ComplaintsforHomeExchange.com

• Initial Complaint

  05/11/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  This home I thought I was getting isn't "newly built" as advertised. The home is a remodel of a dilapidated old house the owner purchased in 2021, of which he didn't rebuild the staircase entirely and I tripped and nearly broke my foot coming down the stairs. The stairs are a danger and a hazard.Home Exchanges Non-conformitypolicy clearly states that if the home does not match the information from the listing then any Guest Points applied can be returned the guest. Home-sharing/swapping has strict ordinances in this particular city requiring permits and business licenses that appear not to be in compliance with. There were other problems as well: construction was happening across the street and behind the house, and there were drunks in the back alley. I left early the next morning after being there for one night.Home Exchange has refused to credit back my Guest Points I used on this transaction, even when they ultimately have the power to do so. I used to speak highly of Home Exchange to family and friends, but not anymore. Their customer service and business practices have declined considerably this past year.

  Business response

  05/15/2024

  Hello ******* ,
  
  First off, I am really sorry to hear that you almost fell coming down the stairs; We sincerely hope you are safe and doing well. 
  As you left the property early, we have now fully refunded your GuestPoints. 
  We genuinely want to make amends for any inconvenience caused and ensure that you had a positive experience with our company.
   
  We are very sorry to hear that the host claims that his home was newly built instead of remodeled. We will contact him regarding the issue: providing false or misleading information is prohibited.
  We do use various tools and procedures to screen Members, however, we do not independently verify all information posted by its Members on their Listings. 
  
  In most cities, Home ******** is not considered Short Term Rental, as the exchange isn't for profit. 
  
  We value your continued support as a valued member and look forward to serving you in the future.
   
  All the best,

  Customer response

  05/16/2024

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #********. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************

• Initial Complaint

  12/12/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I have been premium member of Home Exchange for 2 years. I'm already paying the annual membership for them to be covered for their guarantees. Someone stayed at my place and they lost my keys. Due to security concerns, I replaced the keys and asked for compensation. Home Exchange is denying to pay me for my rights. It is clearly stated under their guarantees that I'm covered for such incidents. They have been telling me that the host is willing to pay the half of the cost and this is so unprofessional. They are not processing their guarantees and I think this business shouldn't operate in ***. This creates a lot of security concerns for *********. Here is their link and it clearly states how they should they covers the small incidents: ******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************* section about this incident. "As a host: A deposit of up to $500 USD is payable by your guest for minor damage.HomeExchange covers property damage up to $1,000,000 USD.HomeExchange covers you in the event of theft."I would like your help to get my refund for this incident please.Thank you *****

  Business response

  12/13/2023

  Hello *****, 
  
  As per your conversation with ****** today, a refund has been credited to your account. 
  We apologize for the inconvenience, and appreciate your ongoing support and commitment to our website. 
  
  All the best,

  Customer response

  12/14/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #********. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *****************************

• Initial Complaint

  11/23/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  HE DOES NOT HONOR THEIR GUARANTEE - a woman arrives days early to my place because she had the key code which I entrusted to her because HE assured me they were trustworthy/vetted. - she happily used my place for days & rode my e-bike - then claims she can't stay because allergies BUT continues to stay no problem until the time for me to get to her place - even though she was in my place they returned her security deposit. So she had free use of my ************** and I have no recourse if she damaged anything or for the heat and electricity that she used that I have to pay for, or the heat that she probably left on while I'm gone - i specifically told her to tell me before i left the states if she was going to cancel. She assured me she would get her neighbor to get me the keys when i arrived the next day, so I left for Europe. - the next day she tells me she canceled the night before and would not be honoring the exchange, yet she was still occupying my home. I saw on my ring camera that she was still freely using my bike while I'm stranded in europe. I'm not sure why, if she canceled the exchange, that it wasn't communicated to her to leave my home immediately - HE sent some messages for alternate accommodations while I was traveling and there was 1 acceptable option that's not available until the 25th. HE replied that that would be great and to get back to us with confirmation. - I have been very flexible, even willing to go to a completely different country to make this work. - home exchange allowed me to stay in hotels for 2 nights, waiting until the last possible second so that i have to wander the city, unsure where I'll be staying and when I'll be able to have a place to relax - even though i still don't have a place emailed me that they're not interested in honoring their guarantee and I'm screwed while the squatter who caused all this mess and got free accommodations and use of my things is probably relaxing on a beach in La Jolla right now.

  Business response

  11/28/2023

  Hello ***, 
  
  We are really sorry to hear your exchange was cancelled at the very last minute.
  When such cancellations occur, our member support team work diligently to find a resolution by contacting other members in the area to find a replacement option.
  
