Vrbo Reviews 

Eventually

Written previous review on how bad customer service is with this company. We booked accommodation in Falmouth, Bell Chapel. The host cancelled and we wanted a full refund.
After much phoning, emailing, time wasting, etc we have now received our full refund.
As business people why can they not make it very easy on their websites to cancel or receive a refund immediately. They get their money immediately! Another huge problem is contact. It is a minefield to actually deal with someone who can help..... all I know is never again.

I am extremely disappointed with VRBO and the complete lack of support we received during our recent booking issues. This was actually the second major problem we experienced using VRBO for this trip.

Our first booking had apparently already been sold and should have been removed from the platform before we booked it. Because of that mistake, I had to spend time on the phone with VRBO customer service FIVE separate times, totaling nearly 6 hours, just trying to get our $730 refunded. The process was exhausting, stressful, and far more difficult than it should have been for an error that was not our fault.

Then, after finally securing another rental, we were contacted at 2:00 PM on the day of check-in — while already nearly 3 hours into our drive — and told the AC had stopped working only 2 hours before check-in.

Again, VRBO offered little meaningful help. What was especially frustrating was VRBO attempting to use their “VRBO Care” program to pressure another homeowner into accepting a deeply discounted “cheaper rate” booking instead of properly taking responsibility for the situation themselves. It felt unfair to both us as guests and to the homeowner they were trying to make absorb the loss.

At every stage of this experience, VRBO failed to provide the support, accountability, and customer service you would expect from a company people trust to book vacations. Instead of feeling protected booking through VRBO, we felt completely on our own dealing with repeated problems caused by their platform.

This entire experience turned what should have been an enjoyable trip into an incredibly stressful ordeal, and based on how everything was handled, I would seriously reconsider using VRBO again.

I am a host that uses both Airbnb and VRBO. Their calendars are supposed to synchronize to prevent any double bookings. Both sites were set to do so. However, they did not and I ended up with a double booking for unknown reasons, a technical failure. One booking was made at night through VRBO, the other by Airbnb in the morning. I happened to see the Airbnb booking first and confirmed it with the guest. Unfortunately I had to then decline the VRBO guest even though they booked for longer and produced more income. VRBO is taking off me a cancellation fee and suspending my account for 7 days even though there was another guest about to book within that time. They offer a cancellation fee waiver if it was "beyond your control", which this certainly was. It was actually the Airbnb calendar that didn't synch, and given they are a competitor, "no cancellation waiver for you!", contradicting their stated policy. If you are a host on both platforms, beware VRBO!

Property not as described, unsafe for children, and terrible customer service. Horrible experience. This property looks nothing like the photos. The garden was completely neglected, with incredibly long grass and high thistles, making it entirely unusable and dangerous for my young daughter. The outdoor furniture was completely broken and structurally unsafe—the sofa was a major hazard and the bench was so broken my mother almost suffered a bad fall. The tables were rusty and filthy. Inside, the curtains in both the bedroom and bathroom were heavily stained. The management team (Niche) admitted in writing that they couldn't fix the issues during our stay, but after asking me for photo evidence, they completely stopped replying and are now ghosting my refund requests. Absolute breach of health and safety regulations. Do not book, especially if you have a family. I want my money back.

Worst platform with zero respect to customers.

We booked a property using vrbo for may long week end. the property was good but the water was completely shut off during mid night. we reached out to host and they said smart system might have turned off water supply because of excessive usage(which is totally false) and gave us emergency contact number. we tried to reach them and left several vm's.
we contacted vrbo cust service immediately and took us lot of time to connect to them. they were literally brushing it off as if its nothing. zero empathy. one agent literally said "you just have 10 more hours to stay anyway".
the host fixed the issue after few hours by turning on the water supply using smart app(dont know why they dint do it in first place).

we had to drive to a gas station for using restroom at 2am during this outage.

when we asked for refund, the host denied saying they fixed the issue with in 2 hours. wtf. no water supply during mid night does not seem to be big issue for them. all of us were awake during that time.

worst of all, vrbo customer representatives are total useless. they dint show any concern during the outage. they were indirectly asking us to adjust without water. and when the host denied giving any refund, vrbo were totally on host side. worst part is that they offered $50 coupon which we can use for future bookings. we paid more than that for every hour for booking that place.

this is the first time we used vrbo and apparently last time too.

We booked a home in New Port Richey with a private pool for a weekend getaway. Advertised as "Lakeside Retreat". As we drove to the home the neighborhood was extremely questionable. There was a guy outside drinking beer and 4-5 cars parked in each residence around our rental. There is an older SUV backed in beside our rental with garbage cans in front and a sun screen in the windshield. Upon going into the home it was not clean and smelled. The shower had grunge and mold in the grout, open used bars of soap and shampoo and conditioner , as well as a cleaning squeegie in a shower caddy. Random flip flops left there. (Host said they are for people to use if they forget theirs, GROSS). The outside back yard.. 1) the grass area leading to the water and paddleboat was 6-8" deep, there was no lake access due to overgrowth in the water. It looked as if was in the Everglades. The pool needed to have been vacuumed. The hot tub was not hot, barely warm. The area was dirty , floats just tossed in a corner. Called VRBO refused a refund , credit nothing. They didn't offer to find us anywhere else to go. So we are basically out the $799.00 we spent plus travel expenses to get there and immediately return home. I literally cried all the way home. Vrbo sent me a link to rate our experience and give a review but won't post it, said my review was misleading and misrepresenting. Even though I sent in several pictures to prove my comments.

