Summary

When large scale travel disruptions prevent or prohibit guests from completing their stay, Vrbo may activate its Extenuating Circumstances Policy, allowing guests to cancel and receive a refund and allowing hosts to cancel without incurring cancellation fees or other adverse consequences. Read on to find out more. 

What's covered by this policy

Below you’ll find a detailed breakdown of the types of events covered by our Extenuating Circumstances Policy. If we activate the policy, hosts must honour a guest's refund request, regardless of their own cancellation policy. 

If guests haven’t yet checked in, hosts must refund them in full. If guests have already begun their stay, hosts must offer a partial refund for the part of the stay that can’t be completed. In both cases, Vrbo will refund the guests’ full Traveller Service Fee. 

A note to hosts: Cancellations by hosts that are covered under this policy will be eligible for a waiver, exempting hosts from cancellation fees or any other adverse impacts, such as loss of Premier Host status. It is up to hosts to request this waiver or notify Vrbo. Learn more about cancellation waivers here. 

We encourage guests to research their travel destination to prepare for known or foreseeable disruptions, and to consider taking out insurance. 

The following events may be covered under this policy if they impact the location of the reservation, prevent or prohibit guests from completing their stay and occur after the time of booking: 

Natural disasters and abnormal weather events 

Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, landslides, tornados, flooding, wildfires, and other unforeseeable severe weather events are eligible for coverage. 

Foreseeable seasonal weather events, such as hurricanes, cyclones, and extreme winter storms, in certain regions, will only be covered if they cause another covered event that prevents a reservation being completed. For example, a seasonal hurricane that causes prolonged outages to public utilities for a vast majority of homes in a major region or city may be covered.  

Scroll down for a detailed list of seasonal weather events not covered by this policy, unless they coincide with another covered event. 

Declared health emergencies 

Epidemics or other public health emergencies, as declared by national or local government or regulatory bodies, are eligible for coverage. 

This includes emerging national or local government-declared pandemic emergencies. It does not include a pandemic that is a known event, such as COVID-19; in cases of a known event, normal cancellation policies apply.  

Wars, terrorist attacks & other hostilities 

War, terrorist attacks, riots, large-scale civil unrest and other hostilities that make it impossible or illegal for a guest to travel to a location, or for a host to accommodate a guest, are covered by this policy. 

Government travel restrictions 

National or local government travel restrictions that make it impossible or illegal for a guest to travel to a location, or for a host to accommodate a guest, are covered by this policy. 

Infrastructure outages & travel restrictions 

Prolonged outages of essential public utilities to most homes in a region are covered by this policy. Travel disruptions caused by large-scale restrictions or outages to critical travel infrastructure, which make it impossible or impracticable for guests to reach the destination, are covered if the restriction or outage arises from another covered event near that location. An example could be a volcanic eruption near the location that results in the guest’s flights being cancelled. (Refunds for cancelled flights will be subject to the airline’s policy and are the guest’s responsibility to pursue.)  

Changes to passport or visa requirements 

Unexpected government changes to passport or visa requirements after guests have confirmed their stay are covered by this policy, provided the changes can’t reasonably be met before the travel date, and make it illegal for guests to travel to the location. 

What’s not covered by this policy 

Events occurring prior to booking 

An otherwise covered event that has occurred prior to a booking being made, but has subsequently increased in impact (for example, flooding that worsens) is not covered under this policy.  

Diseases that are endemic or common in a region 

Any disease reported by public health authorities in a region, such as malaria in parts of Africa, is considered a known event. COVID-19 is not covered, as it is a known event. When a covered event is known at the time of booking, any new, unexpected updates to government regulations related to it are not covered. These might include quarantine, PCR testing, or mandatory vaccines. 

Local demonstrations or localized civil unrest 

Any demonstrations or civil unrest that do not prevent guests from reaching their accommodation, or prevent a host accommodating a guest, are not covered by this policy. 

