If an Airbnb host asks you not to come through the front door of their vacation rental, you should ask some questions before you show up. This group of friends wishes they had done just that.
Tori W. says her latest Airbnb experience was a giant $855 flop. The vacation rental listing she and her friends booked showed photos of a cute, clean little cottage. However, when they checked in, the group found the Airbnb dirty and unkempt.
And the uncleanliness wasn’t the worst problem with this Airbnb rental. Not by a long shot.
The host had asked his guests to only enter and exit the property through the back door. The friends thought the request was a bit odd but agreed to the owner’s wishes. That is until they saw that the front door of the Airbnb rental actually had a padlock on it. That device would make it impossible to use the door… even in an emergency.
With their suspicions and concerns growing about the Airbnb, which they now considered dirty and unsafe, they left. But not before taking photos of the filthy floors and walls… and the padlocked front door.
Tori sent her evidence to the Airbnb resolution center and assumed her full refund would soon be on the way.
It wouldn’t.
An emotionless Airbnb customer service agent quickly determined the value of her “inconvenience” to be just $300.
Now, Tori is asking Consumer Rescue for help. She’s sure that Airbnb rental is a safety and health hazard and that the host should return all her money.
She hopes our team can convince the Airbnb executive team to review her evidence and agree to the refund.
Can we do it?
Note: Tori has asked that we conceal her last name for fear of repercussions from the host.
Booking an Airbnb rental for a weekend getaway
Last spring Tori and three of her friends planned to travel to upstate New York for a short getaway. Rather than stay in a hotel, the group decided it would be more enjoyable and less expensive to stay in a vacation rental.
Tori took the lead and found, what she thought would be, the perfect Airbnb rental for their extended weekend. The location, size and cost of the “cozy cottage” checked all the boxes the group was looking for in a vacation rental. Tori shared the listing with her friends and all agreed that it fit the bill.
“It cost $855 for the three-bedroom house, including the cleaning charge, taxes and the Airbnb fee,” Tori recalled. “It seemed like a great deal.”
And it would have been a great deal had the group been able to complete their stay. But the listing’s sparkling clean photos would soon prove to be an inaccurate depiction of the Airbnb rental’s current condition.
Checking in – and quickly out – of the dirty Airbnb rental
On the day of check-in, Tori and her friends arrived at the property just in time for dinner. The photos on the Airbnb site showed a relaxing porch area that they were looking forward to enjoying. There was also a fire pit that the group imagined they might like to use that evening.
But none of that would happen.
“Right away, I noticed the debris on the front porch,” Tori told me. “That’s when I looked at the instructions and saw we were not supposed to try that door.”
The first impression of the Airbnb rental wasn’t good. In fact, the curb appeal was terrible, but Tori hoped things would improve once inside. Walking around to the back of the house, the group found a keypad on the rear door and were soon inside.
Instantly, Tori got a sinking feeling and began to suspect that she’d made a mistake picking this Airbnb rental.
The Airbnb was dirty. The carpet was stained and the property looked uncared for. There were broken baseboards, heavy dust and unidentified particles of debris all around. It [the Airbnb rental] definitely didn’t look like the listing.
Tori (Airbnb guest)
Tori began inspecting the other rooms of the home. She wanted to determine if the cleanliness issue was generalized or limited to the kitchen. That’s when she discovered the most disturbing feature of the rental.
Why is there a padlock on the front door of this vacation rental?
Walking from the kitchen into the next room Tori’s eyes were immediately drawn to the front door.
“There was a padlock on the front door, which also had no handle – making it inaccessible in the case of emergency,” Tori recalled. “This was a major safety concern for our group, as the only exit would be through the back door located in the kitchen. In the original Airbnb listing, the padlock was not visible.”
Tori texted the host immediately and explained what the group had encountered when they entered the rental. She then sent some of the photos of the home and asked about the padlock on the front door.
The owner didn’t address the padlocked front door but assured Tori that the house had been cleaned prior to their arrival. He told her that the housekeepers had tried to remove the “stains” but had “run out of time.”
This seemed to Tori and her friends not likely to be the case. What they were looking at (and their pictures show) were full clumps of pasta on the floor, among other detritus. Things that could easily be cleaned up by a housekeeper had not been. And since the group had paid Airbnb a cleaning fee, the dirty state of the home seemed inexcusable.
“Although the host responded to my texts, he continued to deny the Airbnb was dirty,” Tori says. “This is despite all the photos I sent him showing the rental was unclean and really in a state of disrepair.”
Tori and her friends didn’t even bother unpacking the car. When the Airbnb owner appeared to be in no hurry to address their complaints, they got back into their vehicle and drove to a local hotel. And that’s where they stayed for the rest of the weekend.
Unfortunately, Tori didn’t contact Airbnb to make a complaint until after the trip was over. That was a giant mistake.
