Airbnb Answers: Guest profile photos

[Airbnb]

Update: January, 2019

A few months ago, we told you about some changes Airbnb was making to the way guest profile photos are displayed. You can read the original post, below.

Now that those changes are being introduced gradually, we want to make sure you have all the information you need. Here’s a recap of what will be changing, along with some tips.

New photo process

Moving forward, rather than displaying a potential guest’s profile photo before the booking is accepted, you’ll receive a guest’s photo after you’ve accepted the booking request. If you have Instant Book turned on, you won’t notice a change to the booking process.

Airbnb does not require guests to have profile photos. Although most guests provide a photo, some have told us they don’t want to share a picture of themselves when booking, and we listened.

At the same time, many of you told us that you value guest profile photos, and we listened to you, too. That’s why we’ve introduced a new option for hosts to be able to customize their own booking requirements.

New host control

You now have the option to require that your guests provide a profile photo. Again, the photo will be visible to you only after you accept the booking request. If you’d like to require your guests to provide a profile photo, you’ll need to turn on the control option in your settings for each of your listings, either on mobile or on web. Specifically:

On mobile:

1. Go to the listing you’d like to require profile photos for
2. Tap Booking settings
3. Tap Guest requirements
4. Look for the Profile photo section and tap Edit
5. Tap Require a profile photo
6. Tap Save

On web:

1. From your host dashboard, click Listings
2. Click Booking settings
3. Next to Guest requirements, click Edit
4. Check the box next to Profile photo
5. Click Save

If you take this step and a potential guest doesn’t already have a profile photo, they’ll be prompted to upload one before they can request to book your space. A guest’s profile photo will not be available to you until after you accept the booking request. If the guest doesn’t want to provide a photo, then they won’t be able to book your space. 

Additional support

If you choose to require that your guests have a profile photo and one of your potential guests uploads an image that doesn’t show their face—a photo of a sunset or their dog, for instance—then you can call Airbnb’s Community Support. They’ll work with you to address the issue, and if you feel uncomfortable hosting someone without a photo that shows their face, you can request to cancel the reservation penalty-free.

As a reminder, Airbnb’s nondiscrimination policy prohibits hosts from making booking decisions or canceling reservations based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status. 

As an extra step, as always, you can require guests to provide a government ID to Airbnb in order to be able to book your space. You can read more about that process here.

Why these changes are important

We talked with lots of hosts and guests about profile photos, and we think these changes satisfy the core concerns and feedback we heard. We’ll be paying close attention to how these changes to profile photos affect our community, and will continue working to improve and simplify the process to ensure you feel comfortable hosting. We hope you’ll share your feedback with us so we can continue to build a community where everyone can belong. Thank you for hosting.

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October, 2018

You've been asking a lot about guest profile photos, and Airbnb has been working on new policies to address your concerns. Here is an update from Airbnb:

Today, we’re announcing some changes we will be making to the way we display guest profile photos.

Moving forward, rather than displaying a potential guest’s profile photo before the booking is accepted, hosts will receive a guest’s photo in the booking process only after they’ve accepted the booking request. Airbnb does not require all guests to provide a photo. Instead, we’ll be giving hosts the option to ask their guests to provide a profile photo, which will only be presented to hosts after they accept the booking. We have discussed some of this work in the past and we want you to know more about the changes we will be making in the coming months.

We have participated in a number of conversations with hosts and guests regarding this topic. We have listened to our community, and while most guests provide a photo, some guests told us they don’t want to share a picture of themselves when booking. We also recognize that concerns have been raised about the potential for photos to be misused in a way that violates our nondiscrimination policy.

At the same time, hosts have told us that they value profile photos because they can help hosts and guests get to know one another before a trip begins and help hosts recognize guests when they check in. Additionally, we’ve seen how photos can be a useful tool for enhancing trust and promoting community.

We want to balance these concerns. Airbnb does not require guests to provide a profile photo when booking a listing and, as we discussed earlier this summer with our hosts, we will be implementing a series of changes in the months ahead:

• If a guest chooses to provide a profile photo, that profile photo won’t be displayed to the host as part of the booking process until after the booking is confirmed.
• Because some hosts value profile photos and want to be able to know who they can expect at their front door, we will give hosts the option to ask that guests provide a profile photo prior to booking, which will only be presented to the host after the host accepts the booking request. This new option comes with important safeguards that are designed to ensure our community is fair and open to everyone:
  • Hosts must turn on this feature for each of their listings proactively, before they receive a reservation request.
  • If a host asks for a profile photo, we’ll prompt guests to upload one to their Airbnb profile before they can request to book that host’s particular listing; however, the photo will not be presented to the host until after the booking is confirmed.

