Tag Archives: airbnb fees

Hidden Fees Bump up Airbnb Stay by $1,300

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I just completed my first and last utilization of Airbnb. I took my son and grandson to Oshkosh, Wisconsin for the EAA AirVenture airshow. We booked a beautiful home near the airport for the week at $550/night ($3,300 for 6 nights). The host was very good and communicated well.

When I returned I found my credit card had been charged $4,658. I attempted to download an invoice from their very difficult to navigate website and was unsuccessful. Only after sending a “chat” message, I obtained a customer service phone number, which I called. My first attempt I was disconnected after finally obtaining a representative and explaining my dilemma. I called back and again after a long wait and final explanation, I was disconnected again. The third attempt, again a long hold and menu negotiation, I got a customer rep.

I addressed the $1,300 additional charge and asked for an explanation. After several holds, the final explanation was a $501 Airbnb service fee, a $600 occupancy tax, and a cleaning fee of $250, which I’m told is kept by Airbnb and not even given to the host. None of this was disclosed at the booking. The difference from my original daily rate of $550 turned into $775/night. Armed with that information I probably would have made different plans. The customer service person was apologetic, but offered no explanation as to the Airbnb policy. I will never use their services again and I will tell anyone standing still long enough to do the same.

Followed Airbnb’s Rules and Got Shafted for it

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I run a business where I frequently use Airbnb’s services for myself and crew from Washington to California on a bimonthly basis for the last five years spending tens of thousands of dollars with all (but one) perfect reviews from hosts. This last trip, while cleaning up, we did a load of dishes in the dishwasher; it leaked on tje floor, but went unnoticed.

I got a request from the host for $1,000 for damage done to the floor in front of the dishwasher (apparently the dishwasher leaked and warped a 2×2 section of flooring in front of it). I refused the request for payment and called Airbnb to explain the leaking dishwasher was not intentionally done by us. Airbnb said they would look into it.

Two weeks later, at 2:30 AM, I received a text from Airbnb that they determined I was at fault, and now the bill for repairs was $2,500, due immediately. Without waiting for a reply from me, within seconds, I received a text from Airbnb saying an attempt to withdraw the $2,500 from my checking account failed and threatened that any funds from any current reservation by me could be forfeited.

What right does Airbnb have to withdraw funds automatically, without my permission, to resolve a dispute? I immediately called Airbnb to find out why the request for funds went from $1,000 to $2,500 and why in the hell they attempted to withdraw funds from my account without my permission. I have been waiting two days for an answer with an additional five calls to Airbnb to get answers.

Cheap Airbnb Host Charges Extra for Everything

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I was looking to stay at a place for ten weeks and found a good deal. The minute I expressed interest the host basically harassed me until I signed and kept saying that “if I didn’t agree he had others lined up.” He actually cancelled on me until I went back and said yes (this was within 24 hours).

Anyways, his post had pictures of a pool table and a large couch with projectors. He also told me that he and his girlfriend traveled quite a bit and that I would have the whole townhome to myself. When I arrived, however, I found out that I basically got one bedroom and was told that downstairs was off limits. He then said that I could have one shelf in the fridge. I was in a room with no central air and the bathroom was absolutely disgusting. The sink took a while to drain but I was fine with that.

At first it was okay and I never used the kitchen. However, one time he and his girlfriend left and I began to spread out more into the upstairs living room areas. One day, I left for my rotation day quite early and was planning on cleaning up that evening. My host got back a little after I left and sent me image after image saying how disgusting it was to come back to a dirty house. He then kept sending me images and pictures saying that I was irresponsible and that I needed to clean up. He kept harassing me until I paid him $50 apologizing after which he basically didn’t say anything. The irony was he and his girlfriend moved a bunch of their stuff back and piled it all over the kitchen.

I was pretty much just left in my room all the time because it was too awkward to go use the house. He disabled the heat and the cable while he was gone so there was a span of five days where I was living in a 50-degree house. After I checked out, he messaged me saying that one of his towels was missing and that the drain was clogged. After three weeks, he sent a message requesting $45 to repair the drain. When I mentioned the $50 I had already paid him previously as an extra/coverage for such fees, he said that that didn’t count and that I paid him without him asking — this time, he was requesting the $45.

