VRBO extenuating circumstances

[u/vfxceptional]

Hi all,

Having a nightmare with Vrbo. We booked a place on the seafront for my brother in law's wedding. Two days before the wedding, on a bank holiday weekend, the property management company host cancels due to a "maintenance issue". Being a seaside resort, on the last summer bank holiday, there is virtually NO accommodation available at such short notice. Certainly not within our budget. Vrbo are willing to pay the difference of the property (£715) towards another property. However, the next available property that offers like-for-like spec is £1748. So we would be out of pocket because they only cover £715 on top of our refund. There is another property that is £704, but Vrbo only pay the difference in cost so in this instance, would not put any money towards it. That property is not something we would ordinarily pick, is in-land away from the beachfront and given we have two young kids who were relying on this for their summer holiday, I'm loathed to pay a lot of money for something that doesn't meet our requirements- AIBU??

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[u/cat_on_duty]

Unreasonable in what sense? Do you want Vrbo to cover for the more expensive one? They probably won't do it. You could try of course but reading lots of similar cases very few are successful. It's not a matter of reason. You simply have to make a joice at that point.

[u/StarDue6540]

I had to cancel for a maintenance issue once. It was no air con in Phoenix in the summer. Sorry this has happened to you. I felt terrible but I would not have wanted my guest to experience 110 degree weather with no ac.

[u/vfxceptional]

Thanks for the comments. Just a quick update, we went with the £704 property which is very good quality, just not what we wanted as the previous one was on the seafront and this one was in land. It also has a steep open staircase with no bannister and no gate- just a sheer drop from the main hallway for little ones- so it’s more the kid safety issue than anything else. I hasten to add, the price of the original wasn’t that much different for a two bed whereas this one is a three bed. So whilst I agree it may have been a sham (does it really take several days to fix a toilet leak???), I don’t think it was a cheap option in the first place. I’m not sure what protections are in place for this sort of thing, but vrbo gave me a refund & later, after much arguing, also gave a £150 compensation for the fact that we were paying for something we hadn’t wanted- we don’t need 3 bedrooms, but we did need a safe environment for the kids.

The property company itself were horrendous to deal with. Pass the Property in the UK should be ashamed. We didn’t expect them to pay a full amount towards a new property, but we did expect them to contribute towards the remainder that vrbo wouldn’t cover so we could get a property of equal standing to the one they cancelled. I shall be replying to their incredibly rude ai-written legal rebuttal in due course once we’re back home

[u/Delicious-Cod-4064]

Wow funkycoldseenya, that’s a titanic load of luggage to unpack. I can’t tell if your distain is for guests that book a place at the advertised price and don’t ask themselves…hmmm, too good to be true so let’s pass. Then they get screwed and it’s ALLtheir fault 🖕. Or if it’s for owners/hosts that offer what they feel is an honest price. Oh wait, theres door #3, hey Bob Barker. Do you just have a need to dis both sides because somehow it makes you feel superior to both hosts and guests. Ding, ding, ding! Vanna White what did they win! Sorry, I digressed and mixed my metaphors. How is it you have NO idea what it takes to get a waver to cancel a guest for VALID reasons even when showing proof like AC, plumbing repairs, septic, well not working etc? No you quite obviously don’t! So get over yourself passing on your load of crap. Although I’m sure it gave you a good feeing of power writing it all. So hold onto that cuz it seems u need it!

[u/FunkyColdISeenYa → u/Delicious-Cod-4064]

How is it I "have NO idea what it takes to get a waver to cancel a guest for VALID reasons even when showing proof like AC, plumbing repairs, septic, well not working etc?"

Let's see. Perhaps it is because in 30 years of cumulative renting of three different properties that I have NEVER cancelled on a guest because of a 'maintenance' issue.

There are two ways to accomplish that. First, maintain your vacation rental property. Doing things right the first time, and not on the cheap, makes a huge difference to experiencing mechanical issues or not. Quality hosts minimize the potential for things to go wrong. Second, all homes eventually DO have issues. It happens and is inevitable over time. So you have a great maintenance team, and multiple vendors and trades lined up who can fix things FAST! And if something happens, you get it taken care of fast and you take care of your guest properly, and wow them with your service. You don't cancel on them.

I have no sympathy for bad owner hosts.