If a host cancels a reservation after they see a guest’s photo, the guest will have an easy way to contact Airbnb and report any concerns about potential discrimination by the host in violation of our nondiscrimination policy and Community Commitment. If any guest believes he or she has been discriminated against and notifies our team, we’ll immediately help them book an alternative listing consistent with our Open Doors Policy, investigate the report, and take appropriate action. Any host who violates our nondiscrimination policy may be permanently banned from using Airbnb.

This announcement follows the commitment we made in 2016 to evaluate how we display guest profile photos in the booking process. As we implement these changes in the coming months, we hope you’ll share your feedback with us so we can continue to make thoughtful changes that make the Airbnb community a place where everyone can belong.

[Oad0]

Airbnb has never addressed the real issue at hand: screening out bad guests

Screening is left up to the hosts, and without proper tools for screening.... discrimination is possible.

if Airbnb would have done a better job at checking guests background, no police record, good credit report —> most hosts would gladly turn on the “instant book”

I would go out on a limb and say: ANY host would accept ANY 5-star-review guest.

But Here is The real reason.... Airbnb is going public this year, and it’s IPO price will be based on the number of users on its platform. So loosing restrictions with this no-photo-required policy will definitely attract more users, not good ones... but who cares, as long as number of users is growing, growing growing

[Duda5]

@Mark116 It is available for some users in NY already. 

We won't be able to tell if the person who is at your property legitimately booked your place and is the owner of the account by only having the ID verification process which is securely stored by airbnb, if we have nothing to compare to when they arrive. You don't know their faces so it doesn't matter if the account have a verified ID. We will start getting 3rd party bookings and not even know about it. 3rd party bookings are not covered by airbnb host guarantee. 

Please contact airbnb here: https://www.airbnb.com/help/contact_us/message

[Susan1028]

check this out:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/techcrunch.com/2018/06/29/airbnb-ipo/amp/

it rxplains everything.

last quarter profit boosing regardless of who gets hurt anyone?

it’s also scheduled for just after the employee ownership share contracts expire 

[Susan1028]

The IPO completely explains everything :

https://www.google.com/amp/s/techcrunch.com/2018/06/29/airbnb-ipo/amp/

and....

This is a very “cheap shot” aimed at those of us they profited from to make those billions and increase thier profits/company value by forcing us into as many bookings as possible regardless of whatever it costs ...us, and according to the articles they’re also planning it just as thier employee investment contract expires.  Utter low ball capitalist horse **bleep**!  

I iwn a business thats been thriving inder thus platform.  if i treated my guests and cleaning support person this way I’d have no business. 

If they’re really looking at IPO, it’s evil genius and also sabotage...unless they want to trash us and the company reputation and mission on the way out, like some ugly foreclosure scenario in which they pocket the billions.

**bleep** this is so...entitled America

Right now the though occurs to me that if every Air BnB became a homeless shelter there’d be no more homelessness...and there’d be enough housing for hard working locals everywhere with available Air BnBs left space over for travelers.  There are so many empty places hoping for bookings...

The biggest betrayal is to those of us who’ve actually believed in and enacted the grass roots consciousness that made this company...(and those 2 guys who started it who are selling themselves out as well) and the support staff...we are all being thrien under the bus so they can boost their last quarter profits before bailing on us with the cash.

If this is true, Im definitely going to take my listing elsewhere before they sell.  It’s not a...transaction i want to be a part of.

[Karen700]

It appears thast nothing has changed for Instant book requests however I do not do instant book as it's too dicey because even instant bookers can book for someone else who really isn't the guest staying.  So I cannot check the  box for "Profile Photo" on the Guest Requirements.

We always have the guest email to request to book before approval and I have a conversation with them on the Airbnb messenger.  I will be adding "guest must provide profile photo in order to book" to the list of rules now if they don't currently have a photo of themselves on the site.  We have also added RING doorbells with outdoor surveillance on the house both in the front and back and it's clearly shared on our listing.  I think the more precautions you can take as a host the better protected you may be with disrespectful and deceitful guests.  It seems that Airbnb is erring on the side of guests over hosts in this and many other cases and eventually those of us who are figuring out how to protect our assets and ourselves will decide to use other platforms since we are the ones who have to take care of our business.  Airbnb is just a platform, we provide them with the "brick and mortar business"  our homes and guests pay to stay but ultimately WE have to do what's best for ourselves and our homes. 

[Susan1028]

here’s why:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/techcrunch.com/2018/06/29/airbnb-ipo/amp/

[Wende2]

Thanks for sharing........This leads me to wonder what they intend to do about fees, as they plan to go public, what happens when more hosts move to other sites.  I'm already thinking I will, I seen a comment some time ago by a guest that said they'd started using booking.com, said it was easier to book an they had filters to help narrow down the search.  I know of some others in my area that are on VRBO, and they are booked all summer already.  BTW, how long have you been on ABB, I notice you're at level 10.

