I did not realize that when I had booked Aksel's apartment in Plateau Mont-Royal I would be expected to sleep on the street.
The check-in instructions Aksel himself sent mention that it "could be necessary to play with the key in the lock." However, the integrity of the lock and key was much worse than the host implied. On the second day of my stay, after wasting far too much time trying to unlock the apartment, the key snapped in half. I very promptly contacted The Luckey Team - through email, text, and phone - who were busy. It was not until several hours later that I received an email from The Luckey Team asking to call them. Following a super fun game of phone tag and a stress-free afternoon spent without access to my belongings, I was told there was no spare key to the apartment and that the host, Aksel, was not reachable. When I asked for Aksel's contact information I was told such information was disclosed. I was told by The Luckey Team that the only alternative was to seek a locksmith. Locked out of the apartment with an unresponsive owner, with The Luckey Team instructing us to contact an emergency locksmith, of course, we followed their directives.
Therefore, you can only imagine my reaction when I was told - conveniently after the brand new lock installed and new keys issued - that such costs would not be reimbursed. I was later told by The Luckey Team the issue could have been solved the following day - suggesting that Aksel would have been happy to leave his guests locked out of the apartment with zero access to their belongings overnight, let alone a place to sleep. They were nice enough to apologize for any "bad advice" given by their team but insisted that I took on those costs by my own choice. Perhaps I'm frugal - but if I wanted to spend an extra $580 on my Airbnb, I certainly would not have been staying at a one-bedroom apartment. I have since been in contact with the Resolution Centre.
The idea that I was expected to cover the costs of a known faulty lock and key - an unsafe oversight of the host - is outrageous. But hey, so is an Airbnb host who does not have a spare key or makes themselves available for emergencies. I was taken advantage of during a safety and security issue, and I would hate for anyone else to experience a similar situation.
So if you like having access to your belongings, a place to sleep for the night, or an Airbnb host who even remotely cares about their guests' safety - avoid Aksel at all costs.
PS - Whoever has stayed at this Airbnb since my ordeal, I hope you liked the new lock and keys.