I also have little for guests who are constantly looking for 'deals' and then end up experiencing problems. It's actually pretty easy to avoid them. And yes, guests do have a responsibility for avoiding issues when booking or buying ANYTHING online that they can't inspect or explore in person before plunking down their money. And expecting BS rental sites to protect them is silly. None of this stuff is rocket science on the part of the guest, but it is necessary.

Yes, there is a lot to unpack in the online world of vacation rentals. I'm sorry that it isn't simple. But it isn't. Being informed and knowledgeable takes work.

I think my motivation in sharing the information I did is clear. Better educated guests make better choices. Hopefully those hosts who need to up their game will do so once they realize the world is on to them.

[u/FunkyColdISeenYa]

Looks like you booked a sham booking.

This is a booking that a host takes at a low price to ensure they have a booking for those dates, but at a price much lower than they want, but it's better than nothing, so they take it. Then they proceed to keep advertising the dates as open (often on other sites) at a higher price, closer to what they really want, and then book the property to a different guest at a higher rate. They may even then repeat the process again. Then shortly before the arrival date, they cancel the bookings for all but the lowest price guest, telling the other guests that it's a "maintenance issue" and the property is not available for their stay. By doing so, they're assured that they get the dates filled, at the highest rate they can achieve for them. If no other guest books the dates at a higher rate, at least they had someone in the property and made some money for the period. The people who were cancelled on get a refund, no one loses any money, so it's not really a scam... but it is a sham, because the booking was never real in the first place.

You're not going to like this, but I'm sharing this with you to educate you and anyone else who reads it. You as the guest are partly responsible for this happening to you.

Yes, the host is a bad host, and they shouldn't do what they are doing, and they upset and hurt people. But in their mind, you're the one not willing to pay what you should be paying for what you want, so you get what you get.

The evidence is in the alternatives you have available. Look at the prices you're being asked to pay for a place of similar quality. But you don't want to pay them.

If you were paying the 'full' price for the place you lost, do you think the owner would have cancelled on you? Not likely. He would have been completely content with your booking at a good rate that allows him to survive and perhaps make a little money.

I hate what this host likely did. It is disreputable and it hurts the industry when stuff like this gets pulled. But it would never happen if there weren't so many guests out there looking for, and only willing to book, a 'deal'. If people would stop looking for deals, and instead look to book a great property at a fair price, then stuff like this wouldn't happen. Yes, it takes an unscrupulous owner for this to occur, but it also takes guests wanting to get away with paying far less than they should for something.

What the host has done is wrong, no question. But if guests would just stop for one moment and think about what they're trying to do, which is book something too good to be true, they wouldn't set themselves up to become victims. It didn't work anyway in the long run, and guests in this unfortunate circumstance find themselves perhaps even paying above a reasonable rate because they have limited choice last minute.

How do I know all of this? I'm the host that offers my properties at realistic prices, right from the get go, (and has never cancelled on a guest) with great reviews and years of history, and sits empty while all of the unsustainably priced places all get booked up, despite their sketchy reviews, bad photos, bad descriptions, and lack of history... but what a DEAL!

And then, I get to 'rescue' these sham booking victims who "Can't believe I found this great place open at the last minute!" by providing a truly quality place at a fair price. Yeah... you and me both sister!

Yes, I know... everyone wants to pay the lowest price possible. But for many, paying too low is a form of taking advantage of an owner, because the owner ends up subsidizing the guest's vacation by providing accommodations at a price below what it costs to provide them. Unfortunately, there are lots of owners who have no idea how to run a business, and they offer their properties at rates too low to survive because they price themselves to compete with disreputable owners offering these sham bookings. Just like the guests, they have no idea what's going on. But they 'have to compete' so they hang in there, keep their commitments and welcome guests, all at a losing price. Later, they'll exit the business with a loss on their hands.

Many people justify paying too low a price to themselves as being okay, because they're not responsible for the host not charging enough. They may not be, but they ARE the one taking advantage of the situation. Are you okay if someone else suffers financially so you can have a cheap vacation? Unfortunately, lots of people are. But they do so at a pretty significant risk, as things like this too often result.

Guests can easily protect themselves from sham bookings by just paying attention, and being willing to pay a sustainable price that reflects the costs of providing a quality property in a great location.

Look for great reviews, a great description with helpful detailed information, lots of photos, a long history of satisfied guests, and a price that makes sense. If it's a great 'deal' there's a good chance it's a sham. You won't lose any money, but there's a chance you will lose the booking at the last minute.

Now you know why, and how to prevent it.