Is the HomeAway Service Fee Refundable?

Have you used the vacation rental service HomeAway to book a reservation for a beach home, cabin, apartment, or condo? If your reservation was canceled due to no fault of your own, you may not have been reimbursed for the cost of the HomeAway service fees.

Consumers whose listings were canceled by the property owner, or due to fraudulent listings, may be able to pursue compensation related to this service fee.

What is HomeAway?

HomeAway is a vacation rental company with more than two million affiliated homes, cabins, apartments, and condos located in almost 200 countries across the globe. HomeAway was founded in early 2005 and is owned by the Expedia Group, which also owns VRBO.com, a similar rental site. Service fees are charged by these companies for each transaction.

What are HomeAway Service Fees?

HomeAway, like many vacation rental companies, charges several types of fees along with the per-night rental cost. One of these associated costs is the service fee. According to the HomeAway website, the service fee is paid by the traveler at the time of their booking. This fee is intended to help cover the cost of operating the website, facilitating secure transactions, developing products and services, and providing customer service.

HomeAway’s policy states that travelers who have their reservations canceled by property owners are eligible to receive a full refund, including service fees. The same policy applies for travelers whose reservations have been canceled due to fraudulent or fake listings. However, many consumers say that they have been denied reimbursement of their service fees following these types of cancellations.

HomeAway Service Fee Scandals

According to many consumers, HomeAway, VRBO, and other vacation rental companies may be improperly refusing to reimburse service fees following booking cancellations by the site or property host. While the service fee must be charged when a traveler books and stays at a rental, consumers are arguing that they have still been assessed a HomeAway service fee when the host has canceled the rental, or the listing has been deleted by HomeAway as a fraudulent or fake rental.

The service fee is generally not refunded by HomeAway unless the rental deposit has first been returned by the homeowner canceling the rental. As these deposits are rarely returned, travelers are often left with a canceled vacation property, and no way to recoup the money paid in service fees.

Who is Eligible to Pursue Compensation?

You may qualify to pursue compensation including the cost of your HomeAway service fee if you meet the following criteria. To be eligible, you must have had a reservation from HomeAway, VRBO, or VacationRentals.com in the last three years. This reservation must have been canceled by the homeowner, or by the website in the event that the listing was fraudulent. Additionally, you must not have been reimbursed for the service fee associated with booking the property. Consumers who meet these criteria may be able to pursue compensation and reimbursement by joining a HomeAway service fee investigation.

Join a Free Vacation Rental Service Fee Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you were not reimbursed the service fee after your booking on HomeAway.com, VRBO or VacationRentals.com was cancelled due to no fault of your own, you may benefit from participating in this free class action lawsuit investigation.

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.