PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A local married couple who are both pediatric nurses was disappointed to find they could not get a refund for a $3,400 Airbnb lodging expense after their contract to work at a New York City hospital for COVID-19 relief work was canceled.

Jake and Courtney Cotner had signed up to work at Cornell Medical Center in NYC for 13 weeks, starting April 20. A stipend for lodging was listed in the contract, of which they based their budget for housing. They booked an Airbnb near the hospital and owned by a hotel company called Sonder.

“New York’s COVID situation started to kind of level out, which is awesome. We’re so happy,” Jake Cotner told KOIN 6 News. “But of course that meant the Cornell Medical Center didn’t need to bring us over anymore.”

At the beginning of the pandemic, there was great uncertainty as to how much medical relief would be needed in NYC, Cotner said. Even as the city saw a dramatic spike in deaths from the virus this week, it became evident that social distancing was beginning to “flatten the curve,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday.

Cotner landed the travel nurse contract on April 1, along with his wife Courtney, and the pair immediately booked an Airbnb. They were informed by April 6 that “due to low census the facility has decided to cancel their contract as their services are no longer needed,” according to an email from AMN Healthcare company that Cotner shared with KOIN 6 News.

The couple then tried to cancel their Airbnb, 12 days ahead of the first day of their stay. But neither Airbnb or Sonder could accommodate a refund, according to documents Cotner shared with KOIN 6 News.

Jake Cotner (left) and wife Courtney are local pediatric nurses whose contracts for NYC COVID crisis relief were canceled. They were footed with a $3,400 Airbnb bill anyway (photo courtesy Jake Cotner).

Cotner said he expected a more nuanced approach from the companies considering the unusual situation the couple found themselves in, even though each organization were technically operating within their respective cancellation policies.

Cotner said what especially bothered him was that both Airbnb and Sonder have recently, publicly claimed that they really want to look out for front line healthcare workers during the pandemic.

“And here’s this scenario where literally…only purpose for us booking with them was for a crisis nursing contract amid the epicenter of the COVID crisis and they’re still happy to hold on to almost $3,500 without us ever having stayed in one of their properties.”

The company Sonder is still holding on to the cost of only the first month of their planned 13-week stay, which amounted to $3,381.

“We were just honestly totally shocked with the responses that we got from initially Sonder and then Airbnb as well. We thought for sure there would be some recourse with the circumstances,” Cotner said.

In correspondences Cotner shared with KOIN 6 News, Airbnb told the couple their situation was not eligible for refund based on the company’s cancellation policy and advised them to contact the host, Sonder, to see if they would make an exception. Sonder also turned down the request for a refund and referred the couple back to Airbnb, who again denied the request.

According to Airbnb’s website, they do have extenuating circumstance policy amid COVID-19, but it mostly outlines that reservations made before March 14 and take place within that month could be eligible for a refund if they cancel.

On Sonder’s website, they outline certain amenities in response to COVID-19, including an “increased flexibility for all reservations made on Sonder.com” The announcement said “Sonder credits” would be issued for the full value of the booking on cancellations made any time before arrival, no questions asked, which would be eligible toward future reservations with the company. However, the Cotners made the booking through Airbnb.com.

This all comes after the couple had to cancel a planned year-long trip to Australia due to the pandemic.

Cotner is currently unemployed from the situation, since he put in his two weeks notice at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in anticipation of the trip. His wife, Courtney, was able to keep her job there.

KOIN 6 News reached out Airbnb on the matter, who said they could not comment on their client’s personal accounts. We also reached out to Sonder, who did not issue a response in time for publication.