A pissed off Taylor Swift fan is talking out after being pushed from a short-term rental she booked for the upcoming Vancouver leg of the celebrity’s Eras Tour.
Vancouver Island resident Melissa LaFontaine is taking the ferry over to the mainland to attend Swift’s live performance together with her daughter, sister and buddy on Dec. 6, and rented a house by VRBO the place they might spend the evening after the present.
She secured the short-term rental again in December 2023, acutely aware that lodging throughout Swift’s three-night tour cease can be in brief provide.
“I reached out to a resort I usually keep at once I come over for work, they usually advised me they weren’t taking bookings but for December 2024,” LaFontaine mentioned. “So then we went to VRBO.”
‘Thanks for reserving’
‘Thanks for reserving’
After discovering a house with sufficient house for the group, at a pleasant location in Vancouver’s Level Gray neighbourhood, LaFontaine pulled the set off, paying $879 upfront for a single evening, together with charges and taxes.
Initially, the VRBO host replied with a brief message that mentioned, “Thanks for reserving.”
It wasn’t till seven months later, in July, that LaFontaine acquired a brand new message asking her to “please cancel.”
“Hello Melissa, we aren’t able to take Dec reservation but,” it learn.
Beneath VRBO coverage, hosts can face repercussions for cancelling a reserving – together with charges and itemizing suspensions – that they in any other case wouldn’t if a buyer have been to provoke the cancellation.
LaFontaine refused, on the recommendation of a VRBO consultant.
“Actually, I feel she realized in July that the date we had booked was Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour and that she may have acquired extra money,” she mentioned.
LaFontaine was nervous about dropping the rental as a result of by that time, the most cost effective alternate options out there have been “no less than double the fee,” she mentioned.
However after LaFontaine declined to cancel the VRBO reserving, the host stopped messaging. The Taylor Swift fan remained apprehensive, however was hopeful she would have a spot to remain come Dec. 6.
‘Not out there’
‘Not out there’
Months later, in mid-October, LaFontaine seen the reserving had disappeared from the “upcoming journeys” part of her VRBO app, so she messaged the host once more.
“Please cancel,” the host replied. “It’s not out there.”
Pissed off, LaFontaine tried reaching out to the corporate for assist – however mentioned she acquired nothing greater than a listing of other lodging, and a proposal of a $50 credit score.
“Once they despatched me the hyperlinks to different lodging, I discovered that I might nonetheless need to pay the distinction,” LaFontaine mentioned. “The most cost effective one they despatched me was $1,500.”
Contacted for remark, VRBO advised CTV Information the host was “keen to maintain” the reservation she had accepted in December 2023, and {that a} customer support consultant can be reaching out to LaFontaine.
However by the point the Taylor Swift fan acquired that cellphone name on Friday, it was too late – not solely had she already booked an alternate lodging, for greater than double what she initially paid VRBO, she had additionally misplaced all belief that the host would honour her reservation.
“Their assertion to me was that though the host is keen to honour it, she may nonetheless cancel,” LaFontaine mentioned. “And that if the host does cancel, they’ll ship us one other checklist of other lodging.”
VRBO didn’t reply to follow-up questions from CTV Information on what led to the host’s change of coronary heart, and the host didn’t reply to messages from CTV Information despatched by her itemizing.
VRBO addressing cancellations
VRBO addressing cancellations
Final 12 months, VRBO launched a new coverage to discourage hosts from cancelling on their company, together with charges that improve the nearer it will get to the check-in date.
For reservations cancelled greater than 30 days upfront, hosts are charged a payment of 10 per cent of the reservation quantity, which incorporates issues like pet charges and cleansing charges.
For LaFontaine’s host, that may quantity to about $87.
“We all know cancellations are irritating for travellers, so we’re working to scale back them,” a VRBO spokesperson advised CTV Information in an e mail. “Whereas cancellations are uncommon on our platform, we’re making them even much less widespread by eradicating hosts with excessive cancellation and low acceptance charges.”
Repeat offenders may also face “diminished visibility” on the platform, and the lack of Premier Host standing, which is given to customers who obtain constantly excessive scores and have a cancellation price of lower than one per cent.
None of that issues to LaLaFontaine, who mentioned the state of affairs has been such a headache that she’s boycotting the short-term rental service.
“I’ll by no means use VRBO once more, for certain,” she mentioned.
