A woman who went to the Airbnb accommodation she booked discovered a series of security issues that left her stranded in her car arguing with customer support until after 4am. Here are the details of what happened.
TikTok creator Ashley (@abravesfan27) posted a video about her situation on October 30. In the video, she is seen on the phone talking to her Airbnb while sitting in her car. “I would never have driven this far without the air guarantee,” she said. “So you’re telling me that on top of the $3,000-plus and the house… the locks are broken and the water is turned off. Do you want me to pay Airbnb more money to book another Airbnb in the same time period?”
The person on the other end of the phone said, “We understand your concerns about this.” Ashley explained that it was 4:30 a.m., it was cold outside, and she couldn’t stay in the Airbnb because the door lock was broken. She appears to have requested alternative accommodation from Airbnb, but the agent said direct support is not available at this time.
Is this a $3,000 Airbnb or a “dystopian nightmare”?
“I heard that right, that’s the truth,” Ashley said. “It’s not like this is a dystopian nightmare, this is real. You just want to send me a link to spend more money on Airbnb? Is that the best thing you can do? Even though this is all covered by the Air Travel Guarantee? Why isn’t this covered?”
The customer service agent responded: “We will help you find a place to stay while also addressing your concerns about your original reservation. You will need to book this listing yourself. We do not have the option to book this listing here.”
“You don’t have a choice, or you don’t want to? Because it says it’s covered by air travel,” Ashley asked.
The agent says, “I want to help you, but, here are our restrictions.” Ashley asks, “What type of restrictions?” As the man is about to respond, the video cuts off.
Ashley wrote in the caption: “I tried Airbnb once but never again. Over $3,000 later, the door locks are broken, the water is shut off, and there are trees blocking the driveway. Their support has been of zero help. Ugh no. Will ever accommodate me.”
Airbnb’s AirCover protection service
Ashley was referring to Airbnb’s AirCover protection service, which helps customers if there’s a serious security issue with a property they’ve booked. According to the help article, Airbnb will assist customers in this situation to find similar listings “at a comparable price.”
Additionally, the company said it will offer full or partial refunds if similarly priced listings are unavailable. The policy, underwritten by Generali Travel Insurance, typically covers pre-stay cancellations by hosts, serious safety issues and false advertising. This should not be confused with Airbnb’s travel insurance, which covers general travel-related events.
Airbnb said it “may” pay or share the cost of new bookings, but it will also offer travel credits in some cases. Rebooking assistance may vary based on the specific issue and documentation reported.
In a follow-up video, Ashley showed viewers a screenshot of a conversation with Airbnb support in which she was told that the documentation she provided did not include enough details to prove her check-in time or notify the host. That’s probably why Airbnb didn’t extend her credit.
Viewers react to this woman’s ‘dystopian nightmare’ on Airbnb
In the comments section, viewers complained about the current state of Airbnb. Many said they no longer recognized the platform they once knew.
“Airbnb has 100% lost the plot,” one person wrote.
“Airbnb sucks,” said another. “horrible.”
“Airbnb did the same thing to me and I never booked a room with them again,” a third viewer wrote.
All Hip Hop reached out to Ashley and AirBnB via email for comment.
@abravesfan27 I tried it once but never used @airbnb again. Over 3k, the locks don’t work, the water is turned off, and there are trees blocking the driveway. Their support provided zero aid. In this economic climate? Uh no. Entertain me forever #airbnbscams #scam #airbnbhost ♬ Original Sound – 🥀|Ashley| 🥀
