On February 25th, 2020 I booked a reservation for a house in Santa Cruz for my nephew's wedding on August 16th, 2020. however, in March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. and all plans were put on hold or canceled. as a matter of fact, life stopped and restrictions became very strict. on April 13th I contacted the host and Airbnb to cancel the reservation. here is what happened to me since that time: I am taking the time to write you directly about my personal experience with Airbnb last year. I am disappointed and upset over the thought that I have had to deal with a chargeback from your company for a cancellation I made last year due to covid19 restrictions. Although I believe that I tried going through the right channels to resolve my dispute. I know I shouldn't have been charged back my deposit fourteen months later. Airbnb had promised guests full refunds if they canceled due to COVID concerns between March 14 and April 14, 2020, however, Airbnb has now allegedly failed to provide those refunds to many guests, my research I found that Airbnb paid less than 25 percent of what they were supposed to receive under their agreements with guests. Airbnb has declined to refund my August 14th stay over the extenuating circumstances policy. Airbnb has stated that the government-enforced lockdowns and tier restrictions do not fall within the company's "extenuating circumstances" policy which was implemented in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, I have been left short-changed after believing I would be entitled to refunds for canceled reservations. However, despite Airbnb's promising coverage for Covid-19 to help protect the community and provide peace of mind, hosts are only liable to pay out if they include a refund clause in their terms and conditions. Airbnb platform no longer sees Covid-19 as what it calls an "unforeseen event" even if government legislation makes travel to holiday accommodation impossible. Legally obliged to pay back to customers in the event of unforeseen circumstances. on the contrary, the government department and consumer watchdog, The Competition and Markets Authority [CMA], has said that customers affected by government cancellations through no fault of their own should be refunded and businesses have a duty to offer them. Airbnb should have extended the refund window, since the order went into effect on Thursday, March 19, 2020. The order was in place until further notice at that time. It covered the whole state of California. California modified the order and release of the Blueprint for a Safer Economy, to permit gradual reopening of certain businesses and activities on August 28, 2020. As a matter of fact, on May 12 2020 Los Angeles County's stay-at-home orders were "with all certainty" to be extended for the next three months, the County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer acknowledged it at the Board of Supervisors meeting. This is what we also know: that August 2020 was the deadliest month of the COVID-19 pandemic in California, even as the state was starting to make steady progress in reducing infections, hospitalizations, and deaths. It's also unclear whether Airbnb's policy and contract changes throughout the pandemic are binding in any way. Since they were made after COVID-19 happened & in response to COVID-19. The "extenuating circumstances" policy was designed to protect guests against unforeseen circumstances. in March the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic, Airbnb contends, "COVID-19 and its consequences are no longer unforeseen or unexpected." ( However, I booked my reservation in February before the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic & I canceled the reservation on April 13th). I am sure Airbnb has been inundated with the covid 19 fallout, but I do hope you can take into consideration that changes to the policy should have been on a case-by-case situation more than just changing the policy in the midst of the pandemic. I hope that you will take the time to personally investigate my case and resolve this chargeback dispute of my deposit fee that occurred 14 months later.