Tag Archives: airbnb with children

Host and Airbnb Failed to Resolve a Nightmare

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My family and I were traveling to New York for my graduation from NYU. We arrived to the Airbnb around midnight and found the room unlocked and dirty. The sheets on the beds looked slept in. They were stained with white and there was a white powder on the table as well (my six-year-old nephew was joining me the next morning and god knows what would’ve happened if he tried to taste it) The floor was unswept. There were hair balls everywhere and counters were not clean. The bathroom had been used with used towels hanging. It was entirely unacceptable.

We were tired from flying coast to coast and did not expect to arrive to a mess. I tried to contact the doorman then they told me to speak to the host. I asked the host for a solution. She offered new (not washed) sheets that we would put on the beds ourselves. I asked for a refund and she essentially said we had no choice but to stay there because places nearby were booked. I reached out to Airbnb who had me take photos and explain what had happened.

After investigating, the Airbnb support representative told me that the host told him that I had other guests that left the room in that condition when I had literally just arrived. I was appalled. My family and I immediately tried to find places to no avail. I spoke with the Airbnb representative a few times and was ready to leave but my family and I had nowhere to go and we slept on the fitted sheets of the bed. That night I was promised a refund of the nights I would not be spending there and compensation on a hotel I ended up booking.

The next day came and the Airbnb representative told me I could only get a refund for the rest of the nights and no compensation for the hotel I ended up booking, which cost me over two times more than for what I booked the Airbnb. They also tried to force my hand in authorizing a solution by saying I had 30 minutes to an hour to accept a partial refund. I tried to escalate the issue to a supervisor for which they told me I would have to wait a business day.

Airbnb hasn’t tried to assist and compensate for an experience that was unforeseen and unplanned. I came to celebrate an achievement with my family and did not expect to have to worry for my family and my safety. This entire experience cost my family sleep and plans I had with them. Two days later I am still waiting for a resolution.

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Airbnb Hosts Get Guest Arrested After Misunderstanding

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On Jan. 11, I moved out of my apartment and chose to stay in an Airbnb for two weeks with my three-year-old son until getting a different place. I paid $1,136 for Jan. 11-25. The first four days my son and I were there, 6-7 different men came in and out of the unit fixing and replacing things. The first Friday, our fourth day, the host asked if someone could come over the weekend to fix yet something else. I did not answer this text message as I did not want to be rude and say no.

I just did not want anyone there for the weekend as we had had no peace. On the first and second days there, they locked up the piano that was advertised with the place. This happened while my son and I walked to lunch a block away. On the fifth day, nobody entered, nobody texted, and nobody called. The next day at 10:30-11:00 I heard a knock as I was in the shower. I left the door open to the bathroom because of my three year old.

I was taken aback and yelled “I am in the shower you will have to come back!”

Approximately 2-3 minutes later, I was exiting the shower and I heard “beep beep beep beep waaaahhhhhh!” There he was, standing in the doorway looking at me in the nude, in shock, unable to cover myself. I recognized him as the same man who fixed the shower, and put the lock on the piano. He left very quickly, leaving the door unlocked.

I instantly texted the host saying I had enough, that I was going to Airbnb about the privacy violations. She fed me a sob story about how I would be messing with the income for her family of six and I dropped it and let it go. The next day, her husband along with herself came over to fix the drip under the sink and spray for bugs because that water had brought cockroaches according to the feces left behind.

We began to talk about my personal life and I advised them that I moved out of my townhouse because my ex father in law had just brutally assaulted me there. I proceeded to tell them I recently received an email from the efile system stating I had a warrant for breaking a NOCO. I continued to tell them that I am not a fugitive on the run, that I in fact wrote the judge an emergency statement asking for permission to turn myself in so that I could find a suitable sitter, being I am the sole provider for my son. He agreed.

Less than 24 hours later, I was arrested at the Airbnb while the host had someone video tape the entire incident, take pictures of my guests, and called me in on behalf of the warrant. Upon being released from jail the following morning, I powered my phone on to read a text message sent by the host two hours after my arrest saying they packed up all of my belongings and removed them. I had nowhere to go, and none of my child’s belongings, nor mine.

She has since posted a review on my profile for Airbnb which will prevent me from renting further, including false accusations such as “she has a very concerning record.” When in fact, Airbnb conducts background checks, I sent her my government issued ID before checking in, and I’ve only ever been in trouble for driving with a suspended license.

Her husband just now brought me my belongings, $100s in spoiled food, and ruined toys. Airbnb has turned a blind eye to all of this. Furthermore, the host’s husband offered me permanent residency via their church and exclaimed they only want what’s best for my son and I.

