Travel Troubleshooter: Airbnb switched me to a rental in a dangerous area

Q: I had a long-term Airbnb booked in Washington, D.C. But my host canceled. Airbnb helped me rebook another location with a slight discount.

I was just checking out the new area a few days ago when I realized that it is in a really dangerous area, with super-bad murder and auto theft rates, as well as news articles mentioning my street by name.

I brought all this up with Airbnb support staff and got the response that Airbnb doesn’t really care about the locality, just the place.

There have been multiple murders on my street, and I can’t park at the place. I have to park down the street, so the locality is important as I have to walk through it each day.

I feel unsafe and I really want to get a refund. I don’t think it’s fair that Airbnb offers a place like this. I also don’t think Airbnb should have sent me to this listing after my first rental fell through. Can you help me?

A: Airbnb shouldn’t have stuck you with a rental in a high-crime neighborhood. According to its published policy, if your host cancels, it will help you find “a similar place.” But that was not a similar place.

But here’s where things went sideways. An Airbnb representative offered to accommodate you and you accepted the new rental. You could have researched the neighborhood and crime statistics before you said yes — not afterward.

Some Airbnb apartments won’t disclose the address until after you’ve rented. That’s fine. I think if you’d said something soon after you decided on the new place, Airbnb would have been able to help. Some Airbnbs have a generous cancellation policy, which would have allowed you to cancel and receive a full refund.