AirbnbReviews 2,101

Airbnb has the right to withdraw the security funds if a claim for damages is submitted. They don't tell you upfront that this is a negotiation process between you and the renter and the renter has the option to refuse the amount, offer their own amount. If you don't agree to the amount, which there is no incentive for the renter to agree to your claim, you can ask Airbnb to be the decision maker. We did this and were "awarded" an amount 25% less than our claim! Even with receipts and invoice of the cost to repair the damage, we were not rewarded the full amount. Homeowners beware, if you have damage to your place, you WILL NOT be covered for the full amount.

Use Homeaway instead. They have damage insurance you can require renters to buy or hold a security deposit which you can withhold at your discretion, not the renters or the website.

We've booked several places with Airbnb as we travel around Australia, some have been good, some bad and some downright ugly. The good speak for themselves... but if you are unlucky enough to turn up to one place like we did which was filthy, then dealing with the host and the customer service can be a nightmare. In our case, the whole apartment was filthy, so much so, we did not want to stay the night. It would have taken an army of cleaners to fix this, but apparently you are supposed to give the host time to do so before you ask for a refund. Our host got particularly snarky and in the end we left it to Airbnb to negotiate a refund for the 3 days we booked. Luckily, we had photos to prove a point. Anyway, we didn't get all of it back but at least some was refunded. As others have said, Airbnb make sure they cancel your booking and then you cannot write a review, warning others. Bad practice.
The second gripe I have with Airbnb is that we chose a place and asked to book for 10 nights. On the advertised page, it stated the night rate was $111 per night and for a week $700. They add on a cleaning fee of $50 plus $119 booking fee. When we were quoted, the price came out much higher than the total we anticipated. We queried this with the owner, who explained it was Airbnb pricing policy and we were charged more because the rates are higher in December. There was no info on the webpage to that effect. She accepted our booking so we were unable to cancel, so we asked why she wouldn't honour the $700 a week fee? She offered $50 by way of resolving the issue. My point being (and I took this up with Airbnb customer service) is that if a price is stated on the page advertising the cost at $700 that should be the price you pay. There is no mention of 'hidden extras'... but apparently according to Airbnb, the host can decide what they will charge and you have to suck it up, or not... but try getting out of a booking! Most other sites are transparent and you can see the daily, weekly or seasonal rate before booking... with Airbnb you cannot. Be warned... this site is not very user friendly. When things are good, then you might enjoy the experience, but on the whole, when things go bad, it can get damn ugly!

What can't I say! For 2 months our boss rented us this amazing apartment right on the beach! The landlord Steve and his wife were very accommodating... There were things in the apartment for us to start out with. Soap, cleaning products, etc. the washer and dryer was my only complaint. It was a 2 n 1 and took forever. I used it one time. Didn't work so well! Other than that I loved it. Hopefully my boss will rent it for us again next year!

As a new -comer to Airbnb I can't believe how very poor (non-existent) their customer service is. The web site is a disaster. I found the hosts full of info and charm until my booking was complete, then I think they moved to Mars. Another issue, I cancelled a two day booking six months in advance, and was assured by the host I would not be charged the cancellation fee - I WAS. Clearly no communication between host and Airbnb. When, after several attempts to get answers from "the team" on other issues I eventually received a reply that had absolutely nothing to do with what I had asked? They claim that you will not be charged until after you check in - NOT SO! Never again. I could go on - but life is too short - and I have to book two months of accommodation in 5 countries - NOT with Airbnb.

This was the worst experience for a family vacation I can ever remember. Traveling clear across the country from AZ, arriving in the evening, and finding out the property never received confirmation from the host of our arrival. We had a reservation number, received multiple system generated emails prepping us for the trip and no indication that anything was wrong. Then, when they do finally reach you it was AirBnB doing all the apologizing and back pedaling because of the lack of professionalism of the host. Sorry, but all the good reviews I did see before booking make me feel that they are there because Airbnb put them there. Now that I did the research outside their site I see I am one of so many that have made the mistake of working with this company. To everyone, use VRBO or any other service but this one.

Airbnb has no customer support, I recently rented a las vegas condo which was a filthy property with many hazards like carpet tacks sticing out of carpet, broken door stops with jagged edges, exposed wiring, attic open to bedroom with bug issues, the list goes on. I communicated with the host, one Jewel Taylor through Airbnb' s wesite & the host agreed to return the cleaning fee of $150. After we left the property the host refused to return cleaning fee & Airbnb respinded too bad, aa we did not contact them in the first 24 hours, we tried but there website could not accept complaints due to technology problems, how convenient,. I had been using Airbnb for the last year without problems, we won't be using them in the future, VRBO & Homeaway do a much better job.

I have been a host on airbnb for a few years, and i have also used airbnb four times as a guest.

