VRBO.com

Thank you for the consumers additional concerns We have already contacted the advertiser regarding this dispute and encouraged them to contact the consumer directly to work toward a resolutionWhile we do not mediate disputes or take sides, we document both the traveler's experience and the response from the vacation rental owner or property manager when we receive a complaintDocumenting complaints helps us track patterns of issues that users are experiencingWe cannot mediate because we are an online marketplace, and doing so would violate our terms and conditions.Our procedure is to note both sides of the situation and closely monitor the account for any future reportsRest assured that we have a team dedicated to monitoring listings, and we take action on suspicious listings and those with poor rental practicesDue to privacy laws, we are not permitted to disclose any action taken regarding this situation.Again we apologize for this consumers negative experience

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:
VRBO/Homeaway, does not understand the nature of the complaint (yet again) and tries to disregard this issue with a generic answerVRBO is an advertisement agency that: advertised my listing, mediated a booking, arranged payment through yapstone and then posts reviews (onesided!) about the transactionVRBO has not provided what they where contracted forThey where paid $for advertising and mediating my listing with bookingsThey advertised and have cut my contract short with a deletion of my listing and restricting my account for any further use without any refundThe problem was caused by the tenant whom they mediated to stay, without any form of Identification these people where allowed to book on VRBO, causing a fraudulent guest to have cause us a lot of hardship and damageThese guests threatened us if we did not give them a free vacation they would trash us in the reviewWe declined them a free stay and they tried to chargeback the payment after they stayed in our home eating and drinking our food and using our utilitiesIt took months to have this solved with Yapstone.
When they did not manage that they left us a nasty review based on lies, which they said they would only remove if they get a free vacationVRBO declines to remove itI explained the fraud that these guests have tried to commit and that with yapstone we got it finally solved that should be proofThese guests have been calling us that we had to change our number!
I have dealt with VRBO and explained the situation and that I have been threatened by these people to please remove the reviewI pay for the advertisement, I should be able to decide what is in it, not VRBOI explained that this is not as per our advertising agreementVRBO then closed my advertising account without refund and restricts me from doing business on their siteInstead they cut me offMy complaint then is that VRBO does not keep to the advertisement agreementI would want my account to be reinstated, with the review removed and as I have suffered loss of business year free platinum advertisement for all my pain and sorrowThey are in breach of contract by declining my advertisement and as I am the advertiser I decide what is posted on my site not themIt is these practices that have filing a complaintI think it must be a big misunderstanding at VRBO/Homeaway, I have a feeling they do not read emails and answer everything with generic emails
Regards,
*** *

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:
I did not want to put this transaction on my credit card, I wanted to mail a checkSo I mailed the check directly to the homeowner, as I was told that VRBO/home away could not except checks and she contacted home away/VRBO on my behalf to let them know that I was booking that date and put my name and my information in the computer under the booking for those datesHome away/VRBO were aware of the bookingWhen I filled out the complaint form with them they also stated that if the homeowner did not refund my money that they would refund my money and take it out of her future earnings, which they have not doneThey should stand behind any place that is advertise on their websiteThis homeowner has had several complaints in her reviews stating that the property was dirty and that it was not as describedThe pictures were very outdatedThis company blatantly deleted my review for absolutely no reason other than what I have to assume it is them not wanting to hurt future earnings in their pocketIt is not fair that I had to pay for two properties to rent the same time because this place was not as advertisedI was told that they guarantee my satisfaction and now they are notI have emails in which the homeowner has threatens me, she has defamed my character and she has harassed me but nothing has been done about thisI am unable to post a Revdex.com review of the homeowner because she is not technically a businessI am also since found out upon trying to file a complaint with the state and the county that she also is not paying the accommodation taxes that she is collecting nor does she have her self registered with the county or the state in order to properly rent this condo so it just doesn't seem fair that I am completely out $on a place that I did not stay in and was not fit for anyone to stay in.
Regards,
*** ***

I rented a house from VRBO and I was very unhappy with the outcome and I told owner that I was going to tell my displeasure via a review on the websiteThe website refuses to post a negative review on there website which concerns me and should concern others on there honesty in there review process, do they only post positive reviews?

