Cancellation Policy
The short version: guests see the cancellation terms before they book — one of three tiers the host picked. If a host cancels on short notice, we fine the host and, if it's late enough, fund the guest's rebooking ourselves. Carvia never keeps its service fee or protection cost on a cancelled trip.
1. Guest cancellations
Every listing shows one of three cancellation tiers, set by the host, before you book:
| Tier | Full refund window | Partial refund | No refund |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flexible | 24+ hours before trip start | 50% inside 24 hours | — |
| Moderate | 5+ days before trip start | 50% between 1-5 days before | inside 24 hours |
| Strict | 14+ days before trip start | 50% between 5-14 days before | inside 5 days |
Whatever portion of the trip subtotal is refunded, Carvia's 12% service fee and your protection-plan cost on that portion are refunded too — we don't keep our cut when a trip doesn't happen. If a guest cancels after check-in has already started (the trip is "Active"), no refund applies regardless of tier, since the vehicle has already been handed over.
2. Host cancellations
Hosts cancelling on a guest is one of the most disruptive things that can happen on a trip, so we take it seriously — and we don't leave the guest to deal with it alone:
| When the host cancels | Fee to host | What happens for the guest |
|---|---|---|
| 7+ days before trip start | none | Guest gets a full refund; no rebooking guarantee needed |
| 3-7 days before trip start | $30 | Full refund, and Carvia proactively helps the guest find a comparable replacement |
| Inside 72 hours, or after the check-in window opens | $75 | Full refund, plus Carvia's funded rebooking guarantee: if the guest has to book a comparable replacement vehicle at a higher price, Carvia pays the difference, up to 1.5× the original trip price |
Hosts who cancel late 3 or more times in a rolling 90-day period will have their account reviewed — this can mean losing Instant Book eligibility or being moved to the Max Protection earnings plan only, regardless of which plan they were on.
3. Extenuating circumstances
Either party can cancel without the fees or refund limits above if a documented emergency prevents the trip: a death in the immediate family, serious illness or injury, a government-issued travel restriction, or a natural disaster affecting the pickup or return location. Supporting documentation must be submitted within 14 days of the cancellation through the in-app claims flow. See Extenuating Circumstances Policy for how to file.
4. What counts as a "cancellation" vs. a no-show
If a guest doesn't show up or respond within a reasonable window of the scheduled pickup time (and hasn't messaged the host), the trip may be closed as a no-show, which follows the same refund tiers as a guest cancellation inside the no-refund window. If a host isn't reachable or ready at the scheduled pickup time and the guest cancels as a result, it's treated as a host cancellation under the tier above that matches how much notice the host effectively gave (i.e., inside 72 hours, since it happened at pickup).
5. Modifying a trip instead of cancelling
Changing dates or return time doesn't automatically trigger cancellation fees — see how to modify a booking — but a host can decline a change request, in which case the original terms above still apply if either side then chooses to cancel outright.