Last year, my friend asked me to be her bridesmaid, which inevitably meant organising a hen night. The do was to take place in Manchester with around 20 people, and I found the perfect accommodation on Airbnb. The host suggested I could save £100 by paying him directly using my credit card. I therefore paid the £1,133 six months ahead of the event. But ten days before we were due to check in the host told me that the accommodation would be unavailable due to essential maintenance work.
He assured me that he would refund the money in instalments of £330 a month. That was in October and I have received nothing, despite repeated assurances. I contacted the fraud department of my bank, HSBC, and was asked to send in paperwork within seven days, including a “refund voucher” from the host, which turned out to mean a document confirming his bank details and how much he would refund me.
Predictably, the man refused to comply. It is as if I had my handbag stolen and my bank asked me to chase after the thief and request a receipt. HSBC says there is nothing more it can do except refer me to its complaints department. FW, London
It sounds as though HSBC is trying to recoup the money from the host using chargeback procedures, whereas, since you paid by credit card, you could claim under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, which holds card issuers jointly liable in cases of fraud or breached contract.
However, banks naturally resent this costly responsibility and often seek excuses to duck it. They can legally do so if the customer did not act with reasonable care, and there is possibly a case for arguing that you were rash to hand over such a large sum direct to this man to save yourself the Airbnb fee. The Financial Ombudsman Service tells me that you should never pay a stranger directly for goods and services as it decreases protection. “When consumers have been conned into making the transactions themselves (ie not using Airbnb to pay and transferring money directly) the bank isn’t generally responsible for the fraud,” a spokesperson says. “If you opt to pay a stranger directly you are taking a big risk no matter how you pay them.’”
The act itself, however, makes no mention of “strangers”, a term which describes most people that we buy from, and Andrew Leakey, head of dispute resolution at Stephensons solicitors, reckons HSBC is liable. “The host counts as a supplier, someone who was representing themselves as renting rooms out for profit on Airbnb, so section 75 should apply.”
Happily, HSBC comes round to his way of thinking. “We are calling this customer today to let her know that she will receive reimbursement from HSBC as a goodwill gesture,” a spokesperson says. “In order to process a claim under section 75 we would need some documents including terms and conditions and invoices, which the customer could not provide – but the evidence shows she has been the victim of a scam so we will cover her losses to ensure she isn’t out of pocket.”
If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk or write to Your Problems, The Observer, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Include an address and phone number.
