flybie

My partner signed up for airbnb and made a booking. One month before the trip, Airbnb contacted him via email that the reservation has been cancelled and that his account is permanently closed due to his background check. Fair enough that they have to undergo such process and we have not resentment or anger at their discretion decision. However, when he made that reservation, he used the Airbnb gift card that I purchased through Amazon for $35 for $50 gift card. He tried to contact them asking for that $50 refund back, but with no luck and they stated that because his account is closed and therefore any gift card that applies to his account/reservation is automatically cancelled/no longer active as well. There's no way to get it back unless his account is re-instated. Long story short, now they stop replying his email and I am just looking to see how do we get that $50 gift card/money back.

snic

This is precisely the reason I didn't take advantage of that offer, even though I could have. When you pay with a GC, you are at the mercy of the company. When you pay be credit card, you have the recourse of your bank's dispute process - which is there for precisely this sort of eventuality (e.g., a travel provider cancels your booking and refuses to refund your money). I think your partner's only recourse is to threaten to sue AirBnB.

1353513636

Chargeback with the CC you used to purchase the GC from Amazon. I think this is a clear case of services not delivered.