[tlug]

I have not yet had to try Airbnb's support for host scam, but unfortunately I am now in a situation with a scam host on Booking.com. Some time after booking and paying for the apartment in NYC, the host disappeared, they removed the listing, don't answer emails/phones/etc. I've been complaining to Booking.com over their chat and phone - no real action for almost a month. The only thing the first line can do is to file a ticket to appropriate department (fraud, I assume) and their hands are tied. They apologise for delay, etc. but nothing is really being done, I'm afraid.

[tlug]

Just in case someone stumbles upon this via Google and wondering what was the outcome. After almost a month of complaining via online chat and over the phone, asking for escalation, Booking.com finally issued a refund. The offered to book another place with a promise to cover the rate difference (about 1/3 of the initial cost). I don't know what actually helped, my stream of complaints, or maybe the fact that I warned them about possible legal actions like ACM ConsuWijzer in the Netherlands which I learned about from this thread or maybe simply this process just takes so long. Due to the lack of transparency BB, it's hard to tell.