Non-binding government travel advisories 

Government guidance that stops short of travel restrictions are not covered by this policy. Travel restrictions that were not in place at the time of booking, but were foreseeable or expected at that point in time, are also not covered. 

Transport disruptions not caused by a covered event 

Cancelled flights due to engineering issues or employee strikes, local road closures or disruptions to boat or rail schedules are not covered by this policy. 

Published changes to passport or visa requirements 

Changes to passport or visa requirements that are already public when a guest made their reservation but come into effect after the reservation is confirmed are not covered by this policy. Lost or expired passports, visas or other travel documents and failure to reasonably obtain a required travel document ahead of the booking are not covered by this policy, regardless of whether those requirements were expected at the time of booking. 

Guests’ personal circumstances 

A change to guests’ own circumstances or preferences, such as illness or injury, government obligations such as jury or military duty, or the cancellation/rescheduling of an event they were intending to travel to attend, are not covered by this policy.  

Seasonal weather events 

Foreseeable seasonal weather events that don’t cause another covered event are not covered by this policy. This includes, for example, hurricanes during Atlantic Coast hurricane season or winter storms in the Northern Hemisphere. Below, you’ll find specific examples of seasonal weather events that aren’t covered by this policy. 

Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea   Weather event: Tropical storm, typhoon, cyclone, or hurricane   Season: June–November  Regions included: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Montserrat, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Saba, Saint Barthelemy, Saint-Martin, Sint Eustatius, Sint Maarten, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the US (Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas), US Virgin Islands, Venezuela    

North Atlantic Ocean   Weather events: Tropical storm, typhoon, cyclone, or hurricane   Season: June–November   Regions included: Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia     Eastern Pacific Ocean   Weather events: Tropical storm, typhoon, cyclone, or hurricane   Season: May–November   Regions included: Mexico, Guatemala, Hawaii       Western Pacific Ocean   Weather events: Tropical storm, typhoon, cyclone, or hurricane   Season: May–November   Regions included: Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Japan, Philippines, South Korea, China, Vietnam     Indian Ocean   Weather events: Tropical storm, typhoon, cyclone, or hurricane   Seasons: April–June; October–December   Regions included: Bangladesh, Coastal regions of India, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Reunion, Thailand     South Pacific Ocean   Weather events: Tropical storm, typhoon, cyclone, or hurricane   Season: November–April   Regions included: American Samoa, Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia), Fiji, New Caledonia, New Zealand (North Island), Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu     Northern Hemisphere   Weather events: Winter storms   Season: December–February  Regions included: North America: Much of the US (Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, D.C, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming), Canada   Europe & Central Asia: Afghanistan, Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, Ukraine   Japan: Chūbu, Chūgoku, Hokkaidō, Kansai, Kantō, Koshinetsu, Kyūshū, Shikoku, Tōhoku   Other Asia: India (northern states such as Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand), Mongolia, Nepal     Southern Hemisphere   Weather events: Winter storms   Season: June–September  Regions included: Argentina, Chile, and New Zealand (central area of North Island, South and East of South Island, and mountainous areas)   

Enforcement 

Hosts must refund guests for reservations cancelled due to extenuating circumstances covered by this policy, when the policy is active. This is regardless of the property’s cancellation policy. Hosts who do not refund guests for bookings covered by this policy may face marketplace consequences such as suspension or fees. 

Where an event is not covered by the policy, the reservation’s cancellation policy applies.  

What to do if you’re affected 

Guests should reach out to their host if they are unable to complete their reservation due to a covered event and request a refund. If you have any issue securing the refund, or if the policy is not being followed by the host, contact Vrbo customer support. 

Hosts should reach out to their guests if they are unable to complete the reservation due to a covered event and initiate a refund. If you are unable to contact your guests or otherwise have any questions, contact Vrbo partner support.

Please note: Elements of this policy, such as refund process, may be subject to local regulatory requirements. 

Related 

Learn more about VrboCare™