To ask for a partial refund?

[warmyacockles]

We are staying in an air bnb for a few days and arrived last night.

It hasn't been let out before, it's a new conversion and the elderly owner (new to air bnb) was here to let us in. He took great pride in telling us how it was all brand new and we were the first guests, and to let him know about any issues.

Arrived in the apartment to find it freezing cold. He assured us the heating was working earlier and he would sort it out. Tried to put the kettle on, it didn't work. Put a pan of boiling water on the hob, to find no mugs...his "welcome pack" was a couple of boxes of out of date herbal tea that he'd obviously found in the back of his cupboard at home. No, welcome packs aren't necessary but if you can't be arsed to get fresh teabags, don't bother I'd say.

Went to the loo, the seat fell off, and the extractor fan doesn't work in the brand new bathroom so it fills up with steam when you use the shower (no window)

He got us a new kettle and some mugs, and assured us he would sort the heating this morning - he hasn't, and isn't replying to messages either.

It wasn't cheap, and I'm a bit put out that we have to spend another evening wrapped in the duvet to watch tv. Would you ask for a partial refund or just chalk it up to experience and hope he sorts it for the next guests?

I'd definitely ask for a partial refund!

No, of course you tell him! Just send another message saying, "hello Derek, the heating is still not working (and has not been since we arrived) please can you take a look at it ASAP as it is cold in here now. Thanks"

Oh sorry, I didn't answer the question- yes, absolutely ask for a partial refund.

I’d be asking for a full refund, I feel the cold & wouldn’t have stayed with no heating! He’s very lucky you have given him a chance to sort it out.

Full refund never mind partial, no heating!

I think a partial refund would be fair, but I wouldn’t leave honest feedback too as that can be so crippling. I would just let him know about all of the issues so he can get them fixed.

No heating in November=Full refund imo

Fortunately it's not as cold as it could be in November, otherwise I would be packing up and moving!

I don't want to give him a bad review as we are the first guests and it could affect his rating - he clearly just hasn't got a clue what he's doing. We've just noticed that one of the bedroom radiators has been on today as it's lukewarm but the others are all stone cold. He's going to need an engineer out I think.

It's so annoying, when I go on holiday in the winter I want it to be cosy!

I’d be going home and asking for a full refund .

Full refund for the heating

Full refund.

No heating in November = uninhabitable.

Full refund.

Heating is a basic and if he can’t figure out how to use the system, that’s just piss poor.

Also full refund. And bad review as he should have offered it

Full refund.

Why are you worried about his rating? People who might book this place deserve to know what they’re in for. He isn’t getting the very basics right so he doesn’t deserve a good rating.

How long are you staying? Partial refunds are tricky if you choose to stay anyway. You'll have a stronger case for a partial refund if you get some thermometer readings and/or leave early and go to a hotel.

I don't want to give him a bad review as we are the first guests and it could affect his rating

Then he should have thought of that shouldn't he?

I get very tired of people who think they'll "give it a go" and cash in but who have no ability to deliver, and don't care whether that's a holiday let, someone baking cakes or anything else

Leave a factual review and bring him into the real world; it might not seem that way to him at the time, but actually you'll be doing him a favour

Or, ask for some portable plug in heaters. Lots of people will have one or more for emergencies, or they are not expensive from Argos.

We've had the electricity go in a holiday let and what mattered was not how quickly it was fixed, but how the owners clearly made our comfort their top priority, rushing about with extension leads to make sure we could make a cuppa.

Well he's got your hand earned cash and he's not working hard for it is he?

No heating in November is inexcusable.

I’d ask for a full refund; but you’d need to leave… but I’d be miserable being cold on holiday.

Contact air bnb directly. Message him again; keep all messages and forward them to air bnb. He's making a fortune on this property and is willing to ruin people's trips and not give a shit as long as he's making money. Not on.

Mugs me kettle I could forgive but no heating is a deal breaker for me.

I'm not going to leave as we are out most of the day anyway and we have lots of things planned, there's nowhere else available locally to move to.

It has a hot shower and comfy beds, so it's not uninhabitable but I will request a partial refund for the heating issue.

I don't want to give him a bad review as we are the first guests and it could affect his rating - he clearly just hasn't got a clue what he's doing.

I have some sympathy with this, but I also reckon he has a very good clue about how to use the money he's charging you.

Some start-ups deliberately charge bargain prices and make it clear that it's whilst they're getting established and working out any teething troubles, so things might not be as perfect as they could be. They spend time listening to and valuing the feedback of their 'guinea pig bargain-enjoying' guests, make changes as a direct result and then, when they're confident of their offering, they increase their price to a proper market one.

I'd not go in all-guns-blazing but make it clear you've been very disappointed; tell him that you don't like to go straight in with the negative reviews, where no deliberate neglect was intended, but that an awful lot of people do do just that. If he doesn't fix things and then the next couple of guests - his second and third guests ever - leave honest negative reviews, he'll never get any more guests again - if Airbnb don't actually throw him off their platform anyway.

Bumbling or well-meaning or not, I do hate it when people ignore crucially important repairs and improvements that you just know they would never tolerate if it were them in their own home. I'm sick of landlords who treat it like they're doing you a big favour - yet still happily charge you the full market rate. No shop would ever get away with charging you full price for goods that they simply don't have available for you to take away.

Mugs me kettle I could forgive

The thing is, though, it's often the small things that make a huge difference. We stayed at a really lovely place this year, but some of the shortcomings - very little crockery (so you'd have to wash up after every meal/course), cutlery, not enough saucepans, no washing up bowl or plug for the sink, no oven gloves etc. - really did put a disproportionately big damper on it.

He was just starting out too and was a genuinely lovely man, but for the sake of £50-£100 worth of extra household items - even just Wilkos basics or similar - it would have made an enormous difference to our enjoyment of the week.

The one thing that owners have to do in a new conversion is live in it themselves for at least a weekend before subjecting it to guests. Guests are not guinea pigs ...