Author Archives: Chiara Scarabotti

Airbnb Break-in after Few Hours… No Refund, No Review

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I organised a trip last year that I will surely remember. I’m getting married in September and I organised a hen-do in Barcelona with my Italian friends who were flying from Rome and Bologna. Lots and lots of preparation. A nice flat with a terrace to enjoy our precious (and rare) time together. What could possibly go wrong?

We were all so excited. The area was Hospitalet de Llobregat. Not central, but not that far from it; we just wanted to spend time together. From the beginning, we realised how dodgy that place was, and this was confirmed by many people we spoke to after the break-in, police included. Some taxis refused to take us there on Friday night, and the policemen said that in particular the street where we were was very dangerous, so extra care should have been taken when someone has to stay in that building. Were there any mentions from the host? None whatsoever.

After few hours after our arrival, we had a break-in in the flat as soon as we went for dinner. They stole iPad tablets and glasses. The terrace (i.e. the major selling point of the flat) was extremely exposed and not safe. We discovered the following day that it was easily accessible through other communal terraces and the police forensic expert confirmed that this is what happened for our break in. The window of the bedroom facing the terrace where the thieves entered was faulty; it was not possible to secure it properly.

This should have been sorted by the host before we entered the flat, given how dangerous the area was known to be and how accessible the terrace is. It is not possible that the owner did not know both of these things, and yet (again) there was no warning or thought given to our safety or the security of our valuables in the flat. We had to spend our Saturday (the only day we could have been together) dealing with Forensics and Police statements and searching for another place to stay for the night.

Airbnb completely refused to give us any compensation for the accident, not even of the items stolen. This was all host’s fault and it was very preventable. The holiday with my friends that we dreamed so much about it? That opportunity is gone forever and there will not be another time to do this. I kept phoning the complaint department who kept saying that they were re-opening the case, to then discover that the original department, Trust and Safety, kept closing it.

Did someone check into the flat after the break-in? They just “recommended” the host to repair the window. Trust and safety? A lot of trust for the reckless host and zero safety for me. The host begged me to not post any reviews and I was holding until the case was closed. Discovering what? That for a hidden policy you’re not allowed to write any review on the place you’ve visited after 14 days. This is not mentioned in any email they send you or on the website at all. It is buried in one of the forum posts. I felt I completely lost on every angle.

I was a great fan of Airbnb, but this completely changes my perspective. Security is not contemplated at all in any of the flats they list, and this is shocking. Something goes wrong and they don’t take any responsibility, they don’t refund you and you cannot even share the experience with the others. A total disgrace.

Sleeping on the Streets of Madrid with my Baby

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I am looking for someone to listen to my story about my negative Airbnb experience. I am begging for help, as the customer service representatives and hosts of the place I have booked have insulted me and refused to help, and I will be sleeping in the streets with my 19-month-old daughter because of this.

A month ago, I booked an entire apartment in Madrid, Spain from June 16-25th. We arrived and the host rushed us through the apartment door, through our long hallway, and our room had a bedroom door. After he left, we discovered a locked door next to our bedroom door (in our apartment). We thought it was a closet, but I could see there was a light on.

I immediately contacted our host and asked if there was a person in our apartment. He said someone lives there. I could see a freshly used toothbrush in our bathroom. We were incredibly nervous. I was with my one and a half year old daughter, which is why I booked an entire apartment to ourselves. I did not sign up for a person living there.

By this time, it was midnight. I could not go out into the street with my child. My family and I did not sleep the entire night. It’s 2:30 PM in Madrid now. We have now been in contact with Airbnb for 12 hours now. When I emphasized that I am simply trying to protect my daughter, the customer service representative accused me of abusing my daughter. I was given warnings when I was just begging for help.

We are now left with nowhere to go, no refund, and being told left and right that we are not entitled to anything. It has been twelve hours with no resolution. Twelve hours with no safe haven for my 19-month-old daughter. We were thrown into an unsafe situation and basically told it doesn’t matter that this was a fraudulent listing, and if I want my daughter somewhere else, I need to once again pay out of pocket, and my $700 for the unsuitable unsafe fraudulent listing will not be returned. They told me they are done with the conversation.

