Updates to Airtasker’s Cancellation Policy

When a task is posted on Airtasker, the Customer should feel confident it’ll get done. Similarly, when a Tasker accepts a job, they should feel confident in being able to schedule it into their time.

Whilst we’re chuffed this happens most of the time, we understand things don’t always go to plan – it can be a frustrating experience when someone suddenly cancels a task.

That’s why we’re making updates to our Cancellation Policy to help build an even more dependable platform so you can keep getting more done. Please read carefully how cancellations will be treated on Airtasker by the Community Standards Enforcement Team. 

From the 17th of August, you will see these updates:

Connection fee (previously known as the Booking fee)

A core part of the value we bring to the Airtasker community is when we help you find the right Tasker to do your task and vice versa. To ensure we can continue to operate a platform that allows these connections to happen, we charge a Connection fee. The Connection fee is calculated as a percentage of your task value, varying from $2.90 to $34.90 (our maximum capped payment amount) in Australia and £1.90 to  £29.90 in the UK.

So what does this mean for you? 

As a Customer, you pay for the Connection Fee when you accept a Tasker’s offer. This is because our platform has found you the best person to help get your task done. In the event that your task is cancelled by your Tasker, you’ll be returned the full payment value in Airtasker credits or as a full refund to your original payment method upon request. If you cancel the task, the Connection Fee will be deducted from our payment return to you.

As a Tasker, you pay nothing at the time of having your offer accepted. If you cancel a task after it has been accepted, we will deduct the value of the Connection fee paid by the Customer from your next payout.

For serious offenders, we also may suspend your account if you repeatedly cancel tasks.  Account suspensions can range from temporary suspensions (e.g. 1 week) to permanent suspensions.

Ratings and reviews

Ratings and reviews also provide valuable feedback that can help Customers and Taskers inform their decisions about which person to work with. Customers are able to provide a review on a cancelled task as well as private feedback to Airtasker, which we may act on at our discretion. Cancellations affect your ability to win work on the platform by reducing your star rating.

Here’s an example of how these changes show up on the Airtasker platform:

Steve needs some help moving boxes, and he posts this as a task on Airtasker (*claps for Steve*).

Tina sees this posted task and offers $100 to help do the task, and Steve accepts. Steve’s card is now charged to hold $113 ($13 Connection Fee that goes to Airtasker and $100 to pay Tina once she’s completed the task).

Here’s how a few different scenarios could play out:

Customer cancels on the Tasker

The morning that Tina is supposed to come around to move boxes, Steve decides to cancel the task as his plans have changed. On this occasion, Steve will receive $100 in credits back to his Airtasker account. Airtasker will keep the $13 to cover the Connection Fee.

Tasker cancels on the Customer

Tina decides to change her plans and cancels on Steve’s task. On this occasion, Tina will now be responsible for paying the $13 Connection Fee, which will be taken off her next payout. Steve’s full payment of $113 will be returned to him as credits to his Airtasker account – ready and waiting for his next task. He can also request this as a refund to his original method of payment.

Please be sure to check out the updated Cancellation Policy here.