It was awful. I was confined to a room for ten weeks and basically never really got to use the house. He got angry when I tried to clean up the kitchen with cleaning supplies I bought (he didn’t leave any cleaning supplies). He said that he only preferred to clean with his own supplies but he kept them hidden away and would charge $30 every time something needed to be extensively cleaned, which he found to be quite often. Furthermore, there were amenities on his listing (pool table, a projector lounge, large TV) that were inaccessible to me. Basically, he harassed me to sign up and then I stayed in one room. Horrible.

Not Happy About Airbnb’s Cancellation Policy

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My son was due to be married in NY in August. I had paid $3800 to secure an Airbnb accommodation. I am in Australia. The wedding has been postponed for one year and travel is not allowed.

The host has been lovely. However, as I cancelled, Airbnb is holding $901 in fees. They say this is fair, as my cancellation is not covered by extenuating circumstances. The host is also angry, but it doesn’t seem to matter. I regret not asking her to cancel the booking as I feel perhaps I would have been better situated? Message after message, case manager, phone call but no refund from Airbnb. I am devastated.

Any suggestions?

Don’t Trust Airbnb Reviews – Delete Bad Ones

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I will file a lawsuit against Airbnb in two months, as soon as my upcoming non-refundable reservations end. I will also make a website called Airbnb Scams, Airbnb Lies and more domain names like this. I will explain all the scams, lies, misleading information, and Airbnb actions on my website in depth.

I had stayed at 28 Airbnbs in 17 months. I did hours of research to find a decent place in order to not to get screwed by Airbnb hosts. There are very few hosts honest enough in Airbnb listings, and Airbnb already knows all these scams because I have been telling them repeatedly for the last 17 months. Yet Airbnb does nothing to fix all these scams. Of course, if they remove all the scam listing, Airbnb cannot make any money.

1. You do not know where will you stay until you book and pay. If you are not familiar with the area , you will end up very dangerous place because even with 30 bad review, and a 2.6 review score there are lots of listings that still exist on Airbnb. Airbnb does not care if you are safe. They want your money.

2, Even though there are no bad reviews, it does not mean that the place is perfect because Airbnb deletes bad reviews reviews on some listings to do the host a sweet favor, just like an Airbnb case manager deleted my bad review about a host lying about me that I left his place dirty. I have recordings that show totally the opposite, and I am suing them in March.

3. Shows “kitchen” on the listing. Yet one mini fridge, one microwave and a coffee maker is not a kitchen.

4. Shows “gym” on the listing, and the gym is in the other building and belongs to some other company, or apartment. I even saw a gym listed but it was in the park.

5. Non-refundable bookings.

6. “Do not say you are with Airbnb; just say you are friend”. Most of the Airbnb hosts ask me or even say in their listing that I should tell anyone if asked that I am not an Airbnb guest. I should lie, saying I am their friend or relative. So, you are charging me $150/night and I have to lie for you? Then charge me $30 a night if you just want to scam your building staff, your neighbors, and the tax department?

7. No refunds if you stay there one night or two and find out the host lied to you about something. Airbnb may refund you the rest of the stay if you move out, but you still must pay the nights you were there just because a host lied to you.

8. Sometimes other very loud Airbnb guests will keep you up all night. There is nothing you can do.

I will write all my experiences when I make my website. One host said there was a gym, and I found out there was never a gym. In his words, Days Inn was letting them use their gym but not anymore. Surprisingly, the host found out the very same day I checked in that Days Inn did not let his Airbnb guests use the gym. Really? What a coincidence! I told Airbnb, and only got a partial refund. I lost $357 for one night, Uber payments, groceries, and wasted time and money.

28 places I have stayed, in three states and two countries. So many lies, scams, misleading information, and more. My only reason was the kitchen because I like to cook. Dirty utensils, lack of cooking materials, tiny fridges, more and more. They charge $50 – $250 cleaning fees, and yet I have to clean most of the places I have stayed.