They are silencing a mother, who is concerned for her child’s safety. People need to know what kind of company this is: one that not only disregards customers, but does nothing to ensure the safety of children. The safety of children in any situation should always be the number one priority. A mother should never be silenced. I should not have been mocked and accused of mistreating my child because I wanted her safe.

A man at Airbnb kept writing me messages saying I deserved nothing. I politely asked him numerous times to step back and please let me speak to someone else and he ignored that and kept telling me he’s closing my case. I am a customer. The case is closed when we reach a resolution and I say it’s closed. He clearly had something against me and wanted to wound me up further. Because of him and this host, my one year old daughter is sleeping in the streets tonight. I am begging for help. Begging. Please help me either receive my entire money back or a safe place to stay for the dates I requested.

Airbnb Host Raised Rental Price After Booking

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As my French friends advised me to book an Airbnb place instead of my already booked hotel, I decided to book a place on Airbnb in Paris. As this was my first time booking with Airbnb, I was giving special attention to reviews. After trying to contact a few hosts before actually booking, just as it is advised, and getting no answers, I found a host who was verified by Airbnb with pretty good reviews. I booked the place, sent a message, and waited.

There was no message from the host, no confirmation of my booking, and as it was already close to my departure date and possibility of cancelling my hotel booking, I decided to stick to my hotel and cancelled the request for the Airbnb booking before it was confirmed. Not more than a minute later came a message that she was about to confirm my request and another message came from Airbnb with a special price offer.

I accepted the special price offer, paid Airbnb, got confirmation, and cancelled my hotel booking. This was already three days before my departure for Paris. The next day I got a message from Airbnb saying that the hosts wanted to change my booking, raising the rate by more than 400€. I immediately tried to contact the host on the number given after confirmation, but no one answered my calls or SMS.

I was thinking ‘What the hell!?’, refused the change, and Airbnb again messaged me saying that my booking was confirmed. Half an hour later I got a message from the host saying she made a mistake and offered a price that was too low and that Airbnb was putting too many provisions on her request for a change in the booking.

I am not answering any more messages as I found this site with similar situations. She then cancelled my booking and sent me another offer for booking her place with a new price. Did she think I would book it again after all? I gave up booking on Airbnb, booked another hotel, paying more than my first booking and not in a part of Paris I wanted. I guess never again I will try to book Airbnb following all the ‘proper advice’ from them.

Racist Host Can’t Help But Write Negative Reply

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I have had a pleasant trip using Airbnb over the last month until I read the messages from a host in Florence. I stayed in Florence and the bathtub in the apartment was so clogged that the water covered my feet while showering; hairs floated. I mentioned this discomfort in my review, and the host seemed to be very dissatisfied with the problem I raised.

According to her, the apartment was in poor condition and the water went down a bit slower but her apartment was clean. Yes, it may be true some hairs from the pipe came out and her tub had been clean. However, how could I know the status of her entire building?

Her public review wasn’t that bad, but the private message was terrible. I can not stand this discriminatory statement. She has a huge bias for the people of my country, and this kind of person should not be an Airbnb host.

[Translated and edited public review] Thank you for the kind review. I would like to point out that some of what he wrote was incorrect: the apartment is advertised as clean (including the tub), but unfortunately the internal condition of the pipes does not depend on cleaning. This can happen in an apartment in which the speed at which a bathtub drains is slower than it should be. It certainly does not depend on cleanliness, so I hope you will take care of it in the future 🙂

[Translated and edited reply] The tub was clean. It simply drains slowly. Next time, go to a hotel. This is the usual attitude I see from Koreans. You’d better get an education, and learn not to be so unpleasant. It is no coincidence that I don’t have other negative reviews. I hope we don’t see each other again.

Do I have to deal with hosts like this because I just left a review that does not appeal to one host?

Airbnb’s Unfair Resolution Centre Believes Hosts

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I have been a Superhost for five years, and Airbnb has been great in the past. When guests have asked for refunds, I have done my best to be fair. When the dryer broke while gests were staying, I replaced it; I know amenities have a shelf life. It was my understanding that we are part of a nice, fair community.

However, I went to Nice for two days. I’m a single mum and needed a short break away. The second night we couldn’t pull the sofabed out; something was wrong with it. We got home and the host wanted us to buy a new one for €1,200. I am not strong enough to bend metal and damage a sofa, so how is it that Airbnb customer service has given me robotic, copy and pasted emails that day stating I must pay?

