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Sept.

2019

Problems on misterb&b: From host verification to security deposits

Sept. 15 2019
by Lachlan

"Stay away from misterb&b"... This is certainly not something we want you to do but we know you might have seen this somewhere online. Or you might have read stories of misterb&b users complaining about a really horrible experience with being scammed through misterb&b? Well, it's not pleasant to read bad reviews about misterb&b but we're always open to criticism and eager to improve. Please believe us when we tell you that our team is committed to making sure that all our guests have the most amazing experience when booking through misterb&b. And we can only recommend you to read below some great tips collected by our customer service team, which is available 24/7 to help you in case you need any assistance.

I don't want problems with misterb&b: is my host legitimate?

At misterb&b, ensuring that guests and hosts can travel in a safe and prejudice-free zone is of the utmost importance. Sometimes, our members write in with concerns that hosts are not legitimate or that they are being scammed by misterb&b. misterb&b is not a fraudulent organisation, and we take countless steps to ensure every one of our members has a safe and reliable experience. If youn have any doubt about a host, you can report it to our Trust and Safety team (more about this here).

To promote a favorable experience, we also encourage everyone to write reviews following their stay with a particular host. This ensures open communication between misterb&b, the host, and the guest. It also means guests can highlight any potential discrepancies between listed amenities and amenities which actually feature in the accommodation. This allows future guests to better understand what is included in their stay, and will also encourage hosts to update their profiles on a regular basis.

I believe I was robbed by a scammer on misterb&b, what should I do?

Due to our stringent host verification process, and our ‘host reviews’ section, it is rare to be scammed by a fraudulent misterb&b host. However, in certain instances this situation can unfortunately occur. Here are a few steps we recommend taking to ensure you’re not scammed for your next booking:

Ensure that all communication between you and the host is conducted on our site. If a user requests that you contact them outside of misterb&b through Whatsapp, Facebook, or text messages, we would ask you to immediately cease all exchanges with this person.
All payment requests outside of our platform should be ignored and reported to us immediately. If someone asks you for a payment through Paypal, Moneygram, Western Union or any other service, cease all exchanges and contact us. misterb&b’s insurance does not cover payments that you make outside of misterb&b, so will not be liable for any transaction outside our system. So rule of thumb, never pay a host outside of misterb&b! Additionally, we never send invoices by email, unless you specifically ask our customer service to do so.
Do not share your private details before the transaction is confirmed. We do not hand over the contact details of our hosts and guests until the reservation has been confirmed and paid via our secure platform.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your experience with misterb&b is a favourable one. Because the last thing we want is for you to feel as though you should stay away from misterb&b! If you happen to see any unusual activity from a host listed on misterb&b, please alert us to this as soon as possible.

My host cancelled my booking at the last minute. What do I do?

We know how annoying it can be if a host cancels your booking at the last minute. This may occur due various reasons relating to the host, but obviously our priority is finding you replacement accommodation! If the host has cancelled your booking 7 days or less before check-in, you will automatically receive a coupon to help you make a new and last minute booking and cover for the extra costs. Alternatively, a friendly member of our customer service will be more than happy to help you find an accommodation solution in the given city as soon as possible. For contact information, please take a look at this page. If you do not wish to be relocated to an alternative misterb&b listing, your booking will be refunded - fees included.

Payment issues to hosts

In the past, certain hosts faced payment complications, when misterb&b would accept the payment from a guest, and at times take a little longer than perceived to reimburse the host for the stay. In September 2016, we teamed up with Payoneer, an international money transfer platform. This has enabled all payments to hosts to be automated, guaranteeing an efficient and reliable payment flow between the guest, misterb&b, and the host. Since 2018, we also use a trusted international money transfer platform, Stripe.

In certain instances, a delay in the transfer of payment may occur. This can happen in particular with users who are booking accommodation on our site for the first time. This is simply due to our systems checking and verifying the authenticity of the transaction. For more information on delayed payments, take a look at this page.

Customer Service team

Over the past five years, misterb&b has grown to become the largest gay hotelier in the world. From such rapid growth, certain members of the public were concerned that our customer support team may no longer be able to meet the growing demands of our service. This is not the case. We have a round-the-clock customer support team that is not only sensitive to the needs of our members, but will also offer solutions to any problems a guest or host may face. All contact information and hours of service for our customer support agents can be found here.

What’s the security deposit and why isn’t it paid on the misterb&b website?

Guests may sometimes be unsure what the security deposit is, and wonder if their misterb&b host is legitimate for requesting it when they book their accommodation. Since December 2018, the security deposit is handled entirely online. The security deposit amount is set according to the host's discretion, however, a maximum cap of 300 dollars/euros for private and shared rooms and 500 dollars/euros for entire places is applied. When booking your accommodation, you will see the security deposit amount on the host's listing page. For more information on security deposits, please see here.

Fees relating to guest cancellations and date changes (without claim)

If you wish to cancel your booking, you may easily do so. In terms of refund policies, this is determined by the host who you booked with. The host will either have flexible or strict cancellation conditions. More information on this can be found on our cancellation policy page. However, if you choose to cancel your booking on the same day as check-in, a refund will not be possible. Additionally, all misterb&b fees will be kept. This can be wavered though under certain extenuating circumstances relating to the guest.

If you would like to modify your booking, you will need to make a request to your host through the ‘my travels’ page. Beside each of your upcoming bookings on this page, you will see the option of ‘modify booking’. If the host approves your changes, and the booking is greater (extra nights or guests), the additional costs will be charged directly to the card you used to make your booking.

If the booking is reduced (less nights or guests), you will only be reimbursed for the accommodation amount, and misterb&b will keep the service fee. An additional fee of $10/10€ will also be charged for the modification. Please bear in mind that all changes to your booking must also be completed before the day of check-in.

In the unlikely event that your host does not get back to you, please contact us at support@misterbandb.com with your request. We will endeavour to contact the host, and encourage them to get back to you as soon as possible.

Why do misterb&b accommodation listings sometimes seem more expensive than those on other sites?

When it comes to the price of an accommodation listing on misterb&b, hosts are free to set up the nightly rate as they wish. If you find any inconsistencies between the price of one property across different platforms, it is due to the personal choice of the owner - we do not have any power over this, although we advise hosts on the right price for their property. Certain factors for this may be that the owner assumes a given rate can perform better or worse depending on the market segment, seasonality, platform used, and spending power for example. And why not ask this host for a discount? Who knows, they might agree!