Introducing new COVID-19 safety requirements, updated guest standards, and more in the latest Host Update

[Airbnb]

In the latest Host Update, Catherine Powell discusses quality hosting, updates to guest standards, and new COVID-19 safety requirements for members of the Airbnb community. 

Last year, in an effort to hold guests accountable for their actions during a stay, we announced new guest reliability standards. Since then, roughly 100,000 guest accounts that violated these policies and standards have been suspended or removed. In response to ongoing host feedback, we’re adding five new criteria to our guest reliability standards to address late checkouts, unauthorized pets, removal of approved security devices, and other issues. 

Between now and the end of the year, we’ll be investing in improvements to our systems and processes. These efforts will help us in making progress to ensure consistent enforcement, quicker response times, and higher overall accountability with guests.

As the heart of the Airbnb community, we know you work incredibly hard to provide the highest level of hospitality for your guests. When travelers have a bad experience with a host on Airbnb, it affects hosts’ reputations in their local communities and governments—and hurts our community as a whole. We’ve noticed recently that a group of listings didn’t live up to our expectations for quality. So just as we are removing guests to help protect the Airbnb community, we’ve decided to suspend or remove listings that have a consistent pattern of serious issues or that have regularly received low review ratings and failed to meet guest expectations.

In most cases, hosts with affected listings have already been notified and there is an appeals process in place to help address concerns. To learn more about these updates and how they may impact you as a host, watch the full Host Update. 

To help keep our community safe and trusted, starting October 12, hosts of stays will be asked to commit to a five-step enhanced cleaning process. Hosts will be required to attest to the protocol by November 20. If you’ve already attested, you’ll simply need to follow a quick prompt to agree to wear a mask and practice social distancing. New hosts will also need to commit to the safety practices. According to internal Airbnb data, listings enrolled in the Enhanced Cleaning Protocol are some of the most popular listings and have three times more bookings on average than listings that were not enrolled in the protocol.

We know health and safety has been top of mind for both hosts and guests alike, and we will continue to try and ensure standards are being met. As always, thank you for sharing the topics that matter to you. Please let us know what you’d like us to cover in future Host Updates with Catherine. 

To read a full overview of the video, visit this Resource Center article.

[Keith352]

About half of the 5-step cleaning process is nonsense @Catherine-Powell. A steaming pile of it. It has no correlation with CURRENT CDC guidance. AirBnb in their infinite ignorance is using guidance that was outdated in April. Nobody with an ounce of common sense would let a sanitizing liquid air dry, someone will run their finger over it and any puddle would smell like Clorox. What happens if I have to change a lightbulb in a room I already cleaned? Resanitize it? Cancel the guests stay for fear of cross-contamination? It's nonsense. We're already leaving at least 24 hours between stays. Anyone that actually reads CDC guidance knows it's cross-contamination isn't a "thing" when you're talking about extended periods between stays. My wife and I are both high risk so we're not doing anything to put ourselves or guests at risk, but if AirBnb isn't willing to accept us we've been SuperHosts for 2 years and rated "sparkling clean" by the majority of our guests then we're done. It's not going to be worth the hassle to deal with the BS on top of the rotten customer service, and with AirBnb giving guests an open excuse to claim "non-compliance" at every turn to get a free ride it's going to be impossible to make enough money to be worth it.

[Michael-And-Kenny0]

That's why i'm looking around at other platforms.  I, like you have always did more and you are right about guest taking advantage of a free ride.  Good luck!

[Deb75]

Agree totally Keith. I too have been a super host with sparkling clean reviews (over 160) in the three years I've been open.  I have ALWAYS cleaned meticulously as I work hard (I do this myself) to make sure my guests are comfortable, and in a fresh and inviting and sanitary environment.  I to am concerned about the 'open season' for bad guests to claim non compliance just to get a free stay.  We'll see!

[Janet417]

Good evening! I have been a Superhost for some time and as far as I know I have received no negative comments on either my beach house or flat. What I find a little unsettling about this advice is that it is extremely condescending. Airbnb is a business and at no point whatsoever during the pandemic were they at risk of going under because after all, it is the hosts and guests who are paying clients whereas I imagine Airbnb have very few overheads. What I found most disturbing about this clip was the way in which I felt that I was being told what to do. In the same way that your guests are your clients, so are your hosts and without hosts, Airbnb would not exist. 

[Janet417]

This clip left me feeling as though I were a student being talked to by a teacher. Not a client being dealt with by a professional. Get the register right, Airbnb.

[Peter2840]

There are zero cases of covid 19 flu in the Shoalhaven. Very few people (less than 1%) wear masks. There is conflicting medical advice on wearing them anyway. It would be good if Airbnb accepted local community standards of mask wearing, cleaning and social behaviour rather than trying to impose an Airbnb community (whatever that is?) standard. After all hosts and guests like me are paying you big dollars to manage bookings, not to dictate unreasonable rules and regulations and a social agenda.

