Airbnb Guest Refunds: All Hosts Need to Know

With Airbnb taking off these recent years, renting the perfect holiday getaway has never been easier for travelers worldwide. One of the fantastic features Airbnb provides its guests with is its refund policy. Further below, we will highlight some important notes about this policy as well as discuss some details hosts need to know about Airbnb guest refunds:

• What qualifies as a legitimate issue that can prompt a refund?

• When and how can guests attempt to make refunds?

• How are guests refunded according to Airbnb?

What qualifies as a legitimate issue that can prompt a refund?

Airbnb provides refunds to its guests based on problems it calls “Travel Issues.” A travel issue could be many things. Guests that experience the three main categories of issues listed below are allowed to claim an Airbnb guest refund:

1. If the property has one of the three key issues listed below:

• It’s dirty and or not kept well according to sanitation standards.
• It contains health hazards or would negatively impact the guest’s wellness.
• It has a pest problem or infestation or includes pets that the host didn’t specify in their Airbnb listing.

2. The host did not provide the guest with a way to enter the property.

3. The Airbnb listing description contains wrong information or is missing relevant information. Such misinformation can be any of the following:

• The location of the property (Neighborhood, apartment number, etc.)
• Dysfunctional or missing features that were shown in the listing (these range from standard appliances such as fridges and air conditioners to special items such as hot tubs in case they were listed)
• Inaccuracy in the number of rooms, the general size of the property, and such
• Whether or not the property rented is shared, private, or a room in the host’s house

When and how can guests attempt to make refunds?

Guests are only eligible for Airbnb guest refunds as long as “Travel Issue” conditions are met. Providing that there is a travel issue, hosts can make a claim to Airbnb as long as their stay hasn’t ended. However, some criteria must be met to have a successful claim:

• Only the guest that booked the property can place an Airbnb guest refund claim

• The guests themselves must not cause the travel issue

• The guest must respond to Airbnb for further inquiries about their issues

• Guests must inform Airbnb of the travel issue at most 24 hours after the discovery of the issue

How are guests refunded according to Airbnb:

According to the Airbnb guest refund policy, guests can be refunded in two forms depending on how much time has passed since their check-in:

• Less than 24 hours since check-in:

Travel issues that are noticed and reported up to 24 hours after check-in result in a few options for guest refunds. The guest is either refunded completely or assisted by Airbnb to find a property equal to or better than their original reservation.

• More than 24 hours pass after the guest’s check-in:

The guests will be refunded an amount based on their issue (this can go all the way up to a complete refund). Alternatively, guests might be assisted in finding another place to spend the remainder of their reservation time.

However, we must remember that Airbnb reserves the right to accept or deny a guest’s claim based on whether the issues experienced are legitimate or not.

All in all, there are a whole host of reasons guests can be displeased and request refunds from the Airbnb platform. Up and coming hosts must know about these circumstances if they wish to have a successful Airbnb business.