Couchsurfing Reviews 766

Same as others, which I wish I read to pay closer attention to. They charged me $102AUD for verification. Verifying you are a real person pursay, isn't something you need to pay for, and like others, I thought you didn't get charged for it. When I requested a refund immediately they said they don't and you're contributing to the app. That's not a verification??? on the website, when I looked more into it, it says that you could ask for a refund before 2020. Why not after 2020? what's changed? in addition to this. A lot of people have been inactive for over a year, have a 0% response rate and those who are responsive are sleazy men.

SCAMMER & THIEF.

I disagree with Couchsurfing has never offered a lifetime subscription I paid 57eur. As a long-time member, I clearly recall the 2018 offer, which was presented as a lifetime membership. This offer was advertised as a one-time payment that would grant ongoing access to Couchsurfing, with no mention of future subscription fees.
Now policies have changed since then, but my purchase was made under specific terms that guaranteed lifetime access. To now impose additional fees violates the agreement under which I subscribed.
Additionally, I want to note that I am not alone in this situation. There is a significant number of members who subscribed under similar terms and are facing the same issue.

SCAM - DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY

See other reviews. I am trying to dispute the payment taken with Visa. I have also reported to Trading Standards. If you have been scammed too - PLEASE REPORT THEM.

Somebody is getting very rich from others misfortunes. I just hope that Karma does the rounds on this one.

when I pay the $2.99 Couchsurfing subscription, I saw a large message instructing me to "verify your account with your credit card."

Since other services, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), verify account authenticity with a card (without any charge), many people, including myself, add their card without noticing the small, light gray text that reveals the hidden price.

By the time you realize this, it's basically too late. You are charged 56 euros, which doesn't seem legal or ethical in the EU, as customers have the right to request a refund.

BE AWARE OF THE LIFETIME VERIFICATION SCAM

During the verification process, I was taken to a page that offered the option to verify my account via PayPal or credit card. At no point during this process was the cost of verification mentioned. After providing my card details, I was unexpectedly charged 56€. This lack of transparency regarding the fee constitutes a dark-pattern fraud and is unacceptable. SCAMMERS

WARNING - DONT GIVE YOUR CREDIT CARD TO COUCHSURFING UNLESS YOU EMAIL THEM FIRST AND ASK FOR THE STARTUP COSTS
I activated a one month account - it very clearly stated it would be $4 for the month. I got to choose between $4 for the month and $20 dollars for the year. Totally reasonable.
There was never a place to click for anything else and then they charged me $87 dollars for a "lifetime membership" (credit card charge).
I read on some reddits later that when you are giving your credit card number, there is this very hard to read grey writing.
Its totally not worth it.

Had a couchsurfer complain about me but the people who run Couchsurfing never asked me for my side of the story. My account was suspended and then deactivated. They never reached out to me. I find it incredibly unfair that I cannot defend myself against accusations made against me. They also mentioned that others had complained about me but I had over 1000 friends on the app and the only reason I could think why anyone would have complained about me is because I sent them friend requests.

Charging entrance fees to the ghost town. Can not delete profile or answer requests. Total scam.

A total scam. They claim to have no refunds for the service, even though it is an illegal practice within the EU. They charge without permission and then refuse to give the money back even though I cancel the subscription.

I can not log in for over a year now, password reset emails don't come through and the support is an email loop. They now have charged me again the yearly membership, but can't even log in to close my account. If I won't receive answers or help soon, I will have to consult lawyer or I will be charged the rest of my life!

Very unfortunate seeing all those negative references here. I've been using Couchsurfing for 9 years now and never regret being a member of the platform. Couchsurfing is a great way to meet new people, learn about diffrent cultures while you travel. Last year I travelled across the US for 2 months and was hosted via Couchsurfing in 80% of all the places I went. It would be nice if Couchsurfing continues developing the app/website as it hasen't been updated in years. Happy Couchsurfing :)

I got scammed for 56 euros on verification. The message is misleading, it seems like just personal verification via Credit Card. But apparently, they change your money, and not just some symbolic cents but 56 euros. This shows the true attitude of the users. If I don't get the refund, I'm going to submit a dispute.

Total scam! the idea is nice but the user experience is terrible, a truly disgusting website! And they want around 60 dollars for "verification" just absolutely stupid in every sense

I used to use Couchsurfing a lot and loved it both as a couchsurfer and as a host, but it has changed hands and there is now some very scammy and despicable buisness tricks. I had signed off during the pandemic and when I looked again later, there was a subscription fee. It is quite small and I don't mind it. I didn't sign up yet though, and yet I was receiving couchsurfers requests... When I clicked on them to answer, although not active and marked as unavailable on the platform, I saw I needed to pay the fee to answer...Couchsurfing now makes your profile seem active, and tries to pull you in with this cheap tactic. It is such a scammy way to treat people. We all know how much time it takes to send a good request and all, and these people's time and money are completely wasted on acutally inactive profiles. They are paying to have access to and be able to write to people that are not even subscribed ! And I hate to see people that have taken the time to write to me be ignored, but I won't fall for that trick. I am unavailble at the moment for hosting and that is what should be shown on my profile ! It is because of this very bad ethic that I won't participate in couchsurfing anymore. It has been great, but it is now in bad hands and the ethics are out the window. I'd pay a fee but not if that's how the money is spent.

They basically stole me 56€ of annual verification

I logged in to the couchsurfing site after a long time and paid for the monthly
subscription and it asked me to verify the account and suddenly it had charged me 54e for a lifetime verification!
It was done in such a matter that you thought you are putting the details for the monthly payment. It was only to miselead the customer
and make them pay for nothing. There was no verfication for the payment or product and suddenly you realise that you paid for something you were not
even aware of. This has happened to many people before me, I learned later, so it is an obvious scam.

Also you should be able to manage your Couchsurfing subscription details on your
Membership & Contributions page within your Account Settings, but you can't get there without paying. If you have no payment going there is no
knowing or checking what you have paid. Or if they are charging something all the time (obviously you can check you bank account).
It's a total scam, they just want to take your money.

DO NOT VERIFY YOUR ACCOUNT.
So, CS scammed me last week asking for account verification charging me for 56 euros without making the price visible before charging.
Saw many posts of many people that were scammed the same way, but somehow managed to get their refund, and some of them not.

Complete scam. Do not give them any of your money. I wish I had looked into Trust Pilot reviews before creating an account. On logging in I was prompted to verify my card and charged £51 without my permission. Working to get the money back due to them being in breach of particular regulations and if you are in the same situation they will likely not reply after sending you automated responses.

I agreed to pay 22 dkkr for membership, but they have now drawn almost 500 dkkr from my bank account. I am so angry