What was deemed an emergency situation two weeks ago has still gone unheard and unnoticed. I have begun contacting legal representatives as a week ago I requested a new case manager and mine is still emailing asking the same questions as on day one.

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Airbnb Truly is Hell When They Defend Guests Like These

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I was happy to stumble across Airbnb Hell, as that’s exactly what happened to me as a host. I had used the platform for years as a guest and loved the community and having the comforts of home when traveling. When a chance to travel to climb and work presented itself, I felt this was a no brainer to make some additional money while gone. However, my experience was cut very short after my second guest booked for a week and decided to violate all the house rules.

I alerted this guest that I would be by to pick up my truck camper and explained not to block it in. She told me family was visiting but ensured it would not be a problem. Upon arrival, my camper was blocked in, and after attempting multiple calls, text, and knocking on the door and seeing children inside unattended, I decided to let myself in. The house smelled strongly of marijuana, which I’m not opposed to but not in the home. Four young children were on the couch and I had a “no one under 12” policy. Then a cat appeared.

After speaking with the guest and explaining the house rules, I decided her ignorance might be honest and decided to give them another chance. However after climbing the next day and returning into service range I was alerted by my neighbor co-host there were more children and now a dog on the property. At the same time the guest had requested to book additional time, to which I responded “your stay is being canceled and I would like you to leave the home immediately.” All communication stopped and I sent the co-host over only for them to lock the door and refuse to answer.

The following morning I sent my best friend — a strong male — over to attempt to resolve this matter. However, again, they wouldn’t answer and he informed them that he would be letting himself in. Upon arrival, the same violations were occurring and he and the boyfriend got into an argument. Basically I called the police to have them removed for trespassing because Airbnb continued to say they were working on the matter.

I sent the police over with my friend and they were astonished the guest had been there for days and not weeks or a month. There were cameras up, random new tools most definitely stolen and all kinds of weird stuff. They stayed until the guests finally gathered their possessions and I thanked them for their service. This whole time for over 48 hours Airbnb support did basically nothing besides state they were looking into the matter. With the s%#&, smoke, drugs, and the thought of my newly remolded home being destroyed I took matters into my own hands.

Within 72 hours, I got a wonderful pre-Christmas gift of being removed from the app. I’ve attempted to be reinstated but can’t file the forms due to Airbnb locking my account. When calling and emailing them I’m basically running in a circle. With other bookings coming, I paid my co-hosts a large additional cleaning fee, and funds to replace the sheets and blankets.

I’m now left with that cost and the horror of attempting to resolve this as it feels like I’m in purgatory. Basically Airbnb can get AIDS, COVID, and be tortured for all I care at this point. They have the worst customer service I’ve experienced in my 38 years of existence. Thank you all for listening to my rant and I only hope no one ever experiences anything like this.

Held Hostage and Extorted on an Airbnb Boat Rental

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We booked a sail boat on Airbnb with the promise of sailing. The listing was named “Sail the Eagon” and promised a trip to different beaches. We booked two nights.

Once we sailed into the ocean the host asked me for an extra €200. What for? He stopped the boat and explained the €400 I paid was for accommodation only (a four-star hotel in Kas was €70 a night) and sailing cost extra. That was why he kept asking if we would be staying more nights. From there he went on about how he is in trouble financially and needed the money. I didn’t like him being this strict when asking for either money or agreeing to book an extra night so he could pay some of his debts.

He made it pretty clear we would not be sailing back unless he got the €200 extra that he asked for as Airbnb wouldn’t pay him for a few weeks. I eventually gave him the €200 so we could be taken back (it was me, my wife, and two-year-old child he was blackmailing), where we left immediately despite the days booked and paid for and stayed in the €70 four-star hotel in town instead.

I contacted Airbnb the next day. First they said the host has agreed to refund the €200 of the €600 if I removed my bad review. I then said I would rather lose the money so others are warned. A week later they emailed me to say my review has been removed for violating guidelines I can’t get them to point out. Anything to protect their scamming money mules. Airbnb could not care less about the customers. It looks like the hosts are their priority as this is where they get their “fee” from.

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Host Shows Deceiving Pictures of Airbnb Room

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This host’s room at a Hollywood, Florida ocean resort was a complete dump. She posted pictures of the room to be nice and clean. When we got there the room smelled of mildew and an old motel room.

The room isn’t updated. It has a worn out kitchen area, and bathroom. There was a stain on the toilet seat so I knew they didn’t clean the bathroom. The bed cover had a stain on it, and there were dirty utensils. I couldn’t deal with it. Even my ten-year-old didn’t even want to sit on the bed. He told me he was gonna lay on the chairs if we had to still sleep there. Even my mother didn’t like the place.

