I urge Airbnb to keep the cleaning protocol solely voluntary. It’s great for those hosts to stand out with a cleaning protocol badge, and for guests who are especially concerned about that to be able to find those properties.
If a host voluntarily says they follow the protocol, they are more likely to diligently follow it. Moreover, if guests find evidence that they didn’t, the guests’ reviews hold that host/property accountable. On the other hand, if Airbnb threatens all hosts into following the protocol, I’m sure some hosts will not be as diligent, and guests are sure to discover that. If all are said to follow the standard and even one proves not to, the standard becomes meaningless and goes from goodwill to bad. I would think it could even open Airbnb and hosts up to lawsuits.
Although I appreciate the protocol as a cleaning help, I personally prefer not to mark my property as under the cleaning protocol. There’s still too much unknown about COVID, and it’s impossible to clean every inch of a house and the things in it. (Think about a deck of cards even!) I don’t want to mislead anyone into thinking my house is totally sanitized against COVID. If I were high risk and felt that COVID posed a threat to my life, I’d stay home or do my own sanitizing wherever I went. I don’t want to give my guests that false COVID-free assurance that no one can give.
I love Airbnb. It’s simplicity and the way the ratings work to hold everyone accountable for themselves is brilliant. I appreciate the low overhead that Airbnb charges which I think comes with that simplicity. I urge Airbnb to keep this cleaning protocol voluntary, allowing individuals (both hosts and guests) to determine their own priorities. Let hosts decide what they want to offer, and let guests decide what they’re looking for.