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AIBU?

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Original poster

Airbnb money grabbers

196 replies

Toetapper · 19/06/2025 08:59

Airbnb hosts: Would you consider the following grounds for a refund?

The property was situated opposite a very noisy outdoor bar. I recorded 80db at 10pm at night, and I have videos to share. This was just the sound of the revellers - it was much louder with the music. The bedroom window on the top floor didn’t close, and so the noise was exceptionally intrusive. The property had not been adequately maintained. The listing does not reflect how the property looks now. Most indoor plants are dead. The garden was unusable, as it was dirty. We found a hair on the loo seat, a chip in the oven, mould on the window, and old laundry piled up. The windows were very dirty. Walls were scuffed and dirty. Decoration used for staging the property were taken down, leaving bare walls. The property is not adequately provisioned. We could not find the hair dryer. There was no washing up liquid, no bottle opener and just a handful of mugs. We complained as soon as we arrived, please check.

So, we spoke to Airbnb as soon as we got there. They didn’t resolve. The host declined to help. Said it was our fault for booking it as we should have known about the bar?! I disagree, and think that a/ he should have been honest about it, and b/ should have taken steps to mitigate noise for a comfortable stay. Instead not only was our bedroom window a rotting single glazed window, it wouldn’t close!

Offered a £300 ‘refund’ for our £1100 three night stay, but only if we vacated right away… assuming so he could rent it out again and pocket the £800 it would have cost us for the one night.

It’s now with Airbnb for arbitration, but I’m not holding out much hope. Any advice?

OP posts:
Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 14:14

AtomicBlondeRose · 19/06/2025 14:13

I’ve stayed in Airbnbs in city centres that have been perfectly quiet so saying it’s impossible is just plain wrong.

Did anyone?

AtomicBlondeRose · 19/06/2025 14:13

I’ve stayed in Airbnbs in city centres that have been perfectly quiet so saying it’s impossible is just plain wrong.

outerspacepotato · 19/06/2025 14:09

"’I'm most bothered by the basic lack of courtesy extended to us the guests by providing somewhere that is at least comfortable (where it’s quiet enough to be able to sleep) and clean. "

You're not going to get quiet in the center of a city. It's just not happening. You should have booked out in the country if you wanted quiet. You could have used street view and checked out the street.

As for dirty, send the pics to AirBnB and let them decide.

If there's been a recent hot spell, the plants might have died from it and there's been no time to replace, especially with summer heat setting in.

Using AirBnB in its current setup contributes to the lack of housing and the housing crunch.

Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 14:07

@WaneyEdge you don’t have children do you? For you to actually “not understand” the appeal of an air BnB would indicate that fact

Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 14:05

WaneyEdge · 19/06/2025 09:22

Premier Inns are cheap and fine to stay in. They’re clean and have helpful staff (IME). I’d just never stay anywhere where I’m paying, then having to clean the place myself and then running the risk of issues with unhelpful people like OP has experienced.

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you are right… premier inns are “fine” but you haven’t stayed in the air BnB I have @WaneyEdge if you think comparable. Premier Inn is utterly dire in comparison

Itsnearlyxmas · 19/06/2025 13:59

WaneyEdge · 19/06/2025 09:09

I will never understand why folk book Air BnB, just use a hotel! Staff onsite to resolve anything, no cleaning and no quibbling over issues.

Because you can have a whole house instead of being stuck in a hotel bedroom

LittleBitofBread · 19/06/2025 13:59

Fusedspur · 19/06/2025 13:23

That’s one of the criteria that airbnb will consider for refund. But it’s also nuanced. A cottage with wonderful window boxes and a flower garden won’t look like that in winter in a gale for example.

Plus decoration does change over time - pictures are moved for cleaning or get knocked etc. The place has to be what you’re expecting but small details which don’t amount to any material change in the property won’t make any difference.