I feel misled by VRBO regarding insurance charges.
I clearly remember selecting only one insurance policy, yet I was charged for multiple additional insurance products that I did not knowingly authorize.
When I contacted support, I did not receive clear proof of my consent. Instead, I was repeatedly redirected to the insurance provider, which did not resolve the issue or explain the charges.
Overall, the process lacks transparency, and the insurance additions during booking were not clear or properly explained. I feel that the way these charges were applied is misleading and unacceptable.

I had a booking with VRBO, and I clearly remember that I did not add Damage Insurance or Trip Protection. These insurance charges were also not displayed in the total price during checkout.

However, my credit card was later charged for insurance policies that I did not purchase.

Customer service claims that I selected and added these insurance options myself, but I clearly remember that this was not the case, and the insurance charges were not included in the total booking price shown to me.

I feel misled by this situation, and VRBO is refusing to issue a refund.

SCAM ALERT!!!! DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS COMPANY. Made a reservation for May 4 arrival. My credit card was charged in full. VRBO cancelled my reservation May 1 after I had already left for this vacay. It's May 25 and I STILL do not have a refund. I'm out over $1500 and have opened a dispute with Visa after I called VRBO and they just shrugged and said "Well we emailed the host but we haven't heard back." Please, please save yourself the money and the hassle and book with Airbnb or directly with the resort.

NEVER AGAIN VRBO!!!
UPDATE after VRBO reply: what is there to investigate? This is your business policy - either pay the insurance or wait for your money for 2 weeks!!!

I booked a cottage through VRBO for a short 2-night stay. For a weekend trip, VRBO immediately charged a massive $1,500 security deposit to my credit card.

The stay is over, and the landlord immediately gave the "all clear" to return the deposit, confirming zero damage. Yet, I have now been waiting for almost two weeks, and my $1,500 has still not been refunded.

Why does VRBO need to hold onto a customer’s $1,500 for weeks after a 2-night stay? Are they using my money to generate interest and work with? Withholding these amounts of money gives VRBO immense cash flow.There is absolutely no justification for this delay when the host already authorized the release. It is completely unacceptable to lock up this much of a customer's credit limit. Terrible financial practice and awful customer service. I want my money back immediately.

Based on numerous previous negative reviews, it's clear their booking system is flawed, but instead of addressing and fixing it, they're defending the host, and worse, they're shifting all the blame onto the customers. It's like a professional scam. I hope a world organization will step in and punish them for the losses they've caused to thousands of customers.

Terrible. Several accomodations got cancelled. The last cancellation same week as our stay. Difficult to get to talk to a real person, many hours on the phone with customer service. Poor refund. Never ever book anything with VRBO.

It almost seems pointless to add another review to the 119,000 already posted.
I booked a condo In Canada that had a posted price. Then a received an email urging me complete the payment before it expired at an amount 35% higher. So I let it expire. Then emails start again asking for an amount only a few hundred dollars higher. The third time around the price was right. But no confirmation email with cancellation dates. Also no processing of the damage policy I ordered.
But now I find VRBO has stooped to new low. They have always made themselves difficult to contact. But it is impossible. Customer has been taken over by AI. More accurately AM, Artificial Moron.
I stated 3 problems to be addressed. AM responded to one, not a mention of the other two. So, I replied back reminding AM of the other two. Got a response to one, no mention of the other. What is really sad about VRBO is they have a near monopoly on the market.

UPDATE
I have received a no reply email from Trust Pilot threatening to remove my complaint.
I cannot believe Trust Pilot has sunk so low as to threaten removal of a negative review of one of the worst customer abusers in the country. Is that what Trust Pilot has become? An apologist for abusive businesses? We already have the BBB for that function.
In the first place there is no response by VRBO shown at my Trust Pilot complaint.
Nothing to indicate what information VRBO is seeking.
Clicking on the link Trust Pilot provided requests a Reference Number. What is that? It appears nowhere.
If VRBO was serious about wanting new information, they only need to look at the email exchanges with me to see their guilt. That was all cited in my complaint.
I wonder at this point if VRBO has even responded to my complaint.
UPDATE 2
Now VRBO comes again requesting more information.
So, I repeat:
"If VRBO was serious about wanting new information, they only need to look at the email exchanges with me to see their guilt. That was all cited in my complaint."
VRBO is in damage control mode now. Trying to get me to jump threw hoops until I give up on the complaint.
VRBO has a lot of work to do. Witness the other 119,000 negative ratings.