Why you must contact Airbnb before you reject a rental
When you rent an Airbnb, you must make sure that you understand your responsibilities as a customer. Airbnb is only a vacation rental listing site. The company is a “middleman” between renters and owners. As such, Airbnb represents both sides of the vacation rental equation.
So when there is a problem between you as the guest and your host, it’s critical that you involve Airbnb as soon as possible. The terms and conditions of Airbnb require that step before you reject a property. The Airbnb resolution team, which you can easily reach by signing into your account, will act as mediators to settle any disagreements between host and guest.
If the Airbnb team agrees that your complaint is valid and the property is not safe or clean, they’ll generally give the host 24 hours to correct the problem. You may be approved during that time to stay in a hotel, or you may receive a discount on your reservation as a result of your complaint. In extreme cases, Airbnb will find you an alternative rental in their available inventory to re-accommodate you.
If you have a problem with a property, what you must never do is leave the vacation rental without involving the Airbnb team.
Pressing the eject button prematurely on a vacation rental makes it nearly impossible for a guest to reach a satisfactory resolution without the involvement of a third party like Consumer Rescue.
Tori learned this fact the hard way. When she reached the Airbnb resolution team after the weekend was over, her money had already been released to the owner. An agent reviewed her “evidence,” quickly determined the complaint to be worth $300 and closed the case.
That’s when she ran across an article that I had recently published about another Airbnb guest with a similar problem. Tori hoped we might be able to help her too and sent her request to our team.
Consumer Rescue investigates this Airbnb problem
When our team received Tori’s complaint, she had already received the $300 that Airbnb had determined was a fair resolution. But she didn’t agree.
We would like a full refund of $855 from the Airbnb host due to the uncleanliness of the property and the restricted access to the front door, which was a safety concern. We didn’t feel safe or comfortable staying any longer.
Do you think you can help me?
Tori in her initial letter to Consumer Rescue
Tori had done a fabulous job documenting the condition of the “cozy cottage.” The property actually didn’t look very cozy at all in the many photos and videos that Tori had compiled before leaving. The Airbnb rental looked dirty and ill-kept.
The padlock on the front door was giving off a kidnapper’s-lair vibe. I tried to think of a reasonable explanation for why a host would remove the front door’s handle and replace it with a padlock. It looked terrible and conjured up more questions than answers. And since the host never explained it, I guess we’ll never know.
But I agreed with Tori. I wouldn’t want to stay in a vacation rental with a padlock on the front door, and a dirty one at that. At a minimum, the Airbnb host should have revealed the padlock situation in the listing. And, of course, he should have had the rental cleaned before the group’s arrival.
One of the Airbnb agents told Tori that the padlock was visible in the listing and implied that it wasn’t a problem. However I looked at the listing and zoomed into the front door area. It’s was clear to me that the host was attempting to conceal the padlock with a ficus tree.
That plant appears to have been placed there solely for the promotional photos for the rental. It was not at the front door in any of Tori’s photos.
I believed that Tori had sufficient reason to be concerned about health and safety issues at this Airbnb rental. It was time to see if the executive resolution team agreed with me.
Will the Airbnb executive resolution team reconsider this refund request?
I know the Airbnb executive resolution team to always be fair and even-handed with the cases that our team determines have merit. I sent a summary of Tori’s complaint along with just a few of her photos. (As I mentioned, she had plenty of supporting photos and videos – more than enough.)
Hey *****
What looks like a chatbot was “deeply disturbed” by the situation and then determined that the value of Tori’s complaint was $300.
The group would like a full refund. They didn’t stay there because of the safety and cleanliness issues… and their suspicions about the property not being legitimate.
Tori has sent multiple chat transcripts, texts, photos and a video to me which I’ve reviewed. I tend to agree with her that I would have the same suspicions if I arrived at an Airbnb rental in a remote area of rural New York to find a dirty property and instructions to come in through the back with a padlock on the inside of the front door. The host’s responses also seem unusual to me as well.
Could your team have a look here and see if you agree? She would like a full refund.
Thank you!😊. Michelle
Michelle Couch-Friedman, Consumer advocate”
The good news: Here’s your refund from Airbnb!
Very quickly, once Tori’s evidence was reviewed by the executive team she received the resolution she was hoping for.
Dear Michelle,
Great news! I just heard from Airbnb senior support and they confirmed that we’ll be getting the remaining refund of $555.88. I can’t thank you enough for your help in resolving this issue. Your time, energy, and willingness to help others are truly appreciated! Thank you!
Tori (A grateful Consumer Rescue “customer”)
In the official statement from Airbnb, they agreed that the host should have been more transparent about the padlock on the front door, which made the back door the single point of entry and exit to the entire home and the property should have been cleaned properly.
Tori got all her money back and she couldn’t be more pleased. But one thing is for sure, the next time she books an Airbnb rental for a girls’ getaway, she’ll be much more selective and look carefully at the photos and the reviews.