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There’s quite a gulf between empty window boxes out of season and dead indoor plants.
Decor changing is not the same as walls attractively decorated in pics turning out to be bare.
And, I’ll say again: cost is a factor. For the sort of price range I go for on Airbnb I’m not at all arsed about plants or decor, but for what the OP paid I would be.

Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 13:55

@meatbawls I sat one guest down and went through all the fixed expenses of running a home in that part of London (home, not dedicated professional rental) and demostrated to him that he was barely paying more than the cost of owning and occupying that property on a per night basis.

you really shouldn’t be hosting! Poor chap!!

Witchling · 19/06/2025 13:54

meatbawls · 19/06/2025 09:33

I hosted for years and got really great reviews. There were a few isolated incidents where guests complained, and given my generally great feedback and the fact I myself had lived in the property, I tended to think it was a them problem. A very few guests tried to say the property was uninhabitable, which was clearly not true. People complained about odd things, the smell of a plant in the garden, etc. There will always be a difference of opinion as to what is good and what is uninhabitable.

Every time I stay in an Airbnb or hotel for that matter, it's worse than the pictures. You have to expect that in this day and age of filters.

My property was on a flight path, like much of SW London and was single glazed, being a Victorian property. People complained about the noise, but what could I reasonably do about that?

People used to also think it was extortionately expensive. I sat one guest down and went through all the fixed expenses of running a home in that part of London (home, not dedicated professional rental) and demostrated to him that he was barely paying more than the cost of owning and occupying that property on a per night basis.

I sat one guest down and went through all the fixed expenses of running a home in that part of London (home, not dedicated professional rental) and demostrated to him that he was barely paying more than the cost of owning and occupying that property on a per night basis

Was he particularly young??

This just made me cringe to be honest. Surely you would just say "if you think its too expensive you're welcome to stay somewhere else"

Caroparo52 · 19/06/2025 13:54

Sounds very expensive for 3 nights op. Was it a very big property in a major city?

Caroparo52 · 19/06/2025 13:51

Sounds dreadful op. I would request a full refund but not hold out much hope. Write a honest review to warn others.
Lesson learnt op.
Don't book via AirBNB. They dont go out to view the properties and they don't give a shit. Just commission based.
Top tip.... find a property and try to book directly with the owners. Not only will it most likely be cheaper because no commission paid to 3rd party, but you have direct recourse with owner should anything not be right.

Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 13:46

LlynTegid · 19/06/2025 13:44

Understand the reasons, does not make it a good choice when you are denying people a home as a result.

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Just think of all the homes that hotel owners are depriving people of if they were to convert their hotel in to flats?!

Mumofoneandone · 19/06/2025 13:45

Hopefully Airbnb will come through but if not, are other options. If you paid by CC, reclaim the cost through there, as the service you paid for wasn't what was advertised. Also consider small claims court.....

Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 13:45

LlynTegid · 19/06/2025 13:44

Understand the reasons, does not make it a good choice when you are denying people a home as a result.

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😆

LlynTegid · 19/06/2025 13:44

Cosyblankets · 19/06/2025 12:27

I don't want a hotel
I want more space
I don't want to just sit on the bed
I don't want to get up and dressed for breakfast.
I could go on....

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Understand the reasons, does not make it a good choice when you are denying people a home as a result.

Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 13:44

The op repeatedly said how she wished she could post the video

So why not some photos of this horror show instead?

Blinkagain · 19/06/2025 13:42

FortyElephants · 19/06/2025 12:51

You can't - I wish you could! Some guests are dickheads and you don't know until they leave you an unreasonable review (and yes, the vast majority of my reviews are 5, but when I get the occasional 3 from someone because 'it's too far from the sea' or 'the pillows are too soft' I think they are dickheads). Also as a super host you're encouraged to allow instant book so you can't just screen guests if you want to be top of the listings. Airbnb algorithm will punish you if you want to screen all guests first.

