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VRBO Complaint - An Owner's Point of View - Vacation home listing
Vacation home listing - Complaint
I've seen quite a few reviews on VRBO from the renter's point of view, but not many from owners. I would not say our experience has been a pleasant one. If you do not mind throwing your money away, go for it.
We decided to list our overseas vacation home, as we hardly get a chance to use it. Went onto their website to inquire about listing it there. I got a phone call right away, and the representative gave us the big happy picture of how they will help every step of the way with the listing, and how many hits we will get on our house, yada yada.
So I decided to go a head and pay the yearly fee, about $400.00 US Dollars. I started going through the steps on creating the listing and hit a dead end when it came time to enter the house address. For some reason it would not accept the address. I tried entering it different ways with no luck.
I called VRBO customer service, and the hold times were over an hour so I tried emailing several times instead. It took a week to get a response, and it was just a canned answer and did not help the issue whatsoever. Here it is weeks later, and my listing is still pending and I have not gotten any help, at all. Today I will be calling and holding for however long I need to, but it will be to cancel the service.
So beware. They will be very helpful and fast to respond before they get your money. But after that, good luck if you actually have an issue and need more help than a canned answer can provide!
We decided to list our overseas vacation home, as we hardly get a chance to use it. Went onto their website to inquire about listing it there. I got a phone call right away, and the representative gave us the big happy picture of how they will help every step of the way with the listing, and how many hits we will get on our house, yada yada.
So I decided to go a head and pay the yearly fee, about $400.00 US Dollars. I started going through the steps on creating the listing and hit a dead end when it came time to enter the house address. For some reason it would not accept the address. I tried entering it different ways with no luck.
I called VRBO customer service, and the hold times were over an hour so I tried emailing several times instead. It took a week to get a response, and it was just a canned answer and did not help the issue whatsoever. Here it is weeks later, and my listing is still pending and I have not gotten any help, at all. Today I will be calling and holding for however long I need to, but it will be to cancel the service.
So beware. They will be very helpful and fast to respond before they get your money. But after that, good luck if you actually have an issue and need more help than a canned answer can provide!
Comments:
Posted by Alain on 2011-10-15:
We always listed with a local company when we had a cottage on the Outer Banks. They were more responsive and did a good job for a reasonable price.
Posted by NicoleM on 2011-10-15:
That's what we are going to do. The cost will be higher, but it is worth it!
Posted by trmn8r on 2011-10-15:
Great review. It sounds like their customer service is even worse than Verizon's, which is very hard to imagine.
Posted by NicoleM on 2011-10-15:
Thanks, trmn. It actually got worse than this yesterday. I logged on before I tried calling to cancel, and they had deleted my entire listing, which I had spent a few hours writing and editing photos for. It was just gone with no explanation, no trace of it saved anyhwere.
Then right after that, they called and requested that we provide them with a copy of our passports or drivers license, a copy of proof of purchase of the house, tax records, AND at least one recent utility bill. No where in the listing process does it mention that any of these items are required, otherwise we would have known what to expect.
I told them I would never give an army of personal info to a company so incompetent, and to cancel the account. I also sent them the link to this complaint, so it will be interesting to see if they respond at all.
Then right after that, they called and requested that we provide them with a copy of our passports or drivers license, a copy of proof of purchase of the house, tax records, AND at least one recent utility bill. No where in the listing process does it mention that any of these items are required, otherwise we would have known what to expect.
I told them I would never give an army of personal info to a company so incompetent, and to cancel the account. I also sent them the link to this complaint, so it will be interesting to see if they respond at all.
Posted by Venice09 on 2011-10-15:
What a waste of time on your part, Nicole. Sounds very frustrating. Giving them the link to this review was a great idea. But I wouldn't be surprised if they don't even bother to read it.
Posted by Chuck Hawley on 2012-08-07:
Our experience with VRBO is very similar. Our listing just disappeared after three years, and this was prior to the expiration date. They said it was a "software bug" and there was no compensation due, and no estimated time to resolve it, and no, they didn't care if I canceled my listing(s). What scam artists! I can't believe that they are successful. They also changed the order in which properties are listed by invoking some extremely high annual charges and did so without warning. I would NEVER do business with them again.
Posted by Rochelle on 2012-12-17:
Been with vrbo since their inception when it was run by a man and wife team out of Colorado, then somewhere in the Virgin Islands. They sold out, apparently. Definitely, not the same since it is now too big. Searching for a rental is difficult, one can never get anyone on the phone within a reasonable time. Costs going up. Placement on the website is crucial but one has to play their game which makes them more money. Since vrbo and homeaway are the same, it helps and hinders. Just today, I think I received a 'test' inquiry. I understand they have to do that, but it's a royal pain. Hope to sell our property soon and be done with renting.
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