VHoe is a SCAM!!****In response to the company response… I provided you with case numbers AND the booking listing. You can find it. And the link you gave me just leads me in the same circle that I have been in for weeks. You did nothing while pretending to do something. Just like all SCAMMERS!” *****On 8/13/23 I booked a 2 bedroom apartment on VRBO in Cancún for 10/16/23-11/1/23. Was charged $458.87.. for down payment. Then another $13.76 for a “foreign transaction fee”. On 9/25/23 I was charged the remainder of $271.19 and another “foreign transaction fee” of $8.16. The host lives in Canada so I had to pay for that. Move to 10/14/23 and I get a message from the host where she tells me that this rental is UPSTAIRS! Never was this mentioned in the add and doesn’t show in the photos. The host goes on to say that she introduced us to the guards at the security gate as her “FRIENDS”. So we could get into the gated community. And she gave to code to the door. She also says that the “dryer” she listed in the add was basically you hanging your clothes on a rack in the closet. Move to the morning of 10/16/23 and she sends us a message saying her housekeeper says there is no electricity at the apartment. She says she is working on it. Fantastic! We are already on the plane. Of course when we arrived there was not only no electricity… the whole meter was gone. It had obvious been removed by the utility company. (Host claims it was stolen. But it was in a gated community, in a padlocked box and covered With a blank to cover the hole and a lock from the utility company. So NOT stolen) see photo proof We contacted her to let her know the meter is gone.. she said she will get it fixed to please give her time. It’s getting dark so I try I contact VRBO. Could not get through on phone number and chat option just kept disconnecting me. So I give up, call another cab and get a roomAt the cheapest and closest place I can find. $20 for cab and $300 for 2 tiny rooms. For 2 nights. On the 17th at 4pm the host messaged me to say the power is on and she will refund 2 nights. This ends up being a total of $60 after removing VRBO fees and taxes. But it cost us $320. Plus another $20 cab ride back. So we wait until morning ($100 more for the night and cab) to go back and now that the lights are on we can see massive amounts of thick black mold all up the bubbling wall. All over the bed, chairs, lamp shades.. everything in one room is coated in black mold. There was still old open food in the cabinets. The refrigerator stunk and had obviously been off and closed up for a long time. There was a sugar bowl that was melted and ants pouring back and forth and there were roaches. The fan was so filthy I didn’t dare turn it on. And the a/c in the living room did not work. There were dirty clothes under the bed covers.. not ours. I took pictures and contacted the host. Her response was very rude: “Sorry our housekeeper was there on Sunday. She may have missed it. If she missed something in terms of cleaning we'll let her know. Please understand that where you're staying is not a five star hotel and we'll appreciate that you don't message us over every ant or fly. Were in Canada and we can't fly over there and check for mold. We will talk to the housekeeper. The wifi password is by the router on the paper. Thanks a lot have a good evening.”In her listing she claims to wash everything in hot water and follow COVID safety protocols… but the pillow case stink of the sweat of others. Here is where I contact VRBO again and again get nothing! While on the phone with customer service, the complex manager shows up and tells us that he was told no one was supposed to be there and the neighbors are outside saying we are not the owners and not “friends”… so I showed them our booking on VRBO …short term rentals are not allowed. So we had to leave. Had to leave 1/2 the groceries we purchased.. all the perishables .. and call another cab.. luckily we found a wonderful Airbnb host that found a car big enough to hold luggage and groceries for 3 people for over 2 weeks.. and I paid the driver and extra $25 to help me haul it all down 2 flights of stairs. My friend was in surgery at that time, so it was left to me and my 9 yr old son. Cost of next rental is $869.54.It is just a one room efficiency with a hot plate, tiny fridge and one bed and a sofa. Last minute rentals are way more expensive. I have proven this was an uninhabitable and fraudulent rental… VBRO does nothing and host sent me back $60. I have contacted VRBO over a dozen times. Here are a few of the case numbers 120341923 case#120430489 case#120506225 case#After 7 days and zero help from Vbro, I contacted my credit card company and disputed the charges. They happily reversed the VRBO charges. After a full month of fighting with their customer service… they want to give me $200 off of my next rental through VRBO.
