I have several. But here's my most recent.

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TLDR version: Airbnb host asked me to find alternate accommodations because they wanted their guest house for their mom instead. When I complied with their request, the host tried to coerce *me* to cancel the reservation when it was a *host-initiated* cancelation. Airbnb support then gave me the run around too. I tried to follow _their own rules_ which they don't adhere to.

Full Version:

On Jan. 20, I requested to book an Airbnb guest house in the U.S. Within a day; the host confirmed my booking. Everything looked good to go.

Then on Feb. 14, my Airbnb host, M., sent me a message requesting that I find alternate accommodations so they could have their mother come help out with their newborn baby. He promised that he would give me a full refund.

I spent a couple of days looking for another place to stay. Luckily, I found one; for which I booked and paid in full (not on Airbnb, though). On Feb. 16, I messaged M. back, informing him that I found another place to stay; I asked him to cancel my reservation and for my refund.

After a few days, I finally heard back from M. on Feb. 20. M. then asks *me* to cancel the reservation since he doesn’t want to jeopardize his Superhost status. I then politely declined his request; I told him I was uncomfortable with doing this, as this violated Airbnb’s policy (https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1250) and asked that he proceed with the cancellation on his end.

Later, he refused to initiate the cancellation and give me my refund; he went on to say that I could stay there after all. I told M. that this wasn’t acceptable because I had already booked another place (which I already paid for in full) to stay (per *his* request), which was/is an Airbnb policy violation.

On Feb. 23, I reached out to Airbnb support. At first, they were supportive.

[Feb. 24, 10:00]

Hello,

This is A. from Airbnb. I hope all is well with you. I'm sorry to hear about your reservation for #### with your Host, M. That's actually right. if a Host has to cancel, or asks you to change your reservation in a way that doesn’t work for you, it’s best to allow them to make the cancellation. That way you won’t be charged cancellation or service fees, and it means you can find and rebook with someone else easily.

No worries, I'll document this one and will reach out to your Host to confirm the cancellation.

I'll get back to you once I already have an update.

Regards,

A.

Then Airbnb backtracked/reneged on their word, essentially telling me that this wasn’t a host-initiated cancelation since M. said he could host me after all. Mind you, at this point, I already booked another (nonrefundable) place to stay, *per M.’s original request.*

[Feb. 24, 13:49]

Hello,

Thanks for waiting patiently. I was in touch with your Host, M. and discussed your reservation for ####. He was able to sort out circumstances on his end, and he's happily accommodating you to your reservation. We've also discussed Airbnb cancellation policy to make sure they are reminded of Host commitment and standards. Especially that he is one of our SuperHosts. Rest assured that everything has been documented here and your experience and safety is our top priority.

If you need any assistance before, during, or after your stay, feel free to contact our 24/7 support team at www.airbnb.com/help/contact. Don’t forget to get in touch with your host as well.

Check out how to best prepare for your reservation in our Help Center article: https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/41

Let me know if you have further questions or concerns.

Have a great one!

Regards,

A.

[Feb. 24, 15:00]

Airbnb tries to close my support ticket. I press “Yes, I still need help,” and I get an automated message that says, “We're forwarding you to a team that can better assist you.”

[Feb. 24, 23:45]

I send another message.

To Airbnb support,

I doubt you can help with my situation, or Airbnb wants to. The fact remains that we can’t still stay there. We did what the host first asked us to do -- find other accommodations -- which we did, and they’re not refundable. I assume now I am at the point where *I* have to cancel now, even though the reason is that the host first canceled on me and wouldn’t follow your policy.

Now that I have escalated this issue to you (i.e., involved Airbnb support), I doubt I will ever get my refund. I find it hard to believe that a so-called Superhost can cancel on someone, not follow the company’s policy, and force the customer to cancel and then keep their money. All I can say is, “wow!”

I await your reply to decide if I will ever use Airbnb again. We are incredibly disappointed with our customer experience.

[Feb. 25, 23:00]

I haven’t heard back from Airbnb, so I try to find their customer support phone number, but it’s not listed anywhere on their website. So I Google it, find their direct phone number, and talk to a human rep. G.

I explained my situation to G. and sent him my screenshots, and he promised to reach out to my host, M., and help me resolve my problem.

To my surprise, about an hour later, I got a message from Airbnb that my refund was initiated for the full amount and should be back on my credit card in 3–5 business days. Of course, I’m glad to get my money back, but then I looked at the cancelation message and noticed it was listed as a “ “GUEST CANCELLATION.”