AirBnB: (not) Another cancelled authorisation post

[Kastor]

Hi everyone

Quick question. I booked and AirBnB apartment on the 14th of April, on the 15th I got an email that my money was released again because the apartment wasn't available.

The Paypal transaction immediately said Authorisation - Canceled but we're now 9 working days later and:

A) It still hasn't been refunded on my creditcard (nor in my wallet).

B) The initial transaction never showed up on my creditcard.

The thing is, I've got a prepaid credit card. So lets say I charged it with €200, the moment Paypal charges my card, the amount on my creditcard goes to €0. So I definately know the money was transfered to Paypal. However, I don't see any description of it on my bank statement (it's like it just disappeared.)

So, my guestion is: Is this a normal situation when booking with AirBnB, do I have to wait a little bit longer. Or has something, somewhere gone wrong?

[alzondahero]

If it says "Authorization Cancelled", it means that the request for the merchant to debit the amount from your PP account has already been cancelled out. If money was indeed debited from your account, you need to get in touch with your merchant to request for the refund since the money is already on their account. If it says "Refunded" on your activity, count 3 to 5 business days for it to reflect on your card statement (it could take longer than 30 days depending on your credit card issuer's policy on posting details of your transactions). Hope this helps.

[Kastor]

Thanks for the swift answer. So the merchant in this case is AirBnB if I understand correctly?

[alzondahero · Accepted solution]

Yes, you can also check the details of your merchant by logging in to your PP account and going to your "ACTIVITY" log. If your merchant does not refund the money back to you. Then you would need to file a dispute with PP for them to help you get your money back. Hope this helps!

[mellorenzo]

Hi! I'd like to ask how long did it take to get your money back? I have similar problem. I used prepaid mastercard. I emailed Airbnb already and they responsed that they already returned the money to Paypal last June 25. The detail written in my Paypal transaction is "the money has been returned to your account". I don't know if paypal means that the money is in my Paypal account or my prepaid Mastercard account. I have no idea whether the money is with Paypal or with my account now. I already called my bank and requested charge back, they are still processing it and they don't know yet whether the money is with them already. Paypal, please help me. I need to book my accommodation before July 9. I have been emailing to Paypal through their help option but I only get general responses like list of definitions of terms like cancelled, pending and the like. I know what you mean by your terms, I just need answer on where is my money.

[sandypurins]

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mellorenzo wrote:
I emailed Airbnb already and they responsed that they already returned the money to Paypal last June 25. The detail written in my Paypal transaction is "the money has been returned to your account".  I don't know if paypal means that the money is in my Paypal account or my prepaid Mastercard account.

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@mellorenzo

It sounds like the money was sent back to your prepaid MasterCard account.

Log in to your PayPal account, click on the "Classic Site" link (bottom of page) and then click on the "All activity (with balance)" option.  This will show your running PayPal account balance (in the right hand column) after each transaction and should make it easier for you to see where the refund was sent.  Change the date range to cover the period from when the payment was sent to several days after the payment was refunded.

-Sandy

[sandypurins]

@mellorenzo

Here's a screen shot showing how a refunded credit card funded payment looks on the "all activity with balance" view...

-Sandy

[mellorenzo]

Thanks for the response Sandy!

Here's what's showing in my Paypal activities.

http://imagehosting.io/image/vWn

(I don't know how to attach image here)

[mellorenzo]

I forgot to mention. My prepaid card is not yet verified in my PayPal because I have to wait for the code from my bank (their standard procedure takes 1 day). Does this affect my case?

[sandypurins]

Based on that screen shot, your card was never charged... it was just an authorization which has been cancelled.  Your card issuer needs to process the cancelled authorization so that the hold on that amount in your prepaid card account is released.

Contact your card issuer.

-Sandy