When large-scale travel disruptions prevent or prohibit a guest from starting or completing their stay, Vrbo may apply this Extenuating Circumstances Policy. When the policy applies, guests may be eligible to cancel their booking and receive a refund, regardless of the listing’s cancellation policy, and hosts may be eligible for a host cancellation fee waiver for cancellations arising from a qualifying disruption. 

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

This policy may apply to large-scale travel disruptions that are in-scope under this policy and: 

• Occur after a booking is confirmed; 
• Are not reasonably foreseeable at the time of booking; 
• Affect the area where the property is located; and 
• Make the stay illegal, impossible, or impracticable to complete as planned.  

Vrbo will determine, at its discretion, whether this policy applies, including the affected area and which disruptions and reservations fall within scope.  

Guests and hosts will be notified when this policy applies to a reservation. Until Vrbo provides that notice, the listing’s cancellation policy and any enforcement under the Host Cancellation Policy will continue to apply.

The following disruptions may be in scope under this policy.

• Natural disasters and abnormal weather events 
  • Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, landslides, tornadoes, flooding, wildfires, and other severe weather events may be in scope. 
• Certain categories of hurricanes 
  • Hurricanes classified as Category 3 or higher at least 24-hours before forecasted landfall may be in scope.  
  • If a hurricane is below Category 3 at least 24 hours before forecasted landfall, this policy generally will not apply unless the hurricane makes landfall and its impact causes another disruption that is in scope under this policy. 
• Declared health emergencies 
  • Epidemics, public health emergencies, and emerging pandemic emergencies declared by a national or local government or regulatory authority may be in scope. Health emergencies are no longer in in scope once they become endemic, known, or ongoing.  
• Wars, terrorist attacks, and other hostilities 
  • War, terrorist attacks, riots, large-scale civil unrest, and other hostilities may be in scope where they affect the area the property is located and make travel or hosting illegal, impossible, or impracticable. 
• Government travel restrictions 
  • Binding national or local government travel restrictions may be in scope when they make travel or hosting illegal, impossible, or impracticable. 
• Infrastructure outages  
  • Prolonged outages of essential public utilities affecting most homes in a region may be in scope.  
• Changes to passport or visa requirements 
  • Unexpected government changes to passport or visa requirements after booking may be in scope if the new requirements cannot reasonably be met before travel and make travel illegal. 

The following disruptions are outside the scope of this policy. If they affect a reservation, the listing’s cancellation policy still applies to guests, and hosts may not be eligible for a cancellation enforcement waiver. 

• Bookings made after a disruption is already underway, even if its impact has increased. 
• Diseases that are endemic or common in a region, known public-health risks, COVID-19, or government restrictions that were known at the time of booking. 
• Local demonstrations or localized civil unrest that do not prevent travel or hosting. 
• Non-binding government advisories or foreseeable travel restrictions. 
• Transport disruptions, such as airline strikes, maintenance issues, or routine schedule changes that are not caused by a qualifying disruption. 
• Passport or visa changes that were already publicly known at the time of booking. 
• Lost, expired, invalid, or missing travel documents, or failure to obtain required travel documents in time. 
• A guest’s personal circumstances, including illness, injury, jury duty, military duty, or the cancellation or rescheduling of an event they planned to attend. 
• Foreseeable seasonal weather typical for the region and season when it does not cause another qualifying disruption. 

• If a guest needs to cancel a booking due to a qualifying disruption, they may request a full or partial refund from their host:  
  • If the guest has not checked in, the host must provide a full refund.  
  • If the stay has already begun, the host must provide a partial refund for the portion of the stay that cannot be completed.  
• If further support is needed, guests can contact Vrbo Support. 

• If a host needs to cancel a booking due to a qualifying disruption, they may be eligible for a waiver from enforcement under the Host Cancellation Policy. 
• Hosts who cannot honor a booking because of a qualifying disruption should notify the guest and issue the required refund.  
  • Reservations canceled while this policy applies (i.e., in response to a qualifying disruption) may be eligible for a waiver from enforcement actions, including cancellation fees and loss of Premier Host status. 
  • Hosts that proactively cancel bookings prior to Vrbo’s confirmation that this policy applies may still be subject to enforcement actions.  
• If a guest notifies a host that they cannot travel because of a qualifying disruption, the host must honor the refund request.  
• If we are made aware of a possible violation of this policy, we will investigate and take appropriate action, including suspension or termination. 
• If further support is needed, hosts can contact Vrbo Support. 

Where local law or regulation requires a different outcome, that law or regulation will take precedence over this policy.