Should they pay? AirBnB nightmare

[NanFlanders]

My 18 yo DD and her friend have saved their wages from their PT jobs (at school) for a year to go to Paris for NYE. They booked an AirBnB (DD is autistic and wanted somewhere self-contained). When they arrived, the door of the flat wouldn't open. They called the owner who told them to be firm with the key - they tried this and the key broke off in the lock. They called the owner who became angry with them and told them they would have to pay, and that it would cost €1000 on NYE to get a locksmith. Things escalated and my DD's friend told the woman to "Fxxx off" (which obviously didn't help and I'm not excusing it) - though she did immediately send a Whatsapp message to her apologizing. At this point DD called me, as I speak some French, and I WhatsApped the owner to try to resolve the situation. She advised she couldn't do anything as she didn't live in Paris, "couldn't work miracles" and they should try a hotel. As you might expect, hotels in Paris on NYE were either extortionate or full or both. They called AirBnB who said they would help them get in the apartment that night - but didn't. Luckily they found beds in a mixed dorm in a hostel and are making the best of things, but today they have been sent a bill for £450 from Airbnb to pay for a locksmith. AIBU to suggest they should contest this? I feel they did as advised, were left in a very vulnerable position, are already out of pocket, and never even got into the flat!

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

Make a complaint to the ODR.

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.

As a host she should have had someone close by with a spare key should there be any issues. It’s probably in the T&Cs somewhere if you find it? I’d be quoting it back to them. There were clearly issues with the lock that she knew about.

Definitely don’t pay and actually they should be reimbursing the cost of the stay and the alternative accommodation!!

If they and you have an audit trail of communications then I would advise raising this with airbnb to get a refund for the stay. We did this when we had a faulty shower during our stay meaning we couldn’t wash and got a full refund. The owner should have ensured a working lock, advising to be firm shows there was already a problem and potentially the key incident was inevitable

I love Mumsnet. Thanks to you and everyone else for all the helpful advice!

I know this is besides the point now but if they’re not around nor have anyone to help the guests when needed then how on earth are they allowed to run a AirBnB?

Should be kicked off the site on the spot.

Am an Airbnb host, agree with @NanFlanders

airbnb should have rehoused your daughter (this is why they charge a % of all bookings as insurance)

also your daughter should refuse to pay the €450 and then the host will claim it on insurance

sorry to hear your DD had to book a hotel: I’ve never had these issues as guest or host but it’s meant to be covered ie Airbnb find you a (better) alternative if there are issues with your accommodation

Agree: poor hosting

Fuck that!

Just send the bill to your holiday insurance?

I tried an air b&b once and that was enough - put me off for life. Pictures not what it looks like in reality, smells, etc. And the price difference compared to a 3-start hotel was negligible. Nothing can compare to a hotel or a little pension.

I've had one awful AirBnB experience and one good. Even the good one, there was some confusion as to who was responsible for something not working. I'd never book one abroad. I feel the waters are too muddied regarding responsibilities, and your experience relies on the personality of the host as opposed to there being a universal standard. Your daughter's host being backed by AirBnB is a total joke.

Definitely contest it with Airbnb - I found their customer service really good, I was messed around by the owner who messaged me to tell me to cancel the booking because they had made a mistake on the platform in allowing single night stays - they didn't cancel the booking themselves because they would have been obliged to find me new accommodation and pay the difference. I didn't see the message as I don't have the app (and the booking was still active so i didnt get an email cancellation) so turned up on the day, but there was no signage to indicate where the place was, like a sign with an arrow, and the owner wouldnt answer (I had to wander round knocking on doors for ages and then the neighbour was livid because it happens all the time). Then the key safe wouldn't open and all that time the owner wouldn't answer the phone, they didnt reply until the next day and then were well arsey with me telling me how expensive the cleaner was and that it wasn't cost effective to offer single night stays (even though it was THEIR mistake to list it and the only reason they didnt cancel is because they would have been penalised!) I did manage to get in but not until 6 hours after I was supposed to, so I didn't get my lovely afternoon nap (first time away from baby!) and it was hugely stressful because there was a literary festival and everywhere was booked up. I complained and AirBnb gave me a full refund and I left a stinker of a review.

Some of the Airbnbs in Paris do not have the appropriate municipal licence to operate as rented holiday accommodation. As a minimum, there should be a 13-digit licence number displayed on the Airbnb page, and Airbnb should be able to look that up and confirm that it is real (and the renter didn't just type in 13 random digits). If that number is absent or fake, the owner would be in for a substantial fine if you were to file a complaint... or she might agree to drop the claim for the locksmith if you were to suddenly forget that you had inquired.

OMG contest and you will have all of us with you. How dare they sell the air b and b knowing the lock was crap making young people vulnerable!!!

This is really good advice. So often you are asked to text or whatsapp. Once you are in, and happy, then by all means. I agree with most of the posters here, your daughter has been spectacularly let down by accom that was not fit for purpose. It also goes wrong on booking.com (and other sites also) when it says "private owner". Once went to Budapest with 2 young children and we were on the late night flight over when owner decided to cancel mid-flight citing heating problems. Landed with nowhere to stay all of a sudden, but booking.com offered us a sub-standard apartment for more expensive as an alternative (more expensive than it even was on their own website). I ended up booking it on their own website because we needed somewhere and it was the only place left, but went to town on them contractually. Have had lots of good experiences re: airbnb and booking.com (private owner), but when it goes wrong, it really goes wrong. If you need the comfort of it "being OK" regardless of travel disruptions, issues with accom etc, because of the needs of your travellers (be them young children or young adults trying to make their own way), then make it so. You sometimes need the comfort of a 24 hour reception and so on, just for your own sanity. That said, it is still disgraceful, and do not pay any demands, and kick off good style about the facts - basically they could not use the accommodation purchased, and that is enough to throw the book at them. Hope you get somewhere xx

This is no longer the case. If the either the host or guest doesn't review, the other party's review is automatically published after 14 days of the end of the stay.

Op, I would absolutely fight this. Get your DD to request a full refund through the resolution centre and if the cost of the replacement accommodation was more, then the difference too.

There's no need to do this - and cause herself even more inconvenience.

If the booking was paid for using a credit card, a Section 75 claim can be made through the CC company. Likewise if Airbnb attempt to take a further (unauthorised) payment to cover the alledged cost of the locksmith

In Italy they have banned key boxes, and unattended arrival. This is a good justification for it too. It's now law that the host has to recieve the guests in person, photo passports and report to the police upon their arrival. It makes running a remote bnb, as opposed to a room in your own house, very difficult, and in most cases barely worth it.

She should also speak with her bank/credit card company re the original accommodation charge to let them know she’s disputing it. They can’t always help but sometime can if Airbnb is not being forthcoming with a refund.