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It would be a very popular air BnB if it is liberally declining business left right and center

Fusedspur · 19/06/2025 13:23

LittleBitofBread · 19/06/2025 12:42

It is disingenuous at best for a host to deliberately stage a property to take photos and then change the appearance/contents of the property.

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That’s one of the criteria that airbnb will consider for refund. But it’s also nuanced. A cottage with wonderful window boxes and a flower garden won’t look like that in winter in a gale for example.

Plus decoration does change over time - pictures are moved for cleaning or get knocked etc. The place has to be what you’re expecting but small details which don’t amount to any material change in the property won’t make any difference.

Fusedspur · 19/06/2025 13:21

LittleBitofBread · 19/06/2025 12:44

The host obviously can't control noise from a bar, but I think it's common sense and common courtesy for them to say there is a lively bar on the street and it can be lively until quite late at night (I've seen a lot of Airbnb properties where the host makes this clear). Then at least people can make an informed choice.

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Depends where it is - if you’re in a city centre you have to take that as read. And given that no one else in the reviews has mentioned it, it seems like it was a one off in which case mentioning occasional events is just going to put people off.

Mirabai · 19/06/2025 13:01

OP - given that you seem your experience seems to be an outlier compared to the reviews - it’s possible that the owner has changed hosts and this one is not maintaining the property to an acceptable standard. It really depends who is the house manager - the owners or the host.

Unfortunately I don’t think you will get much out of Airbnb, your own recourse other than the current offer is a stinking review.

Mirabai · 19/06/2025 12:58

Jane958 · 19/06/2025 10:33

Well I have never understood why people use Air BnB and I am not sure that I agree with the business model in the first place.
However, for that money, could you not have gone to a lovely hotel (and had change)?
As I travel quite a bit for work, I did once look up where I was staying on Air BnB - out of curiosity/for comparison - the only place that came up (think medium to large European city) was somewhere about 25km away for a cost per night that was well over the price of a suite in one of the city's 5* hotels.

Doesn’t sound very likely - a medium to large European city with only 1 Airbnb available 25km away? I suspect your search terms were funky.

But other than that, Airbnb prices have increased exponentially, partly due to the exorbitant service charges they now levy.

greencartbluecart · 19/06/2025 12:54

A hair on the loo seat sounds petty

moise from nearby bar - onus is on you to check google maps and the reviews
gardens well they tend to be dirty - it’s a strange word to use about a garden
mould on the window - rather depends on the level but that is a health risk - especially for asthmatics -and if you had a clear photo of that it’s reason to be concerned

I think any complaint should be focussed

CanelliniBeans · 19/06/2025 12:52

We stayed with air bnb in an apartment which had a hole in the entrance and sewage running through (in a Spanish city). The smell one night was unbearable . The host sent someone over who sprayed some air freshener around.
i complained and was offered £50 as a good will gesture then the host stopped communicating with me.

FortyElephants · 19/06/2025 12:51

anotherside · 19/06/2025 12:07

One huge flaw in Airbnb reviews is that (apparently) AirbnB owners ca see reviews that a guest has left for other properties. Thereby if a guest has left several critical reviews (even among many good ones) some Airbnb hosts might decline their booking on the premise of them potentially being “difficult” (possible translation - expecting a clean and basically nice apartment). This leads I expect to many Airbnb guests self censoring their reviews out of fear of being refused future bookings. Result - loads of dishonest reviews.

You can't - I wish you could! Some guests are dickheads and you don't know until they leave you an unreasonable review (and yes, the vast majority of my reviews are 5, but when I get the occasional 3 from someone because 'it's too far from the sea' or 'the pillows are too soft' I think they are dickheads). Also as a super host you're encouraged to allow instant book so you can't just screen guests if you want to be top of the listings. Airbnb algorithm will punish you if you want to screen all guests first.

rowenwren · 19/06/2025 12:49

Without posting any pictures of the things you found dirty/unusable etc how can anyone here judge if you’re being reasonable or not?

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