Global Ban on Parties Now in Effect

[Jennifer1421]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-airbnb-idUSKBN25G1E7

I spent some time looking for an update about this here in the CC, but couldn't seem to find a whisper of it. Did I miss it?

If I didn't miss it,@Catherine-Powell , as our new Head of Hosting, letting your hosts know that this is coming down the pipe before we see it in the media is the kind of transparency that we've been asking for. Kindly consider making use of Airbnb Updates to keep us in the loop as new policies are developed, rather than for pollyanna-ish propaganda.

What's NOT news is that Airbnb considers "Instituting a global ban on parties and events is in the best interest of public health", rather than in the best interests of it's 73% of hosts who already don't allow parties, but end up with them anyway without being backed up by the platform.

I see in the article, this new policy (that apparently affects 1/4 of worldwide hosts) was released a day after Airbnb filed for its IPO with regulators. Coincidence?

BTW - how's the ban on so-called "party houses" going? Anyone know?

[Huma0]

@Jennifer1421 

A new video from Catherine has just been posted on the CC which covers this issue. Take a look! 

Yep, not so great that it is in the media before we hear about it, but that's nothing new I guess 😞

[Jennifer1421]

Thanks, @Huma0 - will have a look.

[Nanxing0]

I'm glad to see Airbnb making effort on the party issue, but don't think that's enough. Airbnb has to take some serious action into those guests who PURPOSEDLY breach some crucial rules like no-party, no-smoking, and no-pet. Those are the most annoying problems with hosting.

[Lisa1395]

Wow exactly how I felt searching for this information!  I guess I am finally relieved they want to address the problem (I have denied 3 recent Potential bookings under the guise of throwing a party—-some were upfront & some skirted the issue so red flags start to wave. I never initiated Instant Booking for this very reason as I want to vet these renters, talk with them personally about rental intentions & activities as I have been burned many times before. Need to make sure a responsible person is 25 or older (that doesn’t help necessarily as I know 40-50 year old irresponsible adults), make sure it’s not more than the allotted bedroom capacity (someone coming & not staying or paying me doesn’t care & could be careless), make sure they have legit reviews as a one night party & deposit is not worth it to the headache & hassle for a Host afterwards!! I agree we need transparency & protection so glad they initiated a ban but SAD it took a pandemic to make it happen. We need more help. 

[Mikki0]

This "party ban" is annoying. Let's face it, it is not to "protect the hosts". It is there to protect Airbnb.

I have a remodeled 200 sq ft garage  into 1 bedroom  on the property next to my house, with a 2 person maximum, listed as "whole home". Guests are constantly being blocked from booking because they have no reviews and are booking a "whole home" listing the day before they want to check in.

So far, this policy has cost me over $1,000 after an already devastating year. I don't need Airbnb to prequalify the guests, and deny the stay without my input.

Is there no other way, in this technology age, that this technology company can find to weed out the party people and let hosts decide who can stay.