I would like to file a complaint against Vrbo
For tacking in a service fee to my renters of % No notice was sent to me as owner and advertiser with them

This is without a doubt the best company to use if you own or manage properties Their customer support is superior

My experience with VRBO to date, since July 2014, has been very positive However, effective Feb 16, VRBO implemented a website change that now charges travelers a Service Fee that book onlineAccording to the response from VRBO, "The service fee is a fee charged to the traveler and is calculated on a sliding scale of 4% to 10% of the total bookingThe charge applies to the cost of the rental and will not exceed $The service fee helps cover the cost of running the HomeAway websites and offering features such as 24/customer support." The Service Fee on a $1995/week rental was $
I had not received any communication (to my knowledge) on this change until I tried to confirm a quote with a potential renter, and thought it was a VRBO error VRBO Customer Service responded that an email was sent out several weeks ago I retain all emails and based on my review the only communication that I received was in an email dated December 9, 2015, that stated "Better value means money in your pocket - We’ll offer subscription discounts for owners and managers who adopt and use online booking, plus a commission reduction for many pay-per-booking customers when the service fee is introduced.** (** Discounts and fee reductions may vary.) I could fine no other communication on the Service Fee
In addition, since the change was implemented my Payment Terms are not correct when I try to request a payment Worse yet, I get the following error message when I hit Request Payment, "It looks like there was an errorWe were notified of it, but in the meantime try that one more time.'
I will likely loose rental business as a result of this change, which was very unprofessional and (in my opinion) underhanded I submitted a complaint to Customer Service directly and on-line and have received no response

This complaint is not against HomeAway IncWe cannot comment on this consumer/traveler’s complaint, because it appears that this complaint is not with our online advertising service, but appears to be the result of a marketplace transaction between this consumer and the owner or manager
of an individual vacation home rented by that owner or manager to the publicWe are in no way a party to the agreement or contract between this consumer traveler and the owner manager, and cannot solve this consumer’s complaintOur advertising service is an online site for owners to advertise and travelers to find vacation homes to rent, but we are never involved in the transaction between the traveler/consumer and the landlord/property managerSee the Terms and Conditions below that the consumer/traveler and landlord/property manager agreed to about our role hereTherefore, this complaint is incorrectly being associated with HomeAway Inc, and it should be associated with the landlord/property managerSection of our Terms and Conditions *** “The Site is a Venue and We are Not a Party to any Rental TransactionWe urge all users to be responsible about their use of this Site and any transaction entered into as a result of either listing a property or renting a propertyWe do not own or manage, nor can we contract for, any vacation rental property listed on the SiteInstead, the Site acts as a venue to allow homeowners and property managers who advertise on our Site (each, a “member”) to offer for rent in a variety of pricing formats, a specific vacation rental property to potential renters (each, a “traveler” and, collectively with a member, the “users”)We are not involved in any transaction between travelers and members even though we may from time to time provide tools that relate to a booking, such as a tool to enable a traveler to enter into a transaction to lease a specific property directly from a memberAs a result, any part of an actual or potential transaction between a traveler and a member, including the quality, safety or legality of the properties advertised, the truth or accuracy of the listings (including the content thereof or any property or guest book review), the ability of members to rent a vacation property or the ability of travelers to pay for vacation rental properties are solely the responsibility of each user.We are also not responsible for the condition of the vacation rental properties listed on our Site or the compliance with laws, rules or regulations that may be applicable to any vacation rental property in any jurisdictionFinally, while we do take certain measures with a goal to assist users to avoid potentially fraudulent or other illegal activity of which we become aware, we assume no liability or obligation to take any such measures or actionsIn the event we do provide warnings or messages to users about any such activity, we do not warrant that such messages or accurate or that such messages will reach any or all users they should have reached in a timely manner or at all or that such messages or measures will prevent any harm, result or action." According to our records this consumer has not yet filed a formal property complaint against this advertiser with HomeAwayWe ask that the consumer replies to the email we have sent them to begin that processAs part of our formal complaint process we will reach out to the advertiser (once we have this consumer’s complaint in writing) on behalf of this consumer in order to try to get the two parties to settle their disputeWe however do NOT mediate; we simply try our best to put the two parties together to work the situation out if possibleThe consumer mentions having purchased the Carefree Rental GuaranteeThe guarantee only covers the cost of the rental, not any additional cost incurredIf the consumer receives a full refund from the advertiser then the rental guarantee will not be applicableWe also closely monitor accounts that have had formal property complaints filedOur policy is to carefully document both sides of a dispute, and keep track of all complaints submittedWhen a pattern clearly develops where an advertiser is causing problems for our travelers, we do not hesitate to remove that member from our site

