We are super fans of home exchange and have been for many years . We have encouraged friends and family always to get involved and will continue to do so. Luckily we have only had one cancellation and home exchange helped a lot - it was a guest points exchange. My question is around our first simultaneous exchange , arranged and agreed months ago and just yesterday cxl by our host . Surely there has to be a quick solution here. The auto A1chat although I am sure is useful for many things was not useful and just kept saying someone will be in touch within 2 hrs which did not happen. Yesterday I also wrote an email and awaiting a reply so fingers crossed, but nothing so far. We have started sending messages and looks to be very difficult to get another simultaneous exchange putting us at a huge disadvantage now closer to summer with everyone having exchanges planned. if we don’t find another simultaneous, we have to either cxl the trip or pay 8 days of guest points we have gathered for a trip we are planning next year, there must be support and compensation of some sort . Should the host not be able to pay guest points to help us find another exchange or HE gift x amount of guest points or if we find a flat in same area for a non simultaneous quickly reduce the guest points we have to pay. All theses things if set would be a quicker way to find a solution to cxl quicker . The travel plan is booked , the organisation is done , plans, meeting people and yes I know it’s is very easy for a plan to come up where you can’t honour your exchange I am sure but there has to be something set for this not to impact the one who didn’t cxl and had the plan in place for months . Looking for quick solution, not waiting weeks to try resolve and full of stress waiting .
Hi, It’s Easter weekend and your exchange isnt within the next 24 hours, so not surprising really that you haven’t been contacted yet. HE will help you and are the best obes to answer all your questions. You’re host should contact them to explain why they’re cancelling and you can contact them too. Good luck, I’m sure you’ll have a solution 
I am so sorry you are going through is. It is so stressful - it has just happened to us, with 10 days notice. HE do not prioritise helping until there are 4 days to go! You need nerves of steel to have a trip planned, travel booked, events booked and not know where you will be staying. So you feel you have to start doing something, but it seems you could end up with no compensation if you try to sort things out yourself, such as try to fix up a new non-reciprocal exchange for GPs, but you need more GPs to cover it (if someone could clarify this point to me that would be really helpful). The problem with having arranged a zero GP reciprocal exchange is that you then have to use GPs that you had no plan to use for this trip and if you are a first timer like us you have few points, so may not be able to find something suitable. Like you say there should be an automatic gifting of points equivalent to your own home x number of days, so at least you have a chance to find something. The other problem is that once you realise you are in this situation you read the conditions - that HE will only meet your basic criteria, but you tend to choose on the basis of pictures and other criteria. At least this should include either a choice of properties or compensation or properties similar in GP to your own. And I think somewhere up to 50km away from a city you planned to stay in is just too far. Since it seems that late cancellations (within 2 weeks) are relatively rare it should not be too difficult for HE to take up these suggestions and those of SLP to reduce the stress of this problem.