Should they pay? AirBnB nightmare

As an airbnb super host your dd should be fine when she actually speaks to airbnb directly.

Firstly can you check the existing reviews in case the dubious lock was flagged previously.

Your dd needs to respond promptly too.

Good luck.

Make a complaint to the ODR.

The AirCover guarantee states:

Unable to check in

When you have a confirmed reservation, you’ll have your host’s email and phone number in the message thread for your trip. If you can’t get into your Airbnb on arrival and your host doesn’t respond or can’t resolve the issue, we’ll help you find a similar place, depending on availability at comparable pricing. If a similar place isn’t available or you’d prefer not to rebook, we’ll give you a full refund, including service fees.

It’s a palaver but they should get their refund eventually.

This ⬆️.

Surely your daughter knows how to unlock a door and would have been able to do so without issues if the lock wasn’t faulty. I would insist on getting the accomodation money back and I’d also ask for compensation for the inconvenience of having to find somewhere else to stay on NYE. She won’t get that but she should ask anyway to point out that she is the one who suffered the loss.

A note for future - or for anyone else renting via AirBNB - always communicate with the host via the messaging function in the AirBNB app. Don't switch to text or Whatsapp or anything.

Then if you need to contact AirBNB support with any issues, they can see exactly what has been said by both parties. They won't take comms via any other platform as 'evidence' as it can be so easily manipulated/faked.

The money will already have been charged to the account. If all else fails they can dispute the charge and get a charge back - but it shouldn’t come to that.

If you book a property and can’t access it because it has a dicky lock that the owner hasn’t bothered to replace and has no-one local to resolve - that’s on the owner. It’s fairly straightforward even for Airbnb. They won’t have to pay the for the lock change. Getting a refund will be harder work but should go through eventually.

Absolutely contest it and push for a refund on return. Airbnb seem to be akin to ai at first with customer service so the system may have allowed the charge for 450 but once you talk to a human they will hopefully see your side. Check past reviews to see if anyone else mentioned issues with lock or check-in which would strengthen your case. I hope your daughter enjoys her last day in Paris

Airbnb are unregulated and should be avoided at all costs

Or look to see whether the credit card can help with the fact that they paid for accommodation, but were not provided with access to the accommodation.

If the owner told them to be firm with the key, it sounds as if they knew there was an issue with the lock, but hadn't done anything to fix it. They may not have been nearby, but there should have been an arrangement with someone to be able to go to the property if needed. A locksmith would probably have been difficult to get, and expensive, but that is one of the risks you take when choosing to rent out a property as a business concern. The only thing your daughter/her friend did wrong was the swearing. In my eyes they should be refunded the costs of the accommodation that they could not access because of a faulty lock, and not be required to pay the boll that was sent to them for repair. If the owner had repaired it when they knew there was an issue, it wouldn't have happened.

The owner is just trying it on.

I would counter claim for a full refund as they couldn’t access the property and the host had no local representative to resolve the issue.

Collect all the texts together and note the contents of phone calls including the one asking Airbnb for alternative accommodation.

Contest it. Sounds like the the host knew there was an issue with the lock and it should not be guests to struggle with the lock.

Grim. Absolutely contest it, great advice in this thread. This is why I don't use AirBNB - there's no recourse when things go round. At least at a hotel you'd have probably got a room even if it was a bad one.

Friend has an Airbnb in the village. A neighbour died, daughter inherited her cottage. She pays my friend to manage it for her because she lives in London but wants to retire back here one day.

You really should have a local agent if you don't live locally. Airbnb should insist on it.

Friends arrived at an Airbnb to a water burst from the top floor. They contacted the owner and Airbnb who had them rehoused inside the hour.

Did they pay for the Airbnb by credit card? We had a situation with booking.com in the summer where we’d paid in advance for an apartment in Vancouver and the property’s agent cancelled it when we arrived at the airport, and it proved impossible to get a refund from them or from booking.com. We put in a claim through our credit card for a service that hadn’t been delivered and had a refund within days. Suggest she gets the Airbnb initial payment back this way. And doesn’t pay for the lock, of course. Absolutely not her fault. Tell Airbnb she’ll see them in court, they haven’t got a legal leg to stand on.

I accidentally broke my key inside my lock (first time) last year and had to call a locksmith. The locksmith said I probably didn't put the whole key in the door before twisting it and it snapped in the motion. It was just like any other ordinary day opening a door. And there was nothing wrong with the yale lock itself.

Just to say that it is possible from experience... And I've opened hundreds of doors before (worked in property for a few years).

Although in this situation it sounds like the lock may have been faulty or dodgy already and that the Airbnb host knew about it! So do contest it.

I snapped my key and just needed some tweezers to pull it out. I’m sure the owners could have had a go at this and used a spare key. They obviously knew it was temperamental so I wouldn’t be paying anything and pushing for a refund.

I've had issues with Airbnb before as a guest and you just have to keep battling with them but eventually you will get there. I had a host that charged for a cleaning fee then complained that we'd left the house dirty despite not telling us at check in that she wanted us to clean it and not leaving any cleaning equipment/supplies like a vacuum cleaner or mop. She left me a bad review and I complained and Airbnb gave me a £100 voucher. I've turned up at Airbnb accommodation before and had to leave because it's dirty, unsafe, not as described and I've had to find alternative accommodation and Airbnb has refunded me as long as I've provided evidence. I think as long as you submit any evidence you have , messages with the owner, photos etc you will get compensation.

My guess is that if everyone was being told to be firm with the key, the key has bent and weakened over time to the point where it's snapped.

I don't see why they should pay, but this being France, good luck trying to get any sort of happy outcome.

Not only would I not pay, but I’d want a refund for the stay. Everyone knows that if a gadget is “temperamental” , it’s only a matter of time before it breaks. It just happened to break when your DD arrived. It could just as easily have broken next time the owner went there. And what would the owner have done if the lock hadn’t broken but they still couldn’t open it? What was her back-up plan? Presumably nothing.

I’d be complaining loudly and I wouldn’t stop till I got a full refund.

Outrageous that the owner and AirBnB left vulnerable young girls on New Years Eve with nowhere to stay. I would be beyond livid if that was my daughter (she also has ASC and this would send her into a complete meltdown). Its not right at all and extremely unsafe.

I would go nuclear and expect a refund of the apartment, PLUS a refund of where the hostel and any associated costs, PLUS compensation for the ruined New Years and stress. You should write a very stern letter to Air BnB and I would also write to the owner letting them know exactly what you think. And a shitty review.

Poor kids.

If you booked with a credit card, cancel it before they take the money.

Totally agree
Don't pay the key charge
Insist on refund for apartment

They didn’t pay in advance for the cost of the locksmith though, which is what the owner/airbnb are asking for. They should be contesting that locksmith charge plus asking for a refund on the Airbnb charge plus reimbursement for what they had to pay for alternative acccommodation.

due to poor customer service!