Thank you for your recent replyThe traveler Heather Calvert has not posted a negative review, nor has supplied HomeAway with a proof of stayThey will be unable to post a review without providing HomeAway a proof of stayIf there are any questions regarding HomeAway's review guidelines they are posted here:http://www.***sThe consumer can also contact HomeAway directly and reference their case *** with HomeAway for further clarification

The site is OK for renters, but they aren't the customers of Home Away/VRBO because renters deal primarily with property ownersThe property owners are the customers of HA/VRBO & they seem to agree that they are HORRIBLE!! Because they are the largest, they seem to think that they have a monopoly, so they can care less about their customers/property ownersI have been with using Home Away & VRBO for over yearsI have properties listed with each, i.elisting at the highest levels offeredLast year I paid them over $7,000, but I won't b renewing my subscriptions because I am getting no bookingsThat's because my listing priority is so lowFor example, on Home Away using all applicable filters, my BR cabins are # & out of Without filters, & on VRBO it's even lowerThe problem is that they keep changing priority criteria so they can get more $ & some recent priority requirements are things I don't controlWhen I 1st started years ago, the only priority was length of time someone has been with themThen they added priority based on the # of listings we hadThen they added subscription levels & then more subscription levelsThen it was whether or not we paid more $ for a "featured listing." Even though the cost kept increasing, I could understand that, i.epriority based on longevity, # of listings, & amount paidHowever, they then added priority based on reviewsI have no control over whether or not someone writes a review, what they consider a "good" review, or when someone is using a review as coercionI've had guests write a good review, but give a star ratingI asked them about it & they said they thought stars was a "good" ratingI've also had people stay in a cabin for a week or so with no complaints, but a month later contact me & complain, making it clear that they were going to write a bad review unless I did something to compensate for their "bad experience," i.eunless I gave them a refund, they would write a bad reviewLast year, Home Away said priority was based on whether or not we OFFERED on line booking, so I added on line bookingThe problem is that if a guest uses on line booking, funds go directly into my account, but I don't know who the funds are from nor which cabin it's for (as I said, I have cabins listed on Home Away & VRBO)Therefore, I don't use on line bookingThis year, Home Away has changed again & has made priority based on whether on not we USE on line bookingAs I said, last year I paid Home Away/VRBO over $7,000, but I'm not getting any bookingsAll my bookings are coming from Vacation Home Rentals (not Vacation Rentals) or Flip Key & paying less than 1/what I paid Home Away/VRBOBoth of those are on Trip AdvisorIn other words, I paid over $7,to Home Away/VRBO & I have gotten nothing for it, so that money was just wasted