This year, i did both. As a host, airbnb does not honour their cancellation policy - i had a cheap as chips guy from denmark ask me to work outside of the airbnb contract so he would not have to pay airbnb fees. I refused to do this. The night before his second months payment was due, he walked out with his wife and baby.

Airbnb's cancellation "policy" states that the host is entitled to 30 days rent if 30 days notice to cancel is not given.

I received nothing.

Two times this summer i reserved a room on airbnb and had to cancel - i notified the host in time to get a refund, but i have not received either refund.

So airbnb has gotten their hands on approximately £1500.

If there is anyone else out there who wants to go after them legally, let me know. They count on individuals who do not have the resources to take them to court. Lots of us don't have the resources because we have been so ripped off by airbnb!

Air bnb attempts to avoid human contact by all means, the phone number alone is hard to find.
Most important is the DEPOSIT to the homeowner is not TAKEN at all. Legally, this is NOT a deposit. In the event of VIOLATION of no pet policy they require proof of damage and the homeowner to go through hell to get any type of deposit. In addition, The Homeowner, the one taking all of the risk in this lease, does not get paid until the guest are in the house for a min of 24 hours. This is a terrible situation for a homeowner since a total stranger can take possession of a home with no money transferred. Go TO VRBO/HOMEAWAY,, if someone traveling does not have a deposit, you do not want that traveler. 25 years experience at renting here.

Awful. You can't speak to a real person at Airbnb. They don't know how to run a company. They don't even know the definition of an "owner". Be careful landlords -- your goofy tenants are putting you at risk -- make your lease air-tight, and pay attention. Be careful "guests" if you are renting from a tenant and not a an actual property owner, you are renting from someone who has no insurance, no legal ability to rent to you. This business model is a mess. I have been on both sides of the transactions as both owner and a guest (legally known as landlord and tenant) using all of these: Airbnb, Homeaway and Craiglist -- my experiences with the other parties and the spaces have all been good (but I also am a mature experienced person who knows how to know what is actually legit), however Airbnb is without a doubt so super weird -- this company has little to no customer communication and they pretty much disappear if an issue needs resolution -- super slow to respond and not helpful in the end. And there are no leases or contracts (Homeaway encourages actual rental agreements, and so will most real owners -- even for short term). The kindergarteners at Airbnb got lucky with a good idea (there are some good elements to the concept -- I won't get into outlining them here), but they haven't a clue how to run a business at all. There is a lot of liability involved in the rental business, so be careful everyone. Expedia needs to buy Airbnb and clean up the mess. When your are established an publicly traded, you can't get away with just setting up a ridiculous illegal cult that exploits other people's private property and call it a business. Airbnb is temporarily getting away with it, but that is only because urban bureaucracies have unwieldy regulations that confuse the very people who are supposed to enforce them.

FYI - Guys you have to be careful when booking with Airbnb, i boo my flight to travel and book an apartment the host confirmed my booking within 24 hours, couple days later then cancel said he couldn't accommodate me as he was repairing the house and have suggest alternative days. Please note there is a fee to pay weather you or the host cancel. But in my case the host cancelled not asking me before If those days are ok with me or if I was flexible. Luckily i book one month in advance and was able to dispute it with Airbnb/PayPal who I use to pay for this booking. In all it was a complete waist of my time and credit having to call their customer service team. So be really careful when booking through Airbnb I would suggest you message the host to confirm if they can accommodate you first before requesting a booking. Just wanted to share how fraustrated I was due to this incident and the time it take to resolved it approximately 11 days since the booking was made to get my money back.

I made a booking trough Airbnb, for the booking to be confirmed it has to be accepted by the host. During the 24hrs period I was having a conversation with the host, yet the booking expired as he didnt accept it. So the asked me to message him personally as he claims his app wasn't working and couldn't see mymessages. To make the story short, he made a "fake booking" for me as if he paid it first to Airbnb. A booking was then confirmed through an Airbnb email, exactly the same as Airbnb. Then I paid via wire transfer and that's the end of our communication. Never heard from Airbnb again until I called their hotline only to know that I didnt have a booking from them. I made several complaints but their answer is always the same. I wasn't expecting to get my money back anymore ($2,000) but atleast I wanted to see some action from them. They didnt even give me update of what was going on, what were they doing to solve my case. They didn't even provide me with the information of the host aside from the fact that they have his details. I didnt see any effort from them except from their $#*!ty emails once in a blue moon as if to make me feel they're concern. Then they're gone, quiet, nothing. My experience with them was horrible, It's the worst. Now I'm thinking they dont actually know their hosts, whether they're genuine or not. So how can we be safe with them? They only care about the commission they will get but when it comes to unfavorable situations they cannot help anymore! They will leave you hanging. So please beware with Airbnb.