Starts International Hawaii, Inc

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 14, 2014/08/15) */
Approximately two weeks after booking the customer's reservation, we were instructed by the owner to take the unit off the market in 2015 because it was being sold. We promptly informed the customer that the unit was no longer available in...

2015 and offered her another unit diagonally above the originally booked unit. She declined the offer and requested her money be refunded, which we promptly did.
Prior to booking the reservation, the customer was verbally informed that the unit was listed for sale and that there was a chance we could not honor the reservation. She also signed a rental agreement, which disclosed that the unit was listed for sale. The rental agreement states:
"17. LISTED FOR SALE - The unit is listed for sale. As such, we may need to show the property during your stay at your convenience. If we need to show the unit during your stay, we will provide you two days advance notice. In the event Rental Agent or Owner is unable to deliver property to Guest for reasons beyond Agent's control, we will provide you a minimum of 30-days notice and make every effort to find substitute accommodations for you. In the event we are not able to provide you with substitute accommodations, you hereby agree that the Rental Agent's and Owner's sole liability as a result of any of these conditions is the full refund of all considerations previously tendered by the Guest pursuant to the terms of this agreement, and you expressly acknowledges that in no event shall Rental Agent or Owner be held liable for any consequential or secondary damages, including but not limited to any expenses as a result of travel, cost of re-renting, and so on."
We take umbrage at customer comment that we "lied". She also falsely accused us of canceling her reservation, so we could increase the price for those dates. In fact, we blocked all of 2015 from Jan 4, 2015. This consistent with our informing her that the unit was not available in April 2015 when she had reserved her stay. She was also given ample notice - approximately 8 months advanced notice -- of the cancellation. Further, she was given the option to book another beachfront unit, but she declined and we promptly refunded her money. We believe we dealt with the customer honestly and fairly.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 16, 2014/08/19) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
It is true that the property was officially taken off the rental market in 2015 after I filed the complaint with Revdex.com. As far as being told it was sold, I believe there was a misunderstanding on my part. When I read their email: "We regret to inform you that unit [redacted] is no longer available in 2015 due its sale as disclosed in our Rental Agreement, Item 17." I understood "due its sale" as "due to it's sale", but I guess the writer meant due to the fact that it was on sale. Probably this all could have been avoided if Starts communicated with the owner before sending off the contract to be signed.