We rented a cottage for a week in San Diego for my grandsons weddingIn a conversation with the property (#3878930) owner, John P***, I asked if my son 44, and grandson could spend nights with usThe property had a queen bed and a full size futonMr Price agreed and said there would be no additional costWe were delighted with the cottage and the Hillcrest area of San DiegoOur problems began the following day when my other children met us at the cottage to plan the next days activityWe shared some coffee and donutsThere were adults and children present for approx one hourWhile they were there I got a call from VRBO, saying the property owner was on the line and wanted everyone out immediatelyHe asked that I call the owner directly and correct the problemI called and the owner did not answerI left a message saying there must be a misunderstandingOur group was just there briefly and everyone leftTwo days later, after breakfast (at a diner) some of us returned to the cottage to plan the days activity and found a letter threatening eviction on the doorMy aforementioned son and grandson were planning to leave that afternoonThe letter, written at 9:AM and signed at 9:AM said that unless my guests were gone by check-out time (10:AM) we would be evictedThis was approx 10:AMWhile I was calling VRBO rep to complain, the property manager came to the door and demanded that everyone leave immediately or we would be evictedHe cited cleaning costsI offered to let him inspect the property, which I had just swept and tidied upHe declined and then cited occupancy laws and fire hazards due to drought conditionsEveryone left except my wife and meMr P*** sent us a text message "respecting our desire to leave"We were in the process of packing when the property manager arrived with police officers!!!! I stated we were packing in preparation to leave and could not understand why police were neededThe police inspected the cottage and found everything in orderWe had to book a hotel for our remaining nights I paid for nightsI feel I am due a refund of $ As of Thursday 7/I have had no response from Mr P*** or VRBO/HA

This complaint is not against HomeAway Inc We cannot comment on this consumer/traveler’s complaint, because it appears that this complaint is not with our online advertising service, but appears to be the result of a marketplace transaction between this consumer and the
owner or manager of an individual vacation home rented by that owner or manager to the publicWe are in no way a party to the agreement or contract between this consumer traveler and the owner manager, and cannot solve this consumer’s complaintOur advertising service is an online site for owners to advertise and travelers to find vacation homes to rent, but we are never involved in the transaction between the traveler/consumer and the landlord/property managerSee the Terms and Conditions below that the consumer/traveler and landlord/property manager agreed to about our role hereTherefore, this complaint is incorrectly being associated with HomeAway Inc, and it should be associated with the landlord/property manager Section of our Terms and Conditions http://*** “The Site is a Venue and We are Not a Party to any Rental Transaction We urge all users to be responsible about their use of this Site and any transaction entered into as a result of either listing a property or renting a property. We do not own or manage, nor can we contract for, any vacation rental property listed on a Site*** and other Sites act as a venue to allow homeowners and property managers who advertise on the Site (each, a “member”) to offer for rent in a variety of pricing formats, a specific vacation or short term rental property to potential renters or renters (each, a “traveler” and, collectively with a member, the “users”)"Members" may also include property owners or managers who originally advertised their properties on another website and their listings have been redistributed on the SiteWe also may offer online booking or other tools or services to allow users to communicate with each other and enter into rental agreements or other transactions We are not a party to any rental or other agreement between users. This is true even if the Site allows you to book a rental or provides other ancillary products or services, as the Site may facilitate booking a rental or other tools, services or products, but we are not a party to any rental or other agreement between usersAs a result, any part of an actual or potential transaction between a traveler and a member, including the quality, condition, safety or legality of the properties advertised, the truth or accuracy of the listings (including the content thereof or any review relating to any property), the ability of members to rent a vacation property or the ability of travelers to contract for properties are solely the responsibility of each userYou acknowledge and agree that you may be required to enter into one or more separate agreements, waivers or terms and conditions prior to making a booking or purchasing a product or service and may place additional restrictions on your booking, product or service While we do take certain measures with a goal to assist users to avoid potentially fraudulent or other illegal activity of which we become aware, we assume no liability or obligation to take any such measures or actions When we provide warnings or messages to users about any such activity, we do not warrant that such messages are accurate or that such messages will reach any or all users they should have reached in a timely manner or at all or that such messages or measures will prevent any harm or otherwise have any impact." We encourage this consumer to contact us directly to file a formal property complaint against this advertiserAs part of that formal complaint process we reach out to the advertiser on behalf of this consumer in order to try to get the two parties to settle their disputeWe however do NOT mediate; we simply try our best to put the two parties together to work the situation out if possible We also closely monitor accounts that have had formal property complaints filedOur policy is to carefully document both sides of a dispute, and keep track of all complaints submittedWhen a pattern clearly develops where an advertiser is causing problems for our travelers, we do not hesitate to remove that member from our site