There has been no explanation, no kindness… they just took money from my account and have threatened me with ‘removal from the community’. I feel wrongly accused and let down. I still have many Airbnb guests booked for the next few months, and am trying to give them a good travel experience. I can’t believe how cold and unjust customer service has been this time. They won’t answer any of my questions. I don’t know what to do.

The Tale of an Awful Hostess who Held me Hostage

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TL;DR: Airbnb hostess agrees to let me change a three-month reservation to one month, then goes back on her word and verbally/financially holds me hostage until Airbnb got involved. Also unreasonably bitchy about stuff. Gather round, and let me tell you a fairytale-like story that quickly became hellish…

Once, in a neighbourhood called Butte aux Cailles in Paris, there was an apartment listed on a place called Airbnb. A young student from the faraway land of North America decided to book this apartment for three months while she was working in France. Even though the student didn’t have much money, she thought that the neighbourhood and the experience would make it worth it (big mistake, she later learned, as she paid about 1000 euros per month for a room, which is way overpriced for what 99% of rooms in Paris are worth).

Anyways, in this apartment lived a woman who the student had figured would be a nice and agreeable person. The tales from others on Airbnb had claimed that she was, however – this young student would later learn – really, for lack of a better term, a “nasty and unreasonable bitch”.

So, what are the problems, you ask? Well, dear reader, let me list them out (and at this point I will just break immersion since writing in the third person is tiresome, and straight up tell you what happened).

Week 1 [~May 3rd]: Host complains about “turning on the water taps too hard and running the shower too hard.”

“Well, if I’m paying 1000 euros just for a room, you really shouldn’t complain too much about me turning on the tap because it’s a little sensitive,” I think, but I shrug and say “alright.”

Week 1 [~May 4th]: The host’s friend was staying over on the couch. She’s nice, although there isn’t much space in the apartment so a curtain is drawn up between the living room and the entrance to my room.

Week 1 [~ May 7th]: I told the host that I was planning on moving out to the dorms after the end of May. She was understanding and sympathetic at the time, and offered to help me find a room with her friend. Unfortunately, it’s too far from where I work, so I declined. However, she said that she would call Airbnb to waive the normal 30-day fee for modifying the reservation.

Week 2 [~May 14th]: I came home at around 11:30 PM and went to my room. The next minute, the host sent a text message complaining about the noise I made when opening the door (she had told me on the first day that the door is tricky, and obviously turning the lock would make unavoidable noise). I had not known beforehand that her friend had been staying over the last two nights, and I told her that: “I would appreciate it if you tell me that you have guests staying the night. It would be unreasonable to expect that I should be completely quiet if I don’t know that someone is already asleep when I come home (via text).”

I believed it to be a reasonable request to ask from her, as I was happy to accommodate if I had known that her friend was staying. On most nights, the street below where her house is often very loud due to the many pubs, with the noise going into late hours of the night (2-3:00 AM).

Week 2 [May 14th night]: The host flips out. She said that “it is quite normal to make less noise in the apartment, because I also live in this apartment, as does my friend and my daughter [which is false, only the host lives there].”

Then she complained to me about the unwashed dishes (I left a cup in there once) and the hygenic pads in the trash (where do pads go, in your bed?), and kept telling me to “respect the rules of the contract.” All I asked her was just to give me a headsup if her friend was staying over.

Week 3 [May 15th]: I told the host that I would be moving June 1st (as discussed with her over a week ago). She flipped out a second time, and told me that I could not leave until after the end of June. In her words: “she has a contract for her daughter’s (university) room until the end of June.”

While this was the case when I originally booked, we had agreed in Week 1 that I would check out at the end of May. I was feeling incredibly uncomfortable being held verbally and financially hostage like this. I was super stressed to return to the apartment, or even leave my room.

Week 3 [May 16th]: I saw her in the morning and she asked me to explain “What was the problem? I don’t understand what was the problem.” This culminates in a terse argument between us. I sent a plea for help to Airbnb support.

Week 3 [May 17th]: Airbnb was surprisingly super helpful. They called me telling me to cancel the agreement, and refunded me for the nights not spent, while also nullifying the 30-day penalty. A colleague let me stay in his house shared with six others until the end of May, which turned out to be a 350 square meter apartment in Paris. By Parisian standards, this was pretty much a castle.

