A week ago I shared a personal story of how an apartment host in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, He wanted me to pay an extra 50 euros when I left. Although it sounds like the big scam of the year, with the way they manage the ad, I’m sure that other people can get a lot more out of it and also that it’s something systematic.

I have to say that Airbnb’s customer service team was very communicative the entire time, even calling me on the phone in addition to the chat conversations that I requested, to see that everything was fine. One thing that I value a lot about this platform compared to others is, in fact, this direct and efficient customer service, which allows communication through several channels.

Me I was free to pay and I also reported the profile for scam. As I mentioned in the previous article, when I left the house he asked me for 30 euros for cleaning fees when, due to Airbnb policies, that money has to be specified when you search for accommodation. Anyway, I’m told that the ad will still be online, but that they will educate the host on how to use the platform to prevent other people from going through this. And I couldn’t change my review to alert other people that I don’t recommend the place, I could only delete it.

Reasons why I am convinced she is a scammer

If this hostess said that she charged 30 euros for cleaning, her ad would stop being attractive in Punta Cana (a very touristy place and full of accommodations) because it would have a price as high as a long list of more sites and that would make you lose visibility, attractiveness and, therefore, customers. Now it attracts attention, basically, because it is among the cheapest in the area. And the cleaning without adding everything else that can be charged if you want to cook something, if you have a fan in the room or if you leave a window open and it rains.

Another reason why I think it’s a scam is because, From Airbnb they initially told me that they understood that I was happy with the extra payment because I had left the hostess a positive review. I had to tell them to look carefully, because the request to charge me extra money came after I wrote the review.

The real issue was this: on my way out we talked for a while and He asked me to please leave him a review, he insisted a lot on that. So much so that he wrote to me again a couple of days later to ask me to do it. All of that caught my attention.

Anyway, I’m not distrustful and I thought more that he was a neurotic and too boring personwhat a scammer. But I was wrong. I left her a good review because, although she had not made me feel really comfortable, with her long list of rules, the house was good, in a also positive location, being in the middle of all the beach areas that the people may like to visit, cheap, spacious and clean.

Nothing As soon as I made the review, I received a message asking me for the money. Not before. And it took about 3 or 4 days until I did it, since I left.

Lessons learned

Still, I remain Airbnb user when it is to be able to stay with local people in some of the places those I travel to. I have already shared with you in other reports how I did like its initial essence of sharing with locals in their homes, something that is maintained in some countries to which I have traveled in recent years (example of Senegal). Something that in regions of Spain, due to regulations and base prices, is already much more difficult to achieve.

In this case the woman was not Dominican but that was my error of understanding because I booked for the race, but with some lessons learned that I want to share.

A lesson could be not to make last minute reservations without paying close attention to the advertisementand that was one of the mistakes here, but for me it does not apply, because on my trips, I improvise the destinations.

1. If you don’t feel comfortable with something, it’s not the place.. Just as in real life, I am in favor of letting myself be guided by instinct and when something does not seem logical to us, it usually has a compelling reason behind it. I gave it a good review when I left (specifying that the rules were overwhelming) because I trusted it and didn’t let myself be guided by my feelings from the beginning, that the whole ad was very strange. Now I recommend that if there is something unusual in an ad, there is something that does not make you feel good, you report it to Airbnb as soon as possible (in my case I saw it after making the reservation that was without cancellation). Trips are to be enjoyed, not to be stressed because whoever is hosting us doesn’t make us feel comfortable.
2. Avoid reservations without any cancellation policy. Even if you are booking at the last minute and need accommodation, make sure it has a cancellation policy. Even if it means returning only part of the money or giving advance notice. Do not book many days in a row in a place without being given this facility.
3. Do not accept any charge if you are not sure what it means. The best thing would be to know the platform’s policies better but, as we use many of them throughout the year, it is better to be forewarned. If they want to charge you something that you do not consider, do not accept. Reject it and take advantage of Airbnb customer service to resolve it directly with them.

Image | Photo of Joe deSousa in Unsplash

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