????
AIRBNB IS A BUNCH OF WHITE COLLAR ASSHOLES…FUCK THEM
Same thing happened to me. Look, if this were a hotel and I was treated this way, I’d never go back – so therefore F YOU AIRBNB! I guess I’ll just go back to staying at hotels with fresh daily linens and room service.