The hallways were dirty and the carpets too. The people staying there looked sketchy. The lobby ceilings had huge water stains and holes. Airbnb wasn’t really a help by taking down my review which I couldn’t believe. I showed them the pictures compared to the ones she posted and they still didn’t budge and only apologized and gave a refund. I had to pay for one night and the cleaning fee which I felt I shouldn’t have had to pay, especially checking out an hour later.

Airbnb stated I should have called them before checking out and would have gotten my full refund. They don’t state that in their policy at all; they just state to contact the host. From here on, I am not booking hosts with few reviews.

Airbnb Charged Us Over $5,000 When We Didn’t Stay

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We rented this unit at an Airbnb hotel for 7 nights and paid over $5,000. When we arrived we realized that the hotel was not accurately described and the most important details were left out.

This hotel sits behind a sister hotel and across a busy street. The host purposely deceived us with interior photos, very few street photos and very brief description to keep it to her advantage. To our shock, when we scouted the area we realized we had to cross a busy street in 100-degree weather with three kids. We noticed a homeless person screaming and doing her business in public.

We asked at the hotel if this was on a daily basis and locals confirmed. We arrived at 10:00 AM and check in was from 4:00 on. The host promised to let us store our bags in the room and that way we could also take a quick glance at the room. When asking the front desk about this, they said that they could not accommodate us and did not allow us to see the room or store our luggage.

We went to see where the pool was and found out that it was packed like sardines with an outdoor movie theater that did not work. Around 11:00 AM I had had enough and contacted the host to let her know we were not going to check in due to the resort not being safe and as advertised.

She is refusing to return our money. Airbnb is trying to resolve this issue. Discover card doesn’t care so we are stuck. I feel like this host robbed us. She is literally taking our hard-earned money and has the power to do whatever she wants. I am appalled this is happening in the United States.

Who can and is able to help? How can we get our money back?

Airbnb Platform Allows Hosts to Threaten and Extort Guests

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We rented an Airbnb apartment to stay in downtown Toronto from April 19 to May 18. When we arrived, the place was extremely dirty. All kitchen items were in poor conditions. We couldn’t even cook or make coffee. There was a lot of hair and food stains all over the living room rug and carpets, a couch full of some animal hair, among many other issues.

I have a one-year old child and such a place would be less than appropriate for a toddler to be crawling all around. Not to mention Toronto was in the midst of a lockdown, and with all COVID safety protocols in place, those were the hygiene conditions of that Airbnb Plus property. After a lot of stressful back and forth communication with Airbnb and the host, they sent someone to clean and replaced a few kitchen items so we could at least cook. It was better, but far from ideal. We had to stay there for the rest of the contract because we wouldn’t get a refund and it would be hard to find something else at that point, so we made it work.

We left the Airbnb apartment two nights before the contract was up. The apartment was incomparably cleaner and in a more organized conditions that what we found when we arrived (I cleaned everything up myself because I couldn’t have my baby staying in such a dirty place). We took some pictures just to be safe and left. We thought everything was okay.

After Airbnb sent me multiple emails requesting that I write a review about my stay, I decided to do so. I believe that was around 11:00 PM on May 31. I woke up in the morning and there was an email in my mailbox titled “action required: your host is requesting $2,635 CAD for damages.” All the damages listed there were untrue. It’s scary how just a few hours after I had written my review that host was able to come up with a whole document with pictures of the alleged damage and invoices from stores for all the furniture he supposedly had to replace.

I won’t go into details of each of his absurd claims, but I called Airbnb and explained that I was being retaliated because of a review. A week later, Airbnb sent me an email saying the host’s claims were not covered by Airbnb, that he hadn’t provided enough evidence and they would not be pursuing payment from us. The request was removed from my account. We thought we were done with this.

The host sent me a message through the Airbnb app trying to extort money from our family. He threatened to start legal action against me if didn’t pay him $2,635 through Airbnb in three days. The payment request wasn’t even there anymore because Airbnb had declined it. Again, I called Airbnb and said I was not feeling safe, that I wanted to block this host from communicating with me (which I still am not able to do because the Airbnb app is not allowing me). They sent me an email a few days later saying I did not need to worry anymore, that they had given the host a final warning.

I received a letter from the host’s lawyer in my new home demanding payment by Aug. 20 (we just had moved to this address a couple months ago and that guy found out where we live). Airbnb was again notified about that.

