My Airbnb host threw me out on the street at midnight

My possessions were dumped outside and there was no way I could get help

On the last night of my stay in a Washington DC Airbnb, I returned late to find all my possessions – including my passport – dumped in the street outside the apartment in carrier bags. Eerily, the apartment had been cleaned. The host arrived and told me I had to leave since someone else had booked that night. By then it was midnight. I showed my booking confirmation stating checkout was 11am the following morning, and she looked sheepish. No guest materialised, since the host had clearly muddled her dates, and I was allowed to stay the night.

I tried to contact Airbnb and discovered that, in an emergency, you are given just three options: phone the police, contact your host, or ask your host for a partial refund. There is no phone number to call – instead, you can only request a callback. It didn’t call me until 3am (when, mercifully, I had made it to bed). It had been told by the host I had “refused” to check out. I had to remind Airbnb of my booking dates.

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