Jane G.

My experience was similar to another recent review - I booked an apartment for 28 days in NYC. Several amenities that were listed were not there, such as tv. There was even a picture of a flat screen tv in the ad for this apartment and the tv amenity had been checked off on the site. The description of the apartment was generally misleading. I tried to sort it out with the host, but it wasn't working and I decided to cancel my reservation. I raised a dispute with airbnb. I've rented successfully on airbnb a bunch of times, have good reviews and enjoy the human element of it, But this one time I had a problem and actually needed help from Airbnb, they really seemed to side with the host from the beginning. Before the dispute I was prepared to just pay for the nights I was there and really expected them to refund the entire balance, since the listing clearly violated the policies and standards they listed on their website. But they said a cancellation fee of $50 a night would apply to every night I had booked, which I may get back if the host rebooks. The host sent me a really rude email blaming me for treating him like a hotelier and saying I should have double checked if he had tv…eeeerrr… yes. Airbnb seemed to think this was reasonable.
I really like the idea of what Airbnb is doing, but this experience gave me an uneasy feeling. Their approach seemed more about a policy decision to keep hosts at all costs, even when they violate the Airbnb policy. THey kept the whole fee I had to pay based on a 28 day booking, even though I cancelled that booking and they will collect new fees during that period of time.