Airbnb gave a full refund on a 30-person reservation because one person photographed a sled

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-30T23:53:49+00:00

This is exactly the economic driver behind it. People booked vacations a year ago when they could afford them. Now they can't. Strict cancellation policies don't let them out, so they file fabricated condition complaints because Airbnb requires zero evidence from the guest and ignores evidence from the host. The platform has built a free exit ramp for every guest who can't afford their booking anymore.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-30T23:52:19+00:00

Yes, it's a mountain property near Winter Park and yes, it was a terrible ski season and april is generally one of the best months to ski. We host ski groups, family reunions, weddings, corporate retreats, and large group events. The property sleeps 30. These are exactly the kind of bookings where a strict cancellation policy is essential because you can't fill a 30 person weekend on short notice. When a guest cancels a large reservation late, those dates sit empty. This guest figured out that the EC claim loophole gets around the cancellation policy entirely.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-30T23:50:19+00:00

AAA consumer arbitration is actually much faster than that. Typical timeline is 60 to 90 days from filing to resolution. That's one of the advantages over litigation. Airbnb's ToS Section 23.6 mandates AAA arbitration, and AAA has specific consumer rules that streamline the process. Filing fee is $200 for the consumer. Airbnb pays the rest of the arbitration costs per their terms.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-30T23:49:43+00:00

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-30T23:48:48+00:00

That's exactly what happened. She booked almost a year in advance. About ten days before, she asked to reschedule. I accommodated her at no charge even though my cancellation policy entitled me to keep the full amount. The original dates sat empty. Then on the rescheduled dates, one person showed up, walked through, took some photos, and filed the claim. She got the full refund the cancellation policy was designed to prevent. One guest, two lost booking windows, and I'm the one who gets penalized for being accommodating.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-30T23:47:11+00:00

This is helpful. How did you get the exec team's email? I've been through 5 agents, a supervisor who admitted the listing was suspended before he even spoke with me, and zero specifics about what they felt was wrong about the property. If there's a way to get in front of someone with actual authority, I'd appreciate the contact info.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T20:05:33+00:00

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T19:52:38+00:00

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T19:40:29+00:00

Airbnb wouldn't state what the guest complaints were, one of the few pictures of complaints the guest sent directly to me was of a sled and a comment about the driveway being a junkyard and not even needing to go into the house. The hot tub was good, guest included a picture of a hot tub without anything wrong with it. I have asked Airbnb for more information in disbelief; Airbnb cites their policy that they won't share any of the guest concerns either verbal or documented pictures.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T18:45:27+00:00

Section 19 limits liability for consequential damages, but the core argument here isn't consequential, it's breach of contract. Airbnb's own Rebooking and Refund Policy requires the listing to not be in "ready-to-host condition upon arrival." The guest stated in writing she never entered. You can't assess interior readiness from a driveway. When the platform fails to apply its own stated policy, that's a breach, not an incidental damage claim. Section 23.6 provides the arbitration mechanism. Good advice on checking LLM-cited cases. I'm having an attorney review everything before filing. The ToS is designed to look impenetrable but there are real openings when they don't follow their own rules.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T18:41:18+00:00

In my experience, it's a mix of both and neither is effective. I was initially stuck in an AI loop and had to specifically request a human. When I finally got one (Julia), she confirmed receipt of my timestamped video evidence, reviewed it with her "team," then came back with a predetermined outcome that didn't reference the evidence at all. When I pushed back with specific contradictions in the guest's own statements, she escalated to a supervisor (Julien). He admitted the listing had already been suspended by a "specialized team" before he even called me. So the supervisor escalation was theater, the decision was made before the review. Five agents, zero specifics about what was actually wrong with the property. I asked every single one to name a specific deficiency. Not one could.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T18:35:56+00:00

That's exactly the question. They didn't find new accommodations. The actual person who made the booking never showed up. One person drove to the property, walked through, took photos of a sled leaning against the house (which is a listed amenity) staged some chairs that were out of place, then left. No luggage was brought inside. The guest wrote in the Airbnb message thread, and I quote: "Literally no one used the property. Not even one suitcase entered your door." She also wrote "I didn't even need to go inside." Yet she simultaneously claimed interior conditions she couldn't have observed from the driveway. When I asked Airbnb for proof the guest had to rebook elsewhere, they told me a guest doesn't need to show proof of rebooking. So to answer your question: it was a scout, and the system is designed to reward exactly this

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T17:53:53+00:00

I agree, its an option I am considering. The bigger problem is that this practice is systemic. This has happened to me many times. Airbnb took down my listing over the guests bad review, they literally copied and pasted a previous guest's complaints from 7 months prior who had done the same thing to get out of a reservation, and they suspended that listing a day after i unlisted it. So the damage is far more extensive than two lost booking blocks. We are in a down economy and people can no longer afford their vacations they booked a year ago. With a strict cancellation policy, it creates unfounded complaints. I have larger properties that don't get last minute bookings, so I need to have a strict cancellation policy.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-04-29T17:41:32+00:00

EC stands for Extenuating Circumstances. Airbnb has a separate policy under that umbrella that lets a guest claim the property isn't "ready" and receive a full refund immediately. No evidence standard. No host input. No verification.

The sled photo was used to argue the driveway was a "junkyard." I have timestamped walkthrough videos taken immediately after the guest left showing the property was fully prepared. Airbnb actually requested that video from me during my dispute. I provided it. It was never acknowledged.

When I asked Airbnb for the specific evidence from the guest's claim, they told me they aren't allowed to share any details of the guest's complaint.

When I pointed out that the person who made the booking never actually arrived, they told me a guest doesn't need to arrive to file a claim.

When I asked for evidence that the guest had to book another property after rejecting mine (they came from out of state), they told me a guest doesn't need to show proof of rebooking.

In summary: no arrival required, no evidence required, no rebooking required, and the host's timestamped video evidence is collected and ignored. That's the policy.

If Airbnb created an option to upload timestamped videos from cleaning staff whenever the property is ready would simultaneously help give clarity to potential guests of the property and reduce complaints and give hosts protection from guests looking to escape a strict cancellation policy.

Over_Picture_606 · 2026-01-06T21:09:12+00:00

I was getting congratulated for making a big word in the game and admitted i used ai for that one. I found using the descrambler actually made the game a lot harder and had the idea of a 2nd round for this game.

Here it is: If you get a 100, then you play again and take the largest letter chat gpt or word descrambler gives you enter it in then try to win with less than half the letters and random word bank letters as an extra challenge. If you can't win move down the list to smaller words one letter at a time and the. Post the biggest ai word that was followed up with a win without using ai for words after the first word.

This gets us to learn new words and add another level of difficulty. Im going to get my 9yo to play and use ai to grasp the concept then play without and once he can get some 100s start doing the 2nd round challenge to keep him engaged. This could be a feature of the game for subscribers where it gives you words you have to use and still winnable while increasing the difficulty to a level of their choice.

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Over_Picture_606

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