A family booked what they thought was a dream vacation at a beautiful home on the water, but they tell us when they got to the South Florida rental, it was a nightmare. They filed a lawsuit to get their money back. 7’s Heather Walker investigates.
It was supposed to be the ultimate family vacation.
Ngozi Emelike: “Our family saved up for the entire year to take our parents out to vacation.”
Ngozi Emelike and her family live in DC. So they were ready to soak up some South Florida sun with her parents, who finally had some free time.
Ngozi Emelike: “They are retired, so we wanted to take them out. Got all the grandkids, all the parents together.”
They turned it into a true family affair – 11 people in total. They booked a big house so everyone could hang out together. Her sister-in-law, Bianca Parker, helped plan the trip.
Bianca Parker: “We were looking forward to it. We always imagined going to Miami is more of a fun spot. It’s time to relax, have a good time.”
This is the home they rented — “A Modern Three-Story Waterfront Residence” – with seven bedrooms, nine baths, a pool, and a hot tub.
Ngozi Emelike: “We hear a lot about the homes, how you can stay in the homes in Miami. They are really grand and nice by the water. We were super excited.”
But, days before their trip, the family says they got a call from Luxuri Management – the South Florida-based company that listed the home for rent on VRBO.
Bianca Parker: “All of the issues started when we received information from the house that the home we planned on staying at was no longer available. They had damages, and we wouldn’t be able to stay there.”
The family asked for a refund. That’s when they say things took a turn.
Bianca Parker: “They kind of, tried to convince us basically to stay at another home.”
Ngozi Emelike: “He was saying, ‘It’s the same house,’ we are going to have a good time, it’s above the water.”
This was the new house, it looked good on paper, and it was about $10,000 cheaper…
But when they arrived at the home, some toilets didn’t flush, appliances were broken, and it was dirty. They stayed because they had nowhere else to go. But after the trip, they filed a lawsuit — to get some of their money back.
Bianca Parker: “Just get the money back, just to get the difference so that way we could actually make our parents happy and make us feel good about what we did.”
7Investigates reached out to Luxuri Management LLC. The company sent us a statement saying, “We take pride in delivering exceptional service and hospitality. It is our goal to make every say a true reflection of the care and quality our guests deserve. We worked closely with the guest to reach a positive resolution, and the matter has since been resolved.”
The family says that the resolution was a “$2,000 refund” in exchange for removing any bad reviews. When we contacted VRBO, the company immediately agreed to refund the nearly $10,000 price difference.
Ngozi Emelike: “That is amazing! I mean, for you to be able to do this for us, wow. I just want to thank you and your team for listening to us, caring about what we had to say and fighting for us.”
VRBO says if a host cancels last minute, contact customer service before accepting any new offer. It wasn’t the picture-perfect vacation this family was hoping for, but now they have money for their next trip.
Heather Walker, 7News.
CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com
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