How to get a refund for an unsafe or dirty Airbnb rental
Most legitimate Airbnb hosts want you to enjoy your stay. Their business depends on providing guests with a clean and safe vacation rental. Unfortunately, the definitions of “clean” and “safe” are a bit subjective. What you might consider completely unacceptable might be completely normal to your host and maybe even to previous guests.
Here’s what you should do if you check into a property and find the Airbnb rental dirty or unsafe.
Take clear photos and videos
If you’re hoping for a refund from Airbnb, you must document the conditions of the rental. Make sure your photos are clear and in focus. Take wide-angle pictures as well as close-ups. Typical photographic mistakes I frequently see Airbnb guests make include submitting images that:
- Don’t match the complaint: Providing underwhelming photos accompanied by outraged explanations aren’t particularly helpful to your case. Don’t exaggerate the problem. Your pictures should speak for themselves. If you feel it will be necessary to explain the photo, try again.
- Are blurry or hyper-focused: Taking a zoomed-in photo of a cockroach or mouse droppings that could have been snapped anywhere is a mistake. The images you gather should show a close-up and a panned-out shot so that you can prove where you took them.
Always review the pictures you’ve taken and confirm that they clearly illustrate the problems with the rental.
Finally, ensure your “evidence” has a date and time attached. Your mobile phone will time-stamp the metadata to show when you took the photo. If you’re using a regular camera, check that you’ve set the time correctly before your photoshoot.
Report the problem to the Airbnb host
You must give your host a chance to correct any issues with the property before giving up on the rental. This is especially true for problems associated with cleanliness, in which a swift visit from a housekeeper could easily address your complaint.
Of course, you should leave the Airbnb rental before reporting the situation if there is a real safety issue. However, don’t assume that Airbnb or the host will agree with your assessment. You must remain available to return to the property if the safety concern can be fixed (for instance, if there is a missing or non-functioning fire detector or broken lock on the front door).
Report the problem to Airbnb
Next, if your host is unable or unwilling to address the problem – or disagrees that your complaint is even an issue – you’ll need to report it to the Airbnb resolution center. I recommend that you not call Airbnb to discuss the problem. If you do that, you will have no documentation of what you said and the Airbnb agent’s response. Always conduct your business in writing through the Airbnb Resolution Center. That creates a perfect paper trail which will be immensely valuable to you should you need to escalate your complaint beyond customer service later.
Escalate your complaint within Airbnb
Regular readers of Consumer Rescue know that many times, Airbnb guests do not initially reach a sympathetic ear through the resolution center. An artificial intelligence (AI) bot might be the first “customer service agent” to handle your complaint. Unfortunately, AI customer service often leads to frustrating circular go-rounds with unusual responses and no resolution.
If you have already experienced this type of customer service, it’s time to escalate your problem up the executive chain.
Our team knows it can be difficult for consumers to find contact information for customer-facing executives. That’s why Consumer Rescue provides a free executive customer service finder. We have our own database of real people at Airbnb who we know not only have the ability to help guests with difficult problems, but actually want to do so.
Ask Consumer Rescue for free help
Of course, there are times when you may need additional support to fix your problem with Airbnb. If you’ve followed all of these steps and are still hitting an insurmountable roadblock, send your request for free mediation assistance to our advocacy team. We have a long, proven track record of successfully resolving consumer problems.
If you’re sure the facts are on your side, we can rescue you from your consumer problem. Our advocacy is always fast, friendly, and free of charge. (Michelle Couch-Friedman, Consumer Rescue)
Wasn't this an old case?
Either way, great job getting her money back Michelle!
No, this is a case that was resolved three weeks ago! 😊
I love that tree directly in front of the door!
My favorite line in your email:
What looks like a chatbot was “deeply disturbed” by the situation
Good one!
🤓
You mention that the front door was the "single point of entry and exit"–yet they were able to get in and out via the back door. Was the back door not accessible from any point in the house, or did the house have at least two doors?
Also, looking at the photos of the front door (one Ms. Tori took and one from the listing) shows the couch partially blocking the front door. This is why the front door was unusable. I have seen a couple of homes like this–one I remember was my step-mom's parent's house where the front door came in to a living room. It was a small room and they actually only used the side door, so the kept the front door locked and had a couch in front of it.
Now, from the local fire codes, I could see that the house may need to have at least two usable doors to get out in case of an emergency, so the padlock is a bit of an overkill.
Sorry, Tim, I just saw your comment. The single point of entry and exit was the back door. There were no other doors available.The couch was pushed in front of the door to block it, but it didn't need to be there. The living room was large enough for the couch to be away from the door. I really don't know why there was a padlock on the front door.
Hi Michelle,
Thank you for the clarification. The only reason I could think of to have a door padlocked is if the deadbolt was missing or not working; but that would be a temporary fix only.