We are not feeling safe. This host is clearly a troubled unstable person going to great lenghts to retaliate because he didn’t like a review. This is all happening because Airbnb created a platform that allows people to easily harass each other like that. We made a contract with Airbnb, not with this criminal and now we are being persecuted for that. He won’t leave us alone. Why are we having to waste our resources and time to deal with this?

Other things to consider:

– This criminal host is an Airbnb “Superhost”.
– The Airbnb Plus property is located in a building that does not allow short-term rentals. We had to constantly lie to the concierge and every time we parked our car in the garage.
– I communicated with Airbnb every step of the way and we are still having to deal with that criminal host almost three months later.
– Once I wrote my review, I could read the review the host had written before. He called me “nice and polite” with no mention of any damages. Would you call someone that caused you an almost $3,000 worth of damage “nice and polite”?
– He replied to my review with more false accusations, saying I was going after monetary compensation and Airbnb did nothing about that. But I am not the one trying to extort $2,635 from a family, am I?

That is the hospitality Airbnb offers you. We are not feeling safe and I am posting this here because we don’t know what else to do.

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Airbnb Host Warns of No Air Conditioning During Heat Wave

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I had planned on having a fun, relaxing weekend for my husband and booked a cute cabin in Flagstaff, AZ for Father’s Day weekend. It was listed that there was no AC but that it is cool in Flagstaff and not needed. Based on the reviews, I didn’t think twice honestly.

I booked his airfare (I was going to drive to Scottsdale to stay with family with our two boys) to meet us in Scottsdale and researched hikes in Sedona. Upon checking in to the cabin, it was cute and had everything we thought we’d need for the weekend. It was 86 degrees F upon check in, but noticed that the host had left the largest window opened and it was 101 degrees outside. I was a little annoyed but figured once we left the windows open all night and immediately closed them upon waking up that it would in fact stay cool as the host left his “stay cool tips.”

Well, the joke was on us. It finally got to 71 degrees F at 4:00 AM. We couldn’t sleep comfortably at all. The kids tossed and turned (ages 1.5 and 8) and it wasn’t until 4:00 AM that I was able to finally fall asleep for two hours. We got up around 6:00, closed the windows and headed for Sedona. After hiking for a few hours we headed back to the cabin. It was 86 degrees F in there, again.

I reached out to the host while nursing a migraine and dealing with three very very grumpy and miserable boys. He basically told me that it was a heat wave and outside his control. Which yes, I understand he could not control the weather, but I mean come over and check out how hot it is. Bring over fans or a portable AC (we paid him enough), get us a cheap hotel with AC, give us a partial refund… anything. He could not have cared less honestly.

I ended up having to take a cool bath with our baby to just calm him (and myself) down. My husband had started packing because we couldn’t imagine staying another night like we already had. I messaged the host again to let him know it was now 93 degrees F and there was no way we could stand another night there with it being that hot. I asked for a partial refund (we checked out with 24 hours of check in) and was told no, that his cancellation policy said no refunds.

I can’t imagine treating anyone like that but especially knowing how hot it truly was. To expect us and kids to stay in that is infuriating. It was mostly disappointing that someone could be that selfish and cruel. After reaching out to Airbnb, I was ghosted for two weeks. I decided to just call and was told “unfortunately the host said he won’t issue a refund.” I explained the situation to the gal and she was very nice but not very helpful. I was told she was going to reach out to the host and see if he’d change his mind basically. I told her it was unlikely and asked if I’m basically out all the money even though we checked out within 24 hours and she said I could escalate it to some Airbnb team and go from there.

Well, now I’m being offered a $100 coupon. All I want is my partial refund for the night we couldn’t stay. We didn’t even ask for a refund for the night from hell. I can’t believe the host and Airbnb just wouldn’t do the right thing.

Airbnb Host Tries Bait and Switch Over Memorial Day Weekend

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This is the letter I wrote to Airbnb about my experience:

I am writing to tell you about my horrible Airbnb experience in the hopes of getting some resolution. My family and I have used Airbnb several times and never had a bad experience before now. We are so devastated by what has happened to us that we will never use Airbnb or VRBO again.

I have reached out to customer service three times with no result. I get the impression that I am calling a call center in another country and that the people that are answering the phone are just telling me that my issue is being investigated with no result. I have reached out to the Better Business Bureau, the Virginia Beach Police Department, and the Virginia Beach Housing Authority. I will be seeking the advice of my attorney. I have also discussed the situation with my bank’s fraud department and they are conducting their own investigation.

We booked a condo on May 13, 2021. We planned to take our 16-year-old daughter to Virginia Beach to see the beach, aquarium, and Norfolk Botanical Gardens. As we were leaving around 8:00 AM on May 28 I looked at the listing to see what the check-in procedure was and it said there was a lockbox. I messaged the host on the Airbnb app and she asked me to let her know when we were an hour away.