  As our support team was not able to secure an immediate solution, we honored our guarantees for a rental alternative for the first 2 nights. Our agent requested the invoice from you last Thursday. 
  A replacement exchange in alignment with our Terms of Use was then found for the remainder of your stay.
  
  If there are any issues with your home when you get back, please don't hesitate to contact us. We'll be happy to see what we can do to help.
  
  We understand that you were disappointed when your original exchange was cancelled, and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
  We are committed to providing our members with the best possible experience.
  
  Please send us your accommodation invoice as soon as possible so that we can proceed with the reimbursement. 
  
  All the best,

• Initial Complaint

  10/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Home Exchange claims a 48 hour response to emails sent to them. Yet my first email was 2 weeks ago, my second was a couple of days later and my third was 3 days ago. I complained to them in detail about 3 exchanges and sent pictures of two. Aside from their computer generated receipt, I have had zero response. I guess they dont like to hear about issues. They also state that members generally reply within such-and-such a time frame. This is completely false. I have had several take 5 days to two week to respond when they claimed response in a day recently and many other contact responses that did not fit the time frame. At the very least I would like a refund of points paid to the Paris apartment owner as it was dirty enough that we only slept and showered there. They have pictures of this complaint.

  Business response

  10/05/2023

  Hello *****,
  
  We would like to sincerely apologize for the delay in our response to your recent email inquiry. We understand that your time is valuable, and we deeply regret any inconvenience this may have caused.
  
  At HomeExchange, we strive to provide prompt and efficient member service, and it is disheartening when we fall short of meeting those expectations. Please be assured that we are taking immediate steps to address the issue and prevent any recurrence in the future.
  
  Our team has been working diligently to investigate the cause of the delay, and we are committed to resolving your query as quickly as possible. One of our agents is now in contact with you by email, and will be taking care of the issue you brought up.
  
  Once again, please accept our sincerest apologies for any frustration or inconvenience caused by this delay. We genuinely appreciate your understanding and continued support as a valued member of ours.
  
  Thank you for giving us an opportunity to make things right. We remain dedicated to providing exceptional service moving forward.
  
  Warm regards,

  Customer response

  10/09/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #********. I accept their apology and understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
  Thank you very much for your help in this issue. Without your help it would never have been resolved. 
  Your truly,
  *************************

• Initial Complaint

  09/28/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  They tote that they will be responsible for damages done to your home but they actually have no insurance coverage at all and they pay for damages at their own whim or discretion. We had a guest who brought his buddies instead of his wife and he and his friends were out fishing and drinking. His story kept changing but he claims he was asleep while his guests were cooking Salmon in our pyrex dish. **** says they took the dish out to cool and placed it on the stove top when it exploded.The glass exploded and burnt my luxury vinyl floor in the kitchen and my living room carpet and greasy salmon was everywhere. Over $7k of damages and nothing but game playing by Home Exchange and ****. I will be suing them both.We jumped through all the hoops necessary and provided everything they requested to submit an insurance claim. I repeatedly asked why I wasn't provided any insurance information and why this seemed like a fraud. i told them I suspected they did not have insurance and they finally stated after weeks of back and fourth emails "We do not have an insurance department and we are not an insurance company. We reimburse claims at our own discretion."I have many documents to submit but they are too large to attach here.

  Business response

  10/04/2023

  
  
  Dear *****,
  
  We appreciate your time in writing a review on BBB and would like to take the opportunity to respond.
  
  At HomeExchange, we are committed to creating a fair and respectful environment for all of our members, and we value the feedback received. The issues you have raised in your review are essential to us, and we would like to clarify our position regarding these.
  
  Our company strictly adheres to our Terms of Use (***), which all members agree to upon initiating their engagement with us. The guidelines set within the *** form a comprehensive guide on acceptable use of our service, protect our members, and help us maintain high-quality interactions and services.
  
  From your review, it seems there's been a misunderstanding, and I deeply regret if our actions did not meet your expectations. However, I want to assure you that the decisions we make are always aligned with our ***, in the interest of fairness and integrity to all parties involved.
  
  I notice that the case is not yet closed, and is currently handled by one of our agents.
  
  Best Regards,
  
  The HomeExchange Team
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  09/22/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Im a long time user of Love Home Swap - my profile comes with a loyalty badge and excellent review ratings. Ive done a handful of swaps using both points and direct swap. When Love Home Swap got acquired by Home Exchange, I contacted Home Exchange on August 30 to finish an outstanding request to refund over ***** missing points from a postponed exchange back in April. The exchange postponed to early August, and I spent more points to finalize it since it needed to be booked as a new exchange / in hopes the platform would resolve my missing points from April. Home Exchange claimed they were looking into it, and I followed up several times because of the urgent pending requests that couldnt be completed with my depleted points balance. After following up on Sept 13, and again Sept 15, they gave me the same canned response as the previous weeks - ************* is looking into it. Finally I tried again 3 more times and their customer service stopped responding altogether. This disrupted outstanding travel plans, and robbed me of the points I earned as a love home swap user.