Anyways, to wrap up my long-winded story, avoid this host at all costs. She made me so nervous and agitated being around her because I felt like I had to constantly tiptoe around her or get bitched at. And that was just the icing on the cake compared to her outright lying to me, and not letting me leave in May instead of July – even after we agreed multiple times that I could check out early.

At least I know that long term rentals on Airbnb are awful. Unfortunately I forgot to leave a review on her listing and profile because of a bunch of other stuff was going on at the time, and then I missed the 14-day time limit. This story did actually happen though; take a look at these pictures.

Airbnb Blocks Legitimate Negative Reviews

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I’ve used Airbnb at least 15 times but never again. A host screwed me over (warning: do not stay here). I had never been to New Orleans and was so excited. Six of my girlfriends and I planned a fun weekend getaway. I booked us a house that was listed as “3 miles from French Quarter” on Airbnb and paid over $1000 upfront (included $130 cleaning fee, $113 service fee, and $45 in taxes). I was boarding the plane to NOLA when I got a phone call from two of the girls saying they aren’t staying at the house.

Their Uber driver said it’s a very dangerous part of town and is considered the projects. I Googled it later and found out it was the second largest housing project in the city. There were boarded up houses on the street (something I could not have known). When they arrived at the house, two men drinking from paper bags across the street started catcalling them and made them feel very uncomfortable.

There was only one other review posted before me and the guy said that the neighborhood was “worn down”. I didn’t want to base my stay on one review, but looking back I should have. I immediately contacted the owner and said we did not feel comfortable staying there and we would be staying somewhere else. I ended up paying a fortune for a hotel last minute.

Usually a hotel would make you pay for that first night and give you the rest of the money back. Nope… not this host. She wouldn’t even give me back the $130 cleaning fee. She blamed the boarded up houses on hurricane Katrina which happened 13 years ago. She also had Airbnb block me from leaving a review because I was never inside the house. My friends did not enter the house, just parked the car in the driveway and then left after being harassed. After two months of arguing with Airbnb’s customer support, they blocked me from messaging them and closed the case. I lost over a grand and was blocked from leaving an honest review. Save your time: don’t stay here or use Airbnb.

Innkeeper Finds Faults with the Review Process

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We own a beautiful inn in Britsih Columbia, Canada that is rated five stars across all the board and is also a winner of awards. We placed our inn on Airbnb to attract millennials to our island and show them nature and the wonders of a protected environment. We have been on Airbnb for three years.

We had an emergency and had to cancel one reservation which the guest took very well and very kindly. This was our first cancellation on Airbnb. The next thing we know, we saw that the guest’s review had been posted on the page like a ‘wall of shame’. Shame on Airbnb. This is disgusting.

We will be removing our inn from Airbnb as we are appalled. We also use Expedia and Booking.com – professional, supportive organizations. I do understand this process for hosts that constantly cancel but not Superhosts with one cancellation in three years and excellent reviews. Airbnb should remember that they don’t catch flies with vinegar. They have too much money and swollen heads.

Let Down by Inconsiderate Host Three Days Before Booking

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We booked a large apartment in Belfast for a significant family reunion. We booked months in advance so everything was organised that we needed. There were nine of us travelling and we were ready to go: flights booked, everything. I hadn’t heard from my host so a week before our departure I contacted him via email. He chose to ignore this.

I then continued to phone, leaving messages and texts for five days all, of which he also chose to ignore even though I explained my anxieties about the lack of details. We had to check in and there were a range of needs for my party. We had a disabled child, a senior citizen and a new baby. Finally, just over two days before we were due to leave, he phoned telling me that the property was no longer available, he had known this for at least a week and possibly longer. He made no offer of an alternative and didn’t mention a refund. I was appalled and disgusted that he could treat my family with such inconsideration.

We were then left to try and find suitable accommodation, which was nearly impossible. We had to split up and it ruined the whole experience for us. He is absolutely not fit to be a host or manage any kind of business. I spoke to Airbnb and made a formal complaint and asked for them to refund me directly as I couldn’t bear to have any further dealings with him. My main reason for this story is to prevent other families from being let down, disrespected and disgusted like we were. Family time is far too precious. I’m not sure that I will ever consider Airbnb again after this expereince even though I know that some hosts do an amazing job.