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:they didn't make a full refund back to the policy change date
Regards,
*** ***

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:
The insurance is a scam There is no protection to the "renter" except making sure the refund is paid in full So the "owner" can back out of a contract but the renter can't This trip has now occurred and we paid $more than we would have paid if we were in the home we signed an agreement for one year in advance If we didn't get the insurance, it would be reported as fraud and an investigation would have been done You charge $for literally nothing At best, I believe you should credit us $
Regards,
*** ***

Thank you for reaching out to us regarding this issueWe certainly want to apologize for this consumers frustration and the inconvenience that has occurred regarding the request to transfer VRBO #***First off we do want to apologize for our phone hold times, at certain times our phones
have had unfortunately long hold times, something that we have been working hard to resolveThank you for your patience.According to our records we have heard from and spoken with this consumer and at the time of the initial request (10/23/2014) our entire system was undergoing some significant tech issues and this request to transfer was actually caught up in that changeWe actually had a freeze on all transfers from roughly October through November This information was relayed to this consumer at that time.As of December 10, HomeAway no longer transfers listingsWe have revised our current policy on listing transfers between owners, owners and property managers, in an effort to provide a more consistent customer experience. The goal of HomeAway’s Listing Management and Transferability policy is to streamline this account/management change process and deliver a consistent experience.The consumer can have their new property manager call our Sales team to purchase a new annual subscriptionIn most cases, the property manager will receive a credit equal to the time left on your subscriptionWe do not refund the remaining time on the existing subscription.The consumer and the property manager can work together to build the new listingThe content of the consumers listing and how it will be presented online is a discussion between the consumer and their new property manager. Starting a fresh listing gives the consumer the freedom to consider alternative content that may provide for better booking conversion. We will help the acquiring party establish a new property ID, and also help deactivate the original listing.It will be up to the consumer to work with the property manager to populate or transfer any desired content, e.g., photos, descriptions, amenities, etcofflineWe do not have an online tool that enables content to be copied.The property manager will be responsible for adding the new listing to his/her account and managing its content.We are sorry that we were not able to transfer this listing from one property management firm to the nextHowever we are more than happy to help the new property manager set up a new listing for this existing property

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: I have been given the same response from this company for monthsI will believe it when I see it, as of now I do not believe nor trust this response due to the companies historical responses to me that exhibit the same promises with lack of follow through
Regards,
*** ***

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that there is nothing that the company is willing to do other than throw it back off on the owner of the propertyI will use this as a learning experience and will not use Home Away or any of it's affiliates ever again
Regards,
*** ***

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: while I agree that the dispute is with the homeowner, the insurance I purchased through vrbo should cover the fact that the condo was not as advertised considering there was no balcony or air conditioning available to us as was advertised In addition, the insurance should also cover the fact that we were forced from the condo due to toxic fumes Lastly, vrbo will not provide me with the advertisement documentation I am requesting to dispute my credit card I have requested the details of the listing as it was advertised at the time of my purchase The homeowner has changed his listing to fit his agenda and vrbo has not provided me with the original listing to provide to my credit card company for dispute
Regards,
*** ***

This consumer was covered under the Terms and Conditions of the "No Booking, No Fee Guarantee", as we previously explained back on on 6/16/The link to this refund guarantee was fully operational at that time and has only recently been disabled as we are no longer offering this guaranteeThis consumer was applicable for the refund if he met the requirement regarding the number of photos on his advertisementWe informed the consumer of this also back on 6/16/He had only out of a possible photos displayed on his listing and did not make any changes, therefore is not applicable for the refund

Thank you for bringing this consumers concerns to our attention.According to our records the consumer does have an active ongoing tech case with us, case # ***We are very sorry for the unusual delay with getting this consumers listing live on our siteOur technical department
has advised us that they have escalated this matter with highest priority and are actively working on this consumers issue/defectThe HomeAway tech team has also supplied an estimated resolution time of one week at the latestThank you very much for your patience with this matter."