Questions and Answers

According to AirBNB’s cancellation policy, “If there is an Airbnb service fee, it is only refunded if you cancel during the free cancellation period for your reservation, if the canceled reservation doesn’t overlap with an existing reservation, and if you haven’t already received 3 service fee refunds in the last 12 months.” Is AirBNB going to bend on this 3 service fee refund limit in light of Covid-19? I have already had to cancel 4 reservations this year and am concerned that if I make another reservation for later this year and have to cancel, I will be charged the service fee. I have messaged them to ask, but I don’t get a straight answer.
Thanks.

How much is the fee?

[QUOTE=”rickyw, post: 69636, member: 1436″]How much is the fee?[/QUOTE]
It’s a percentage of the cost of the stay, so it varies for each reservation and can be several hundred dollars.

Marnette,

Per airbnb’s coronavirus page, it seems pretty clear that they will refund all fees without limit assuming your stay falls within the range here:

[I]Reservations for stays and Airbnb Experiences made on or before March 14, 2020, with a check-in date between March 14, 2020 and June 15, 2020, are covered by the policy and may be canceled before check-in. Guests who cancel will have a variety of cancellation and refund options, and hosts can cancel without charge or impact to their Superhost status. [B][U]Airbnb will either refund, or issue travel credit that includes, all service fees for covered cancellations.[/U][/B] In order to cancel under the policy, you will be required to attest to the facts of and/or provide supporting documentation for your extenuating circumstance.[/I]

I also found this pretty interesting, and while I’m not a lawyer, I do like how they framed their policy.

[I]Our extenuating circumstances policy is intended to protect guests and hosts from unforeseen circumstances that arise after booking. [B][U]After the declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic by the World Health Organization, the extenuating circumstances policy no longer applies because COVID-19 and its consequences are no longer unforeseen or unexpected.[/U][/B] Please remember to carefully review the host’s cancellation policy when booking and consider choosing an option that provides flexibility.[/I]

[URL]https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2701/extenuating-circumstances-policy-and-the-coronavirus-covid19[/URL]