I arrived close to midnight, and it smelled weird. I found broken tiles and mold. I immediately contacted the host, who assured me that he would fix the mold. He said he could not get the mold out from the wallpaper because he would have to remove it, but he could spray it with bleach.
Christopher Elliott, the Travel Troubleshooter My husband woke up in the middle of the night with difficulty breathing. I gave him Benadryl and an inhaler. I put my kids near the front of the house with a window that was cracked open. We left the next morning before breakfast. I contacted Vrbo and shared pictures of the property. Vrbo said it was not safe to stay there and paid for a hotel. They said they would work on getting our money refunded, but they have not been back in contact with us.
But some slumlords โ I mean, homeowners โwant to make a quick buck, and it seems that the only way to get a property like this removed is to complain about it โฆ which you did. After you showed Vrbo the pictures, it agreed with you and paid for a hotel room. And mold is definitely unsafe. Reading between the lines, it looks as if the host did not see a problem with the rental. But the pictures were pretty compelling, and your medical problems were nothing to sneeze at either.
It could have forced the matter or just refunded you itself, then pursued the owner. But instead, it chose a middle ground, covered your hotel, and then asked you to wait while it negotiated with the owner. It would have taken a mold specialist to mitigate this kind of problem. It needed to pick a side, and the right side was yours. I contacted Vrbo on your behalf to find out if this was its final answer.
Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy , a nonprofit organization that helps consumers solve their problems. Email him at chris elliott. Share this: Click to share on Facebook Opens in new window Click to share on Twitter Opens in new window Click to print Opens in new window Click to email a link to a friend Opens in new window Click to share on Reddit Opens in new window. Report an error Policies and Standards Contact Us. More in Travel.
