SAN FRANCISCO, CA. (THECOUNT) — It’s a bloodbath for many, if not a majority of Airbnb Hosts, who claim the company is offering them little in the way of support in the wake of massive Guest cancellations that is the coronavirus calamity.
As Airbnb customers enjoy – for the foreseeable future – a no questions asked 100% refund policy for all those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, their Hosts have seen, besides a nearly 100 percent spike in cancellations, a bleak future and next to nothing in the way of support from the travel giant.
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According to Chris, an Airbnb Host located in Las Vegas, “I went from being booked for months in advance to my calendar being completely cleared in a matter of days.” And as Airbnb further extends the window for Guests to cancel “penalty free,” Chris says, “Guests get to cancel and get whole, but us Hosts, who many depend on those bookings to survive, I guess we’re on our own.”
“I don’t blame Airbnb for taking drastic measures to allow Guests to cancel and get a full refund, but to leave us Hosts, the lifeblood, the Airbnb ambassadors in the cold, it just sucks.”
Chris says he worried about the future, “They [Airbnb] keep extending the window for Guests to cancel,” and that’s when more cancellations start rolling in. A lot of us are scared, wondering how we will be able to put food on the table, much less keep the lights on and pay the mortgage,” said Chris.
Via Airbnb:
“Our response to the COVID-19 pandemic:
We are now offering Guests full refunds and Hosts no charge cancellations for reservations booked on or before March 14th with a check in date of April 14th or earlier. Please note this policy will not cover any new bookings.”
Chris says the only thing hosts were offered by Airbnb in the midst of the bloodbath of cancellations, was the ability to cancel Guests themselves, ‘penalty free.’ “It’s kind of a joke, we need those bookings to stay alive, so giving us the luxury of cancelling them ourselves, it makes no sense,” said Chris.
As of this writing, Airbnb’s founders, Brian, Joe and Nate, sent an email to Hosts Tuesday offering a glimmer of hope, but stopping short of making an actual commitment to reimburse or in some way bridge hosts amid the massive onslaught of cancellations:
“With the current global crisis, we know that many of you are experiencing a significant loss of bookings and a large number of cancellations. The last few days have been incredibly challenging and confusing for everyone. It’s our goal to be as transparent and proactive as possible.
First and foremost, we are going to get through this crisis as partners—our success is dependent on the success of you, our hosts. We are working day and night on a plan of action that will help you get through this extremely difficult time. We will share this with you as soon as possible in the coming weeks.”
“It’s nice to have Airbnb offer a least a dangling carrot of hope, but we need help, and we need it now.” Chris concluded, “I guess we’re only ‘partners’ when it benefits them.”
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Geo quick facts: San Francisco, officially City and County of San Francisco and colloquially known as SF, San Fran, or “The City”, is the cultural, commercial, and financial center of Northern California – Wikipedia.