Do I get penalized if I decline an inquiry?

[Suy62]

I've received a lot of inquiries asking for a discount and I kept having to hit the Decline button many times.  Will Airbnb penalize me for that?  Would it be better if I just respond to the inquiry by text and not hit the Decline button?  Whenever an inquiry arrives Airbnb gave me 24 hrs to respond but does it has to be one of those 3 buttons or can I just respond by text and leave it at that?  Thanks in advance.

[Pat271]

Inquiries are much different than requests to book.  Just answer the inquiry in a timely manner. You don’t have to accept or decline, and it won’t count against you. 

[Fred13]

I have never used any of those buttons, sending a text respond is best, then you get to 'sell' your listing better.

P.S. Encouraging, the last few days I been getting a lot of inquiries and bookings for this & next year, like everyone got cabin fever all of a sudden.

[Kath9]

@Suy62, as others have said, enquiries are treated differently from requests. With the former, as long as you answer within 24 hours, you will not be penalised. You dont need to hit the decline button. However, for requests, you will be penalised after a certain number of declines. Therefore, always try to get the guest to withdraw their request if possible. If they fail do so, accept it on the basis that they will be paying full price. The onus is then on them to cancel. 

@Fred13, great to hear you're starting to get requests. I think it will be a while here yet - we still have multiple layers of lockdowns here, at the national, state AND intrastate levels! I'm guessing no one will be coming to my little cornerof the world for some time. But, I tell you what, I'm not missing washing sheets!

[Fred13]

@Kath9 I wonder if the far away places will be viewed more attractive by travelers, thinking that the further away from humanity they get away from - the better. Let us hope. 🙂

[Linda108]

According to CEO Brian,  Air BNB is expecting local travel to open first for several reasons:

1. Travel restrictions
2. Uncertainty about second wave pandemic 
3. Concern about the viral safety of airplanes 

Of course eventually, REAL vacations will win out over the enforced "staycations" many of us are currently enduring.

[Suy62]

I appreciated all your replies.  I started hosting this February and then this thing happened!  Similarly, here in TX they just lifted the stay at home mandate today and I got about 6 inquiries yesterday and today, comparing to none for the last month!  Unfortunately, most of my inquiries are about asking for discounts.  In my short time hosting, I received about probably 15 inquiries and none of them ever resulted in any booking, even though I gave some discount.  I have Instant Booking on so now whenever I see an inquiry it's more of a nuisance.

[Paul60]

I usually just accept any enquiries but in my message to them tell them they're not welcome.

[Sarah977]

@Paul60  But it isn't necessary to pre-approve inquiries- just your message back suffices. If I were a guest, I would find it decidedly odd if a host pre-approved my reservation, yet sent me a message saying I wasn't welcome to book.

[Cheryl682]

I am new to airbnb. I just declined a guest. Unless I missed something the options are   pre approve  or decline.

[Sarah977]

Did you not read the responses above? You can ignore those options on a Inquiry. Just messaging back within 24 hours fulfills your response obligation. If it's a booking request, you have to either accept or decline within 24 hours. @Cheryl682