[Dara11]

I have heard other places that this includes a 3-day block on our calendars after each guest. Why is this not mentioned? Is this true? If this is purposely being downplayed as we're being smiled at and assured how great this is - that makes me feel kinda' manipulated.

[Ellika0]

Hi,

in Sweden we follow the orders from our national health authorities, not airbnb. It is not up to airbnb to dictate how hosts in individual countries should handle covid-19. Please refrain from your new rules.

Regards,

Ellika Custhag, Sweden

[Gregory358]

The new requirement that hosts must agree to wear a mask is a serious misstep by AirBnB. I host in the guest room of my apartment and it is not a requirement in my country (Germany) that masks be worn in private spaces, but now I will be required to wear a mask in my own home. This should be a matter of personal choice in light of local government guidelines. It would be one thing if AirBnB enabled hosts to indicate on their listing that they will wear a mask and/or request that their guests to do so, but for a corporation to make this a universal requirement is a serious invasion of privacy and curtailment of autonomy. There are good reasons to wear masks in various contexts but it is not within the remit of AirBnB to legislate that.

This seems to me to be more evidence that AirBnB is turning its back on the original base of individual hosts privately sharing space in their own home towards the interests of businesses that rent whole apartments—indeed, whole buildings—via AirBnB with serious consequences in cities where there is a shortage of housing. 

[Leyla13]

Excellent points. It is not required anywhere that masks should be used in private spaces!

We rent the spare area in our home too. And so far the experience of receiving people in our home has been very positive and enriching.

Yes, I also see how Airbnb is turning away from that spirit in which it was created and which provided real connexion experiences among hosts and guests. 

[Sarah977]

If you share common areas with guests, like hallways, living room, kitchen, etc, then those are not private spaces. Neither are private room if they share the same heating/cooling system with the rest of the house. Sharing indoor living space with others has been found to be the primary means of virus transmission. 

I also have a private room home share listing and have enjoyed hosting and meeting guests from all over the world for over 3 years. But I haven't been hosting since March because it isn't a safe situation for either me or my guests as long as COVID is a threat. 

@Leyla13

[Paresh3]

@Catherine_Powell 

Whilst I am directing this comment to Catherine Powell, the apparently new Hosting Director, why is is that when I type @Catherine_Powell there is No Match?? Why do airbnb Mgmt insist on being impossible to contact and remain relatively anonymous?

With a hope and a prayer perhaps you will actually read this.

So far your support have demonstrated a lack of ability to respond to my issues.

I have been getting random, and inconsistent replies from various staff members, and I don't seem to be able to get a proper credible, rational explanation, which is disconcerting.

As a superhost I found the support was still lacking, despite airbnb stating there would be a dedicated help for superhosts.

Achieving a superhost status is also a mystery.

I was granted that in July 2020 (for the 2nd time), having achieved 4.8 and over 90% response, etc. 

Now logically if you waived the number of stays and occupancy criteria in March 2020 and I only had one guest 5* review in July AFTER I was already a superhost, I would expect that my rating then should be on average higher than 4.8 for October. But apparently, I have had various of your support colleagues give me inconsistent and incomplete explanations. The latest is that the review periods are for the previous 12 months. So even if that is the case, and all things being equal, there were no negative feedbacks, only 2 guests staying and one of them giving 5*, and the other had on a previous stay also given me 5*, it is inexplicable how my rating average can actually FALL to 4.7 in a matter of only 2-3 months! The only explanation I can find is that the rating criteria are STILL taking into account the other criteria that you claim were waived. According to my profile I have a 4.8 rating which also contradicts what your staff say. So what do I believe?

I am REALLY trying t o undertstand this.

Can you please clarify?

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Paresh3 Asking in multiple threads doesn't really help you to get an answer. There is a logic as to why this has happened to doubt it's written in another thread

[Paresh3]

@Mike-And-Jane0 

Thank you for your reply.

I did repeat my question because I felt it more relevant under a different topic.

Unfortunately, I do not have the time to read each and every update or post, as I have a life outside of airbnb. If like me there are others who also do not read everything, then repeating something may have an increased chance of getting a reply.

One does have the option to ignore a comment / post. No harm done! No harm intended.

I am new to this community and reading various views and comments critical or less than complimentary about different policies or issues. I thought this is the whole point of the community to share and voice concerns, and reach out to the widest audience of hosts, especially when there is lack of support through other channels.

I am also aware that airbnb use this channel to get feedback, so posting the same or similar comments in different relevant threads is helpful.

Hosts, new to this community / platform, should be encouraged to post, not discouraged.

[Helen427]

@Airbnb @Catherine-Powell why are Airbnb not seeking a Judicial Review on WHO advice re Masks/ Face coverings, cleaning protocols, Social Distancing and the whole Coronavirus Act which was so hastily imposed on us world wide bc of a munted methodology initiated by Professor Neil Ferguson, whose history is shoddy,  Imperial College of London & other Academics who omitted to factor into account pre existing Legislation for each and every countries unique situations & Public & Private Health care systems? 

Taking a blanket approach for a virus that it's unknown exactly where & how it's come from is nuts.