How VRBO and Airbnb Handled Corona Cancellations

It only makes sense that both VRBO and Airbnb would want to protect their business during the most turbulant time our industry has ever had.

The big two OTAs (Airbnb and VRBO) handled the corona situation very differently. Both were definitely pro guest, but one was not sensitive at all to the hosts.

Unfortunately, how well your vacation rental business fairs during the Coronavirus pandemic depends a lot on the source of your bookings.

What Airbnb Did To Handle Corona

Airbnb recently gave all guests the ability to cancel their stay with a 100% refund. 

I tell ya, It’s amazing how generous Airbnb was with the vacation rental owners’ money.

I saw a few vacation rental owners that were trying to get the cancelled guests to change their dates instead of flat out cancelling – but that sounds like an uphill battle.

At this point, if the booking is on Airbnb, you’re at the mercy of the guests’ whim – and whatever new rules Airbnb comes up with… not cool at all.

By taking these drastic steps, Airbnb has shown us that the guest’s are NOT our customers, they’re Airbnb’s customers.

When you list your property on Airbnb, you loose any control you have over your business. In fact with so little control, it hardly feels like it’s your business at all.

Luckily for us, most of the bookings we have in the next couple of months are on VRBO.

How VRBO Handled Coronavirus

VRBO had the opposite approach to Coronavirus. Instead of generously returning your money to the guests, they encouraged owners to be flexible with their cancellation policies in light of COVID-19 and offer full refunds to those who wish to cancel.

VRBO also recently sent a message to all travelers letting them know that VRBO is encouraging owners to be flexible and give 100% refunds.

This was a much nicer approach.

You are the business owner, and the guests are also your customers, not just VRBO’s customers.

This gives you all the control, and some flexibility on how you mitigate your loses by preventing the cancellations and keeping some of the income.

How We Handled The VRBO Coronavirus Cancellations

We agreed with VRBO’s recommendation to refund our guests’ money if they really want to cancel.

Although we agree with their recommendation we offered another way for the guest to not lose their money and for us to keep the income through these rough Coronavirus waters.

 I wrote about how we handled our bookings here, Corona & VRBO – How To Avoid Cancellations

What Do You Think?

How did you feel about how Airbnb and VRBO handled the Coronavirus pandemic?

Let me know in the comments below!

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