As I said in the beginning, there are very few honest hosts. If you not spend many hours reading each listing word by word, you are screwed. There are so many hidden fees, such as for a jacuzzi, or two-bedroom apartment but the $38 price tag is for only one person, the second person is $16 extra per night, extra deposits and cash deposits. There are resort fees, this and that, and on top of all this, Airbnb charges almost $13% -15% and yet offers no real help if the host does not agree to anything.

Airbnb only helps if the host is willing to help. Otherwise you are screwed. No more Airbnb for me. I will continue to stay at hotels.

Airbnb Can’t Stay up to Date on Tax Laws

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Recently I was contacted by the County of Marin, stating that I owed $2,400 due to Airbnb paying the wrong amount of Transient Occupancy taxes. I was notified by the county after one year, so the mistake was very expensive.

I contacted Airbnb approximately three weeks ago, and I still have not heard back. I have called numerous times. They promise to call back within 24-48 hours but they never do. I spoke with a supervisor who said he would call back within 24 hours, but no success.

I keep getting reservations, and they still are still charging the wrong amount. I have asked at “a minimum” to please change it to the correct amount, which they have verified to be accurate on their end, and they tell me someone from “the appropriate department” will contact me. This never happens.

This is only one example of the horrible customer service received by hosts. I recommend that everyone boycott Airbnb, and go to VRBO. That is the only way this monopoly will learn how to treat their customers with respect. Absolutely horrible customer service.

Airbnb Reviews are to Serve the Business

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When you look at a host’s review, you might not see the whole story. Our host wrote that people shouldn’t give her one-star reviews if they didn’t read her booking and know what to expect. Fair enough, right?

The host had hundreds of review, but if you scroll down, you can’t find any guests that did not recommend staying there. I wish I knew why someone would give this host a one-star review, and I figured out the hard way.

When I had to do an emergency change to the reservation, the host declined my request to change any dates. I ended up paying more than double the original price because it was a special weekend and $40 in Airbnb fees for two nights. Why do the booking and service fees cost so much for just two days?

The room was okay but the floor was like concrete: no rugs, tiles, or carpeting. There were spiders in the room and the bathroom, and the yard looked unkempt: dirt yard, wooden boards. You could see how the neighbor’s yard at least looked neat and had plants. It was a basic home and room that cost the same as staying in a hotel for one night.

When you have this happen, don’t bother calling Airbnb. After staying there, Airbnb predicted that my review might be too honest for them and actually blocked me from writing reviews. It’s a business, they said, and there’s nothing you can do about it. You can’t appeal to them. They don’t even tell you that you can’t write reviews.

They force you to only have two choices: lose your money and don’t stay there, or have no choice but to stay there because after you’ve reserved on a strict reservation, there’s no cancelling. You end up losing your money anyway and paying 15% in fees.

Next time, book a hostel or a hotel where they don’t charge a high booking fee and let you change your reservation. Hostel and hotel reviews on Yelp aren’t monitored by the hostel and hotel themselves. You get more honest feedback that way. When reviews are monitored by the business and chosen by the business, you’ll know the reviews are to serve the business.

Additional Fees Make Prices Difficult to Determine

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This site is a scam and they take no action into making their clients happy and making things right with both hosts and guests. They’re always on the hosts’ side, trying to make excuses because of their “terms and conditions”. There is no reimbursement whatsoever for any reason.

When I reserved a property, Airbnb had given me a time to check in between 1:00-3:00 PM. When I arrived to check in at 1:00, I was pretty much yelled at by one of the hosts about the fact that “check-in was only to be made after 3:00 only” not before. When I mentioned it to the host, I was given the offer to cancel my reservation without any charges but I wasn’t going to be able to find anything else at the last minute. I decided not to cancel since I had nowhere else to go.

