Spacious 5-bed Banbury House near Spiceball Park

Positive: Your response is not accurate, and several points you made contradict each other. First, regarding the payment: I asked to pay cash on arrival precisely because I was uncomfortable giving my full card details, including CVV, over WhatsApp. You refused and told me nobody was at the property, so I had no choice but to send the card details. Yet now you claim you were “there” to set the heating to 23°C before my arrival. If nobody was available to meet me for cash payment, how was someone suddenly available to physically set the heating? A Nest thermostat is Wi-Fi remote controlled — I have the same system at home and I know exactly how it works. Your statements contradict each other and clearly show the heating was controlled remotely and lowered after we left. The house was freezing when we arrived and freezing when we returned at night. Regarding the toilet: a functional toilet is a basic requirement for any guest. The toilet did not flush at all and water leaked down through the door frame of the lower floor. This is a maintenance fault of the property, not something a guest could ever cause. I informed the manager immediately and sent a video right away. About the electrics: the fuse tripped from the moment we entered, and we could not charge our phones because the sockets were unsafe and unreliable. As for the condition of the property, we arrived late, left our bags, went out, came back at 3 AM, slept until 9 AM, and left. We had no time to “damage” anything, and your claim about the curtains is completely false. What is even more concerning is that you waited until Sunday to mention any issues, even though I reported the flooding immediately with video evidence. Instead of addressing the problems, you kept my deposit and are trying to charge more money for faults that were clearly pre-existing.The only reason I am even responding now is because you attempted to blame us for your own heating, plumbing, and electrical issues. This is your responsibility! Negative: Rating: 1/10 I strongly advise future guests to avoid this property. My experience was extremely disappointing and absolutely unacceptable. From the moment I booked, the entire process felt unsafe and unprofessional. Instead of allowing Booking.com to process the payment securely (as Booking themselves confirmed they would do once the host initiated the charge), the host insisted on taking the payment privately and directly, outside the platform. This raised serious concerns regarding safety and transparency. When we arrived, the accommodation was freezing cold, around 14°C, despite the fact that I clearly informed them I was arriving with children. The heating was controlled remotely via a Wi-Fi thermostat, and even when we set it to a comfortable temperature, the host turned it back down while we were away. We spent the night shivering from cold. The property also had unsafe electrical issues: the sockets caused the fuse to trip repeatedly, making them unusable. The worst part was the condition of the upstairs bathroom. The toilet did not flush properly and water overflowed, leaking down the stairs. This is not something a guest can cause — it clearly shows the plumbing has serious pre-existing problems. Instead of fixing their sanitary issues, the host tried to shift the blame onto us. After we left, they uploaded photos of supposed “damage” (such as curtains they claim were ripped), which is completely false. We slept only a few hours and left everything intact — and the house is full of cameras, so this can easily be verified. It feels as though the owners are trying to repair their property using guests’ deposits, instead of maintaining the house properly. This accommodation is far below any acceptable standard. The conditions were freezing, unsafe, and the facilities were not functioning — and afterwards they tried to accuse us of causing damage that was already there. I cannot recommend this property to anyone.