A wedding is a special moment at which people you truly care about should be in attendance. However, for wedding guests who were trying to go to this ceremony in the Australian resort town of Byron Bay things have gone wrong. As Newsweek reported on Monday, a dozen wedding guests found themselves in trouble when they discovered their Airbnb rental was still under construction when they arrived. The guests said the online platform did not help them until Renee Menzies decided to post TikTok videos that went viral.
Menzies, who is one of the relatives of the couple, posted the story on TikTok, saying that twelve of her relatives arrived for the wedding at the Airbnb listing and found out that a few things were missing from the place. There were no floor, no oven, and either no refrigerator. “My family turned up to this today. “A completely vacant home, in the middle of a massive renovation,” Menzies said in the video.
Hey @airbnb – my family turned up to this today. A completely vacant home, in the middle of a massive renovation. No warning, and when they rang you for help you accused them of lying, wouldn’t help find somewhere else to stay and wouldn’t provide them a refund. You left 12 people and 3 kids under 3 literally standing on the side of the road. #fyp #foryoupage #airbnb #airbnbaustralia #rentaldisaster #airbnbexperience #airbnbdisaster #byronbay #holidayaccommodation
She continued saying that its rooms contained little more than industrial subflooring. The walls were not painted, and a stove and refrigerator were not installed inside the house.
According to TikToker, Airbnb didn’t help find somewhere else to stay or provide them with a refund. “You left 12 people and 3 kids under 3 literally standing on the side of the road,” she said.
In another video posted, Menzies alleged that Airbnb had left her family high and dry. “Hey @airbnb still no communication from you after our family turned up to this yesterday. Left stranded on the side of the road, literally, with 3 toddlers and nowhere to go,” she said. Menzies added it took days for the family to receive a refund. But they were reimbursed for the additional expense of finding another place to stay.
Hey @airbnb still no communication from you after our family turned up to this yesterday. Left stranded on the side of the road, literally, with 3 toddlers and nowhere to go. #airbnbdisaster #airbnbexperience #airbnbaustralia #airbnb #foryoupage #fyp #holidaytiktok #bryonbay #nswtourism #airbnbfinds #airbnbhost
In a statement to Newsweek, Airbnb said it had worked to resolve the situation. “We were disappointed to learn about this experience and have fully refunded the guest and provided rebooking assistance,” the company said. “We have taken appropriate action on the Host while we investigate further and reached out to the guest to provide further support. In the rare event something isn’t as expected on arrival for a stay, our Community Support team is on hand 24/7 to help.” “Our team is very much focused on ensuring each stay is a positive experience for guests, Hosts and the wider community,” the company added. “That’s why this year we introduced AirCover for guests, the most comprehensive protection in travel, included for free with every stay.”
The TikToker confirmed Airbnb’s statement. In her last video about the incident, she revealed that Airbnb agreed to give them a refund and reimbursement. “Thank you TikTok community. Without everyone having eyes on this and hearing other horror stories, I doubt this would have happened. The family say thank you!”
Replying to @_courtneyjanee Refund and Reimbursement has finally been agreed too! Thank you TikTok community. Without everyone having eyes on this, and hearing other horror stories, I doubt this would have happened. The family say thank you! #rentaldisaster #travelfail #airbnbdisaster #airbnbaustralia #airbnb #traveldisaster #airbnbexperience
The videos of the incident reached over 450,000 views and thousands of comments:
“What messed up is that it had to escalate via a TikTok with thousands of views instead of an automatic reimbursement from the start,” wrote one commenter.
“ To be honest, you need to be exposing the Airbnb owner and ID all his/her listings. “They should not have had it listed as available.” said another.
“Glad you guys got the refund. But if we don’t stop using air bnb there will be so many people who don’t get refunds in these situations still.” another user stated.
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