Guest that booked didn't arrive but the rest of the group did

[Patricia3116]

Hi there I would be grateful for any advice that more experienced hosts may have. I took a booking for 8 people and the person who originally booked it didn't turn up. How do you deal with this as I didn't know until they arrived? I asked for driving licence ID and took their car registrations as they were taking over the whole house. 

The guests were not respectful of my property but if I say this it will appear on the person's page that wasn't there. I know they should have let me know, they also didn't forward the rules of the house that I sent a week earlier to the rest of the group? Any info much appreciated 

[Colleen253]

@Patricia3116 You've described some of the pitfalls of a third party booking, and why they need to be prevented. A third party booking is against the terms of the platform, unless it's an Airbnb for work booking.

https://www.airbnb.ca/help/article/427/booking-for-friends-and-family

You were under no obligation to grant accesst to these people and should have turned them away. Do leave a review for the person who booked, indicating that they were not forthcoming with information on what turned out to be a third party booking, and that you can not recommend them. You might also mention that your space was abused. Rate stars accordingly, and of course click would not host again.

Going forward, ask more questions and do your best to sniff out red flags. Prevention is always the key on Airbnb. 

[Patricia3116]

HI Colleen thanks for your reply.  Can I ask what questions you ask? I use the approval booking and not instant book. I did not realise that Airbnb do not ask for Government ID on this option. 

Going forward I will ask for ID(driving licence, passport). 

Thank you so much for your reply, I appreciate your help and advice. 

With kind regards

Trisha

[Colleen253]

@Patricia3116 You can start by asking the potential guest what the purpose of the trip is and who is going to be joining them. But you can ask any questions you like really....the more questions you ask, the more info will be revealed. Note that if a guest is evasive, then that's a red flag.

Even if you don't use instant book, you can require guests to be verified before they can send a request to book,

https://www.airbnb.ca/help/article/272/can-i-require-guests-to-be-verified-before-booking

But be aware that this is in no way a guarantee that a guest is who they say they are, nor something to trust in. I require it as a useful added layer in the guest vetting process. An in person check in and the requirement that any attendant guests will need to show ID at check in is a good idea, which you did. That informed you more thoroughly about what was going on than anything else, didn't it?

[Helen3]

In your situation I would have asked Airbnb to cancel @Patricia3116 

and the person who booked deserves a negative review they shouldn't have allowed thei account to be used as a third party booking @Patricia3116