It looks like charges are wrongfully made the minute you make that reservation, which is not supposed to be done that way. I made a request for a one bedroom with two beds. Anybody would think that that would include at least two people, especially when I mentioned to the host that it was for me and my father. The host never mentioned anything about the fact that if it wasn’t just for one person that the price would change and told me to immediately change my reservation to two, not just one.

The minute I was told about that rule, I decided to just leave my father there due to his health. I decided not to change the reservation and just leave it for one person. I came back the next morning to pick him up and just cancel the deal. I handed in the key to the host and made it clear to his knowledge that I would no longer be staying.

Another thing I also now see on the receipt: the cost for the night, according to their advertising on Airbnb, was changed from $29 to $34.75 for my reservation for four nights. Was the extra $5.75 charge because of it being for two people or what?

When I contacted Airbnb about the issue, I was supposedly going to be helped with my terrible experience by requesting the host to accept the refund and keep me aware of the results, which a welcoming and reasonable host would do to an unsatisfied client. I was later informed that they had denied my request of being refunded for the nights I would no longer be staying at the property and using their service, as if it was only according to them.

As I was being informed, all they did was show signs of being on the hosts’ side and not caring in regards to the issues I had encountered. I considered myself being legally robbed because of my agreement to their terms and conditions.

I was also emailed about an extra $20 by the host because of the reservation having to be made for two people. I denied this because only one person had resided that night. I wondered what the outcome on that would be.

Do not use Airbnb. There is always a catch for cheap affairs. My irrational and insubordinate hosts have great reviews maybe only because of the fact that Airbnb doesn’t even give the unsatisfied the opportunity to write a bad review or a complaint.

I included a picture of the location to be rented by the hosts. Other signs of this site to be a scam is their cheap night stay without including fake charges like “service and cleaning fees” obviously not counted until the end, which makes it no better than a slightly smaller price paid at a simple motel. That makes it not much of a better deal than a motel if all you need is a roof to sleep under for one night or more.

Airbnb Hosts in Thailand Ask for Extra

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I’ve been living in Thailand for five months and using Airbnb I’ve noticed an unusual pattern of requests made by hosts in this country. The hosts request guests to pay for the electric and water bills and to give them security deposits upon arrival. Many of them expect these payments to be made to them or their co-host in cash.

Here’s how it went for me. I booked a studio apartment in Pattaya for 30 days. The host then informed me I had to pay electricity and water (at the time I had no problem with it) and then the host advised me to get in contact with his co-host. The co-host, however, was not listed as a co-host. That was a red flag as I believe guests should only communicate on the Airbnb platform and not give out our cell numbers.

Upon my arrival the co-host requested a security deposit of 3000 Thai baht. I told her I couldn’t pay her that. I then contacted Airbnb and told them what had transpired. The Airbnb case manager communicated to the host and informed him that he cannot make requests for guests to give him any payments in the form of cash, only through Airbnb. Since he requested water and electricity to be paid, then he must submit documentation through the Resolution Center. At the end of my check out he did not do that.

Here’s the scam that I figured out. So many of these hosts in Thailand rent out these rooms and use them for Airbnb. When they ask for utilities to be paid they make a request for a “security deposit”, right? But that’s for their apparent utilities they are charging you for. Think about it. If water and gas comes out to either greater, equal or less than the deposit you gave the host, they will just pay you back the difference in whatever you may pay. If you change your mind and don’t want to pay the utilities they will threaten to just keep your whole deposit. That’s what people do here. So be aware of this when you come to Thailand and book long stays.

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Asking for a $60 Fee just to Clean the Dishes?

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I was staying at an Airbnb in New Zealand. The place was good and the host seemed very nice. The problems started to occur when we checked out. We ran out of time (we were travelling far away that day) so we didn’t wash the dishes for our breakfast. It was kind of messy in the kitchen but we didn’t break anything and we reported the right number of people for check in.

After we left, the host got angry and wanted me to pay $60. I just don’t get it: in the house rules, they stated the fees only applied when we smoked, not for the dishes. I’m confused: can someone tell me what should I do? Other Airbnb properties seemed fine when we left the house with dishes unwashed. Should I reject or accept the request? Please help me understand.