[Mark116]

@Susan1028  I actually think going public will have to improve things from a management perspective, because no public company with the transparency and reporting requirements would ever be able to get away with the 'because we say so' rationale that airbnb uses for everything, 'we say so' and 'no you can't appeal or sue us' and the various roll-out problems, glitches etc. will get more notice also once the company is publicly traded, none of this will  work for a publicly traded company.  At least this is my hope.

[Susan1028]

im glad you’re optimistic.

did you read about what’s happening with the employee shares contract expiring in perfect timing with the offering to additionally boost those last quarter earnings?

I had a long conversation with support this morning.  they’re all aware of how fragile their positions are.

[Dawn298]

I agree, Karen, we need to do what's best for us. But we still need to fight this and let Airbnb know what a grievous mistake they have made. Sending your comments and feedback, etc., by email or phone will let them know how angry and frustrated Hosts are over this new rule.  I sent all my comments posted on this site to them. So far I have not heard anything back from them. We will wait and see. I encourage everybody to do the same. Copy and paste ALL your comments and send them to Airbnb's feedback. And make sure you request a response to your concerns. Let's see how they handle the people, i.e, Hosts, who make them the money. If we all band together and take this a step further, we can make a difference. We can't just let this issue fall away and be forgotten. The more complaints they get the better! Let's not hide under a rock but let them know that we mean business and won't allow them to remove our security...Face photo's of the strangers we will be letting into our homes and families!

[Susan1028]

i’m told tweets get immediate attention...

[Paula790]

Just a note to add. Some of the potential guest book on lifes need basis. If they are on fixed income and are basically homeless they can book a place for less than renting. In so doing getting all the amenities the host may offer such as breakfast, wifi, etc. So it is important to have communication and pictures. I just came across this exact problem and let me tell you it is horrible. I agree with all who state this is our homes and we should have as much right to see a photo and get as much info if not more as a guest does.

[Susan1028]

there are too many homeless in a country this rich

i list my place higher than the local norm and offer more perks to appeal to a specific population of couples getting away.

im more concerned about people running drugs and human traffickers...the ones who don’t want to meet me, and since this policy was unrolled, there have been several after zero before that , and they have been messier and more entitled.  i found one guy going through the things in my locked garage!

i also participated in the Open Homes program, volunteer at the local homeless shelter, and cook for community dinners.  i’d trust the homeless before i’d trust working criminals driving nice cars

[Alan443]

  Hey ya'll, in regards to the new photo policy  I get requests for bookings from new users with no reviews fairly regularly.  If that's combined with no photo them I'm rather reluctant to open my home to these guests. I've all so had situations where someone books my space with a small child and didn't mention that specifically. Although my listing specifies it is not appropriate for smaller children for safety reasons. I wouldn't have thought ask unless I saw a photo of the guest with a small child in their arms. They would likely have shown up with their baby and I would have had to make a decision then and there to either accept the risk or turn them away at the door. Neither are appealing solutions and I could have negative consequences.

 I do understand concerns about discrimination and am sure it happens, however I do believe it is human nature to want to see who you are opening up your home to. I would be very curious as to what percentage of hosts vs travelers got to weigh in on this new policy?  I don't recalled being surveyed on the new photo policy and do find it hard to believe if put to a vote that the majority of hosts would prefer not to have photos of potential guests available before they accept bookings. As previously stated "there currently are immediate and sound penalties for cancellations and also there are disincentives to repeatedly declining booking requests, regardless of whether the refusal was soundly or unreasonably made" (Thanks Christine in Glenbrook AU) 

Thanks for listening, Alan 

Superhost Asheville North Carolina USA

[Susan1028]

@Alan0

There was no notice about this policy except what you see at the top of this thread, which was not copied to hosts, even though they have the technology to do so.  Why?  Read on...

Most of us found out because the character of our booking requests suddenly changed and we posted questions in the community asking if others had noticed.  That’s where I found a link to this thread.

also, the reply from admin about there being a booking setting to auto screen out those with incomplete profiles and no facial photos is also not active, and this has been verified by those who go by reservations requesters and instant bookers.

i posted further up about the real reason for the sudden lax rules; they’re going public with thier shares in June and the founders stepped back earlier this year.

shares are based on number of participants and profits (hence the $ incentives to invite a friend to host, and the relaxed registration requirements for guests).

There are currently more stringent requirements to sign up for a social media account than for those we are expected to invite into our homes.

ABB collects thier fee even if we cancel, and if the booking ends up being fraudulent there’s a loophole in the “million dollar” protection policy that absolves them of liability and support, and leaves us to clean up the mess...while they ding our internal ratings, reviews, and superhost status for creating a (justified) fuss by cancelling or asking the 3rd party imposters (who often bring unapproved friends) to leave.

Very very messy for us, not to mention that the employees will be losing thier contractual share options just before they go public.

We need to be more proactive than ever for safety reasons and if they want to take my superhost away for standing up for myself, they can have it.