Airbnb rolls out full refund policy for reservations worldwide

Days after receiving flak for not extending its refund policy beyond China, Italy and South Korea, Airbnb Inc on Sunday announced a full refund policy for reservations worldwide amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The San-Francisco based firm rolled out the policy through a statement from its website. “This policy now applies to existing reservations for stays and Airbnb Experiences made on or before March 14, 2020, with check-in dates between March 14, 2020 and April 14, 2020,” it read. This move allows both hosts and guests to cancel reservations without charging anything.


While the policy applies to bookings and Airbnb Experiences all around the globe, it excludes domestic travel in mainland China which is expected to return to normal rules on April 1. Brian Chesky, the late-stage startup’s CEO, in a tweet, said, “We don’t want guests to feel like they have to travel because they cannot get their money back.”

Meanwhile, as Airbnb is a two-way platform where either of the parties has to shell out some amount for each cancellation, the company has promised to come up with ideas and initiatives to look into it.

“We know our hosts depend on money from Airbnb. 50% depend on it to pay their rent/mortgage. We are working on some bold ideas to support hosts, and we will have news very soon,” read Chesky’s tweet.

In the meantime, the coronavirus outbreak has created a huge dent in the travel industry and the United States, Airbnb’s biggest market, has suspended travel from Europe.