We arranged a home rental in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York and had or rent money stolen by an online hacker. We contacted the owner's e-mail, or so we thought, and agreed upon a week to rent. A contract document was shared and signed by both parties, and everything seemed set for our vacation. The "owner" asked us to wire payment and provided the bank routing and account numbers. Money was sent.
About 1 week before our trip we called the owner to ask a few questions. She had NO idea who we were. Most disturbingly, VRBO placed the blame for the incident on the homeowner and asked her to refund our money. I believe she was also a victim. She did not have the Internet savvy to protect herself or prtpetrate a scam. VRBO needs to step up and pay for incidents like this if they want to continue a strong on-line business. VRBO can probably insure themselves for these toes of losses. VRBO ought to help homeowner - renters with Internet security, rather than blame them for the problem.
I do not recommend doing business with VRBO!!
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