  Business response

  09/28/2023

  Hello *****,

  Apologies for the delayed response, but I was out of office and I am the only team member that gets these notifications.  I looked into your issue with our support team and they identified 2 issues:

  1. As you are a previous Love Home Swap member the team needed to verify your situation by looking into both platforms, which added some additional time.

  2. After looking into your case, it appears that you never actually reached out to us to officially cancel or modify your exchange with your host.  In this case our system just assumed the ************** occurred and the new date was simply a second exchange with the same host.  In order to verify that the ************** did not happen our team is reaching out to your host in order to understand better the situation.  If your previous host confirms the ************** never happened, our team will reimburse you the ** in question.

  I hope that helped.

  Kind regards,

  *****

  Customer response

  09/28/2023

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  [I did explain in the communication with your team that its not my intention to take points away from the host. I did notify him well in advance and I explained I would still take the trip but due to an injury I would have to postpone it. The postponed trip was shorter (about half the time) and for some reason I still had to pay additional points on top of what was already paid, and just assumed it would somehow be worked out during the transition from LHS to HE. That was a significant amount of points taken away for no reason.]

  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  FAQ
  
  Regards,

  *****

   

   

  Business response

  10/10/2023

  Hello *****, 
  
  First off, I would like to sincerely apologize for the misunderstanding from your recent inquiry. We deeply regret any inconvenience this may have caused you.
  One of our agents, ****, replied to your email yesterday and, hopefully, this case will now be resolved to your satisfaction. 
  All the best,
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  05/16/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I've been a member of Home Exchange for over 6 years with over 30 positive reviews, yet the Home Exchange has closed my account even though I had 5 upcoming exchanges scheduled and accumulated close to ****** points.I kindly ask you to reinstate my account or reimburse me for guest points - equivalent to about $****** as I hosted the guests at my properties and had expenses associated with these stays/exchanges. In addition, if my account is not reinstated, I will be seeking a refund of the membership fee. Thank you,****

  Business response

  05/16/2023

  Hello Inna,

  I believe you are already in contact with one of our member support agents.  I asked about your case and it was brought to my attention that you frequently offer rentals through your HomeExchange account.  This is not permitted on our website and goes against our terms of use.  I will inform member support that you have messaged us on the BBB website, so that they are aware you are still waiting on a response.

  Kind regards,

  *****

   

  Customer response

  05/16/2023

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  [You must provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.  If you do not enter a reason for your rejection, your complaint will be closed as Answered.]
  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  FAQ
  Dear *****,

  I apologize for sharing the links, but I did explain to the rep that I provided the links not for rental, but only for the information, and closed all the exchanges on Home Exchange (please feel free to check my profile ********************* I have over 60 positive reviews). I explained before that the issue is that I have about 50 listings and I simply dont have time to list them all on Home Exchange.

  Regardless, I apologize for the links. I will not share them again (which means less options will be available for HE members), but if you still decide to close my account, I only ask you to give me a chance to complete my scheduled exchanges as scheduled and issue a reimbursement for my membership fee and for accumulated points, which I expect to be 1 point equals to $1. Thank you. 

  Regards,

  Inna

   

   

  Business response

  05/19/2023

  Hello Inna,

  I noticed you have multiple listings and I can understand the need to quickly send a link, but we are very strict when it comes to sharing *********** properties.  Even if you are being a gracious host and offering someone an exchange in another home with no nightly fee, we still need that home to be on our site and verified, so that we can guarantee our members are not being scammed. 

  I am not sure if you know, but we also have a luxury home exchange community called HomeExchange Collection (*********************************************), that offers additional services and benefits with access to over ***** luxury homes and also access on the regular HomeExchange platform.  If you have an eligible home and want to add a few listings our Collection team will be more than happy to add those homes and all their information to our website, but we will still need you to verify the listings.

  Kind regards,

  *****

• Initial Complaint

  03/29/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Without providing any good explanation, this business (HomeExchange) cancelled my account that still had a $175 annual subscription, plus 2 trips I had previously reserved . This happened on Mar 18, 2022, which was only less than 2 weeks before one of the upcoming trips, which is equivalent to $700 at least. The other reservation that was also canceled was for an international trip equivalent to $600 at least.I received an email from their customer service questioning about another account I stopped using long ago. I used to use that account by myself, but stopped using it to open up a joint account with my partner. Since then, my ************** been solely using this current account, and there hasn't been any transaction at all between the current account & the old one.I was planning to write back explaining all that since they told me they would cancel all my upcoming reservations if they don't get a response from me within 48 hours. But instead of waiting 48 hours, they somehow just cancelled my account & reservations right away the very next day with no further explanation.