I wish I could give Vrbo a rating of ZERO!
My husband and I made a reservation for a stay in Virginia Beach over memorial day weekend. Money left the bank account immediately, I believed things were aligned.
The day prior to the trip I sent an email to the property owner to ask if we could check in prior to 4 p.m since we were traveling 6 hours. I got no reply! The day of check in, I called the said property owner since I was in Virginia. The owner informed me she DID NOT own this property and had no idea who did. Thankfully, the resort manager was able to secure us a room for 3 nights, but 1 hour later while on the phone with VRBO I still had not received a refund. To further my anger we were now paying another $1100 without a refund since it could take up to 15 days to process. VRBO took no responsibility for advertising and allowing a property to be booked and paid for without confirming it even existed!!
Never again will we use VRBO and if you are reading this, do your own footwork. It may save you in the long run.

We had made a reservation through Vrbo after using Airbnb for years. Within one week the reservation was canceled by the owner with no explanation.

After reading all of these comments and reviews, I wish I would’ve listened and never used to Vrbo. We had the worst experience that I’ve ever had traveling through Vrbo. The house was completely underwater with a leak and we had to leave the property and they still charged me full price for the two nights that I stayed there which were barely livable. They did not protect us at all in the host walked away and kept my money.

**After reading your response to my review and the response to all of the horrible reviews. It is clear that you don’t take it serious because the negative reviews continue to happen. Vrbo is a horrible company and I will never let my friends or family use it again. And anyone that uses Vrbo should be warned that Vrbo is always on the homeowner’s side and will not protect the guest.

Your Getaway LLC was the "middleman" in a rental I paid for through VRBO. At the last minute, my husband had a medical emergency and was prevented from travel. I reached out to the "middleman" company, the one I was instructed to deal with directly, to ask for a refund OR a credit so we could use the property when my husband was cleared for travel. I even provided a letter from my husband's doctor, on letterhead. Your Getaway LLC refused a refund and even refused to allow us to use the credit at a later date. I contacted VRBO and they refunded the part of the rental that was to go to them. I also sensed that they regretted the decision of Your Getaway LLC to be so callous as not to even allow us to use our credit for a later date. Unfortunately, VRBO seemed to have no leverage in asking the owner to be less heartless. I write this review to suggest that anyone considering doing business with VRBO through Your Getaway LLC should take into consideration their display of disregard for others. We all need some grace at various times in our lives.

Your Getaway LLC, from my experience, puts profit above all else, including their customers. To be clear VRBO intervened on my behalf but, on the evidence, was powerless to secure a fairer outcome.

The property when we arrived was in a state of disrepair and very inconsistent with the posting. Then the host did not refund me my $500CAD security deposit. VRBO has been incredibly unhelpful, continually giving me unmet deadlines for the refund. Allowing the host to continue to post on their website. They were not transparent during booking that the host was using a third party financial service that VRBO will not take responsibility for the lack of refund. Despite me paying directly on their website. I do not recommend this company at all. They are unreliable and dishonest and host unreliable and dishonest hosts that scam their guests.

Guest house was double booked for the bank holiday weekend. VRBO couldn't help us as they were unable to contact the owner. They were unable to book for alternative accommodation for less than 24 hours in advance. We are currently looking for accommodation within walking distance. Almost certainly all fully booked. Probably greed of the owners and/or VRBO and they are happy to allow women to be left in an extremely vulnerable situation with no where to stay. Absolutely disgusting. Avoid this company and mackerel skies Newquay at all costs.

Do not book any apartments from this company! The company and the entire vrbo app sucks moose 🍆 vrbo more like bo, they stink. I booked a place in Spain specifically the one in Calle Navarregui 3, San Juan Alicante. It’s listed on Expedia as family apartment for four. The owners name is Mohamed and he is white fishing, trying to act like he’s French. The guy writes in French like it’s the only language he knows but he talks in Arabic, his mother tongue. He lied on the listing description about speaking English, saying the stove, washing machine and everything in the apartment is working when in reality it isn’t and he blamed us for it not working and is extremely argumentative. He’s a gaslighter and a trouble maker that keeps the apartment in terrible condition so people can leave and he gets the money for it and the company is two faced saying you’ll get money back because it’s against their policy to have electrical issues but later on they say you can’t get any money back. If he showed his ugly mug in person my friend would have put him to sleep. I told him that that and he backed out like the coward he is and he finally shut his double breasted lips. Don’t book anything from him and report his listing for misleading content.

Me and my friends rented a house in hersonnisos for our final vacation before going to university. 5 days before our vacation we were notified that our house wasnt even built yet eventhough they told us it would be finished in januari. They offered us our money back or told us they would provida a “similar” residence. They offered us a house which had 2 bedrooms less and then we didnt need to pay extra. Or they could give us a house which was actually similar but it would cost us another 2500 euros for a week. Very displeased with vrbo