"Clearly unsafe": Airbnb won't refund fees for stay in BC's wildfire-torched Shuswap

Update August 25, 2023: After this story was published, Airbnb responded and said it has refunded the outstanding amount as a “goodwill gesture.” 

A Canadian woman is speaking out about $1,500 in outstanding Airbnb fees after neither her host nor the short-term rental company would fully refund her stay in BC’s Shuswap region, which is currently overtaken by wildfires.

Her plight is similar to other Airbnb guests who’ve been at the mercy of host whims during the emergency situation and highlights the BC government’s lack of control over the home-sharing company.

It’s “clearly unsafe for people to go there,” said Chelsea Smyth. “The fact that [the host] was still telling us it was safe to come is really untrustworthy, and that’s his role as the host of a property where you’re bringing a family for an enjoyable holiday.”

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The Calgary resident booked a week-long stay at an Airbnb near Sorrento about four months ago. It was supposed to be the family’s first trip all together since her brother and sister-in-law’s baby was born about a year ago.

They were supposed to check in on August 20 but decided not to after watching the wildfire situation in BC worsen. The province declared a State of Emergency on August 18, and swaths of the Shuswap remain under evacuation orders and alerts due to the Adams Lake Complex fires and Bush Creek wildfire.

Although the cabin property itself, near White Lake, is not subject to an evacuation order or alert, Smyth’s family would have to take Highway 1 from Calgary and pass through two areas under evacuation alert between Salmon Arm and Blind Bay.

Highway 1 was completely closed between Blind Bay and Chase due to the wildfires for several days. In other parts of BC’s Interior, police have deployed spike belts to stop drivers from going into evacuated areas.

Once the fire jumped from the north side of Shuswap Lake to the south side, Smyth’s brother phoned local officials — who told him not to come. The lakes in the area were closed to allow water bombers access, and they wanted roads clear for evacuees.

But when Smyth asked the host to cancel their reservation and issue a refund on August 18, he would only offer 50% back or move the dates. She alleges he encouraged them to still come, saying his property was safe and that he had an indoor air purifier for the smoke.

“The air quality was terrible at the time. I have friends who live in the area who had sent me photos, and it was just completely red. The fire was out of control.”

Smyth decided to stop responding to the host and instead go through Airbnb.

But talking to Airbnb proved difficult, too.

“I just kept getting told their proprietary database didn’t have any evacuation alert on the screen, which the agent I spoke with was confused about because she said, ‘I can see how bad it is in the area.’ I was perplexed as to why their system wasn’t showing that.”

After some back-and-forth, a representative finally agreed to refund another 50% of the cost of the stay — but only after relenting that the highway Smyth would use to get there was subject to an evacuation alert.

She only got the cost of the stay back, though — not the cleaning fee, Airbnb’s service fee, or the taxes. That total amounted to nearly $1,500.

“They should be refunded because no services were provided,” Smyth said. “It’s pretty unfair to have us pay the full amount not being able to go to the destination.”

The Shuswap host declined Daily Hive’s request for an interview.

“I’m sorry. I’m unable to respond and have to pass this on to Airbnb,” the host said. “All I can say is that we’re hurting enough up here. Perhaps you would reconsider trying to hurt us more.”

After Daily Hive reached out to Airbnb’s communications team for comment on the situation, a representative got in touch with Smyth and offered her an additional $600 back as a “one-time concession.” The representative said the trip still didn’t qualify for a full refund under Airbnb’s Extenuating Circumstances Policy.

In response to Daily Hive’s questions, and Airbnb spokesperson claimed the guest cancelled the stay after check-in, despite emails seen by Daily Hive prior to check-in showing the family’s attempts to cancel. The company has not yet responded to questions about why the property is not included in the Extenuating Circumstances Policy given that the highway to access travels through evacuation order and alert zones on both sides.

“Our extenuating circumstances policy is not travel insurance, and we encourage guests to consider purchasing travel insurance ahead of a trip,” the spokesperson said. “Following a review of our handling, we are refunding the remaining amount to the guest as a goodwill gesture.”

Smyth has booked things on Airbnb many times without issue but believes the company’s true colours are showing through its response to the wildfire situation.

“It’s just left me with a really bad taste in my mouth.”

BC instated a temporary ban on non-essential stays in several Interior regions affected by wildfires to free up accommodations for evacuees and first responders. The order applied to hotels, motels, inns, and campgrounds but notably didn’t force the cancellation of Airbnb stays.

“We’re calling on the company to be supportive of that … That’s our expectation,” Premier David Eby said on August 21. “You should not be travelling to these areas if you have an Airbnb booked. The answer is do not travel.”

The emergency travel bans have now been lifted.