  Business response

  03/31/2023

  Hello,

  This member's account was terminated because they violated our terms of use.  The member in questions fraudulently obtained GuestPoints to organize multiple trips.  When we discovered the issue, the member's account was put offline and their exchanges on our platform were cancelled.

  Kind regards,

  The HomeExchange Team

   

• Initial Complaint

  11/30/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  The company cancelled an exchange after taking 200 dollars for a subscription. I learned of the site through mutuals on ********* and paid 200 to try it out. I was looking forward to seeing how this first experience went to see if I wanted to use it on an ongoing basis. I made a first booking at the house of someone who I knew only through ******** mutuals. (Were not fb friends).After the money was taken and the booking was made, they wrote and said that since I knew people in common (on FB! Thats thousands of people!) with the person who told me about the site, that they were cancelling the booking since we knew each other. I explained that I had never met the person I was exchanging with but yes, was more willing to take a recommendation from someone who I had people in common with, and they replied in a passive aggressive way that did not address the issue at all. Theyve tossed me out of a place to stay in December in below freezing weather. I requested a refund if they werent planning to offer services and so far they have kept my 200 dollars. They say this rule that one must have no knowledge nor common relationships (even the faintest acquaintance through social media) with the exchanger is in small print on their website. But they were happy to take 200 dollars without clearly indicating a pretty important rule, that the most common way one would decide to try out a new business, through word of mouth via social media, bars one from using the platform for that very exchange. They did not offer to ask what would help address the issue, even after I explained and said that I would be writing to the BBB. So far, theyve kept my money and denied service. The resolution that I would like is to be able to reinstate this booking. If they refuse for the reason that their website was recommended through a ******** group by someone who has mutuals, then I want my 200 dollars back. Thats a lot of money to take when money is tight for everyone.

  Business response

  12/01/2022

  Hello Naava,

  I am ***** and I head up our team in *******.  I spoke with our Member Support team to get more info about your case and it seems they reinstated the exchange and it will proceed as normal.  I apologize for any mix up on our end, our system is design to flag any potential fraud exchanges.  In the past we had members organize fake exchanges with family & friends in order to exchange GuestPoints, so we now flag any suspicious exchange activity.  I believe we will be changing the system alerts rules so that cases like yours no longer get grouped into the fraud alert.  I hope you enjoy your exchange and feel free to reach back out if you want to discuss further.

  Kind regards,

  
  *****

  Customer response

  12/01/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #********. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***** *************************

• Initial Complaint

  08/24/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Ive been a part of the HomeExchange community for almost a decade. Ive done 84 exchanges all successful on their platform. This last New Years they reached out to us trying to find a last minute exchange for two weeks for a Dutch couple and their family. Since we already had an exchange in ******* set up we said yes. At the last minute the ******* exchange canceled. Home exchange told us that we could go ahead and pay for hotels and we would be reimbursed. So instead of canceling our trip I went ahead and went on it and paid for the hotels. Now eight months later they still have not reimbursed me for my expenses. Often times they dont reply to emails for a week up to a month. Im more than happy to give you copies of the complete email chain so you can see. If we had canceled our trip to ******* then they wouldve been stuck paying for a hotel for the Dutch couple for two weeks instead on one week for us. They told us they would reimburse us up to $120 a night or a hotel. and we actually kept it below this on purpose trying to be as considered as possible. I just dont know what to do because like I said they wont reply to emails or phone calls or anything sometimes for weeks on end.

  Business response

  08/26/2022

  Hello *****,

  My name is also ***** and I am the Manager of our *** team.  I recently received your message through our BBB profile and decided to reach out to you personally.  For starters I would like to thank you for being such a loyal and active member of the HomeExchange community, and I would also like apologize for our lack of communication regarding your valid complaint.

  In regards to the reimbursement the team assured me that it has been processed and you should see the money on your account within the next week or 2.  To give you more information as to why this was not processed sooner, the Member Support team explained to me that you had only provided the booking reservation and they require an invoice or payment receipt in order to process this reimbursement.  This is necessary because our finance department needs to have proof of payment by the member in order to remain compliant with the tax authorities. 

  We slightly modified the policy recently and the team told me they had reached out to you by email, but did not get a response.  I am not sure if the email arrived, but thank you for bringing this issue to my attention and I am glad we could get this settled.

  Please let me know if you have any other concerns or questions.  I can be reached directly at *****@homeexchange.com.

  Thank you again,

  *****

   

   

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