I messaged her again at noon to tell her we were an hour away. She said the house wasn’t ready and check in was at 3:00 PM. I told her no problem, I was just letting her know when we would be arriving in the area. Then she called my cell phone and said something about how she was waiting for a delivery but she would try to get the house ready for an early check in.

We arrived at the condo at 2:30 PM. We called the host and let her know. She sounded flustered and said that the toilets were broken at the condo and that she was waiting for a couch to be delivered. She told us she wanted us to stay at her other property, that it was brand new and we would be the first guests. She gave us the address. It was 15 minutes away.

When we arrived we were shocked and disturbed. The apartment was in an unsafe looking neighborhood in what looked like Section 8 housing. When we walked into the apartment it was hot, there were boxes of her personal belongings in the middle of the floor, the furniture was unplaced and still had tags on it. There was only one bed and only one bedroom was furnished. There was no TV.

She offered to blow up an air mattress for us. She said that she was waiting for a bed and mattress to be delivered. She called the delivery company and put them on speaker phone. They told her they didn’t know when they would arrive. She instructed us not to tell people that this was an Airbnb and to tell people that we were her friends. We told her that we were going to get a cold drink and called Airbnb and spoke to a young lady and told her what was going on. She said someone would email us.

We went back and told the host we were uncomfortable and asked her to cancel. She said she didn’t know how and suggested that we call and lie and say that we were cancelling due to COVID. At one point she handed me her phone and asked me to help her figure out how to cancel. When I cancelled the trip on her account it said that the trip had been referred to a support team. She then said that the toilets were fixed and that we could go back to the original condo if we wanted to. We didn’t believe her and didn’t feel safe interacting with her anymore.

We left and as it was a holiday weekend it took us two hours to find a hotel. I called Airbnb again that night and spoke to a young man who informed me that he may not be able to help me because we didn’t take pictures, but that he would try to help me. He said he would contact me with updates. I never heard from him again. I called and spoke to someone the next day and she said that she would investigate and update me. I have not heard from anyone.

I am a social worker in private practice and my husband is a mechanic. We cannot afford to lose $828. This has been an incredibly upsetting experience for us, particularly as the whole thing happened in front of our 16-year-old daughter. This trip was a treat for her as she has been cooped up in the house for a year doing online learning. I am appalled at the customer service I have received from Airbnb. I implore you to help us resolve this issue.

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Shalom Home? More Like Cold, Dark, Nightmarish Airbnb

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We recently stayed in a very cool home in the mountains of Glenwood Springs, Colorado, but it turned out to be awful. I tried to post an honest respectful review on Airbnb, it was quickly removed. When I asked the customer service rep how many reviews the host had had removed, the representative went quiet.

First of all, the host seemed to be represent herself as Jewish. When I walked in, she had Christian music playing and there was Christian and Republican literature all over the house. Was she hoping to convert us? My friend mentioned how lucky she was to live somewhere so beautiful and she told us it wasn’t luck, it was Jesus.

When we came home the first night after skiing all day and swimming in the hot springs all evening, the lights didn’t work, but we were too exhausted to say anything. The next day, the sun was out and we forgot all about the lights. We tried to shower, but the water would not get hot. I asked the host about it and she said to let it run. We let it go for a half hour and it never heated up. My ten-year-old daughter tried to take a cold shower but came out crying hysterically because she was shivering to the bone. Five of us didn’t shower for four days.

When it got dark that night and we realized there were no lights, my friend was trying to turn on one lamp and a sharp edge of a decorative wrought iron leaf sliced her hand open. When the host came to figure out the lights, she dismissed the cut as nothing. We did get the lights working, but the TV was useless. We took a photo of the lamp and the cut and Airbnb did nothing.

The host also stated in her rules that we could only eat in the kitchen. There were two chairs and a tiny table so I told the kids to go ahead and eat in the living room because if she couldn’t provide electricity and a shower in the 21st century, then I don’t have to following her eating rules. That night we had bought firewood to build a fire and sit around and enjoy the great outdoors of Colorado. When we returned, the host told us that the fire pit was closed for the season, but there was no mention of this in her description. She sent us the rules after she decided it was closed.

I tried to post this all on my Airbnb review, less the Christian stuff because I wanted to keep it unbiased and stick to the facts even though her proselytizing made us very uncomfortable, but it is her house and those books wouldn’t cause a bacterial infection like open wounds and not bathing. Airbnb took down the review and said it was not in accordance with their policy. Not bathing during a pandemic is okay to Airbnb?