Guests Misunderstanding what Requesting to Book Means

[Jennifer1421]

Just throwing this out there: I've just had 2 separate requests, where the guests are confused about what they are doing. They don't seem to understand that they will be charged once I accept the request.

First guest: After I msg'd her, and accepted the request, she came back to me to say "Someone else accepted her request first, so she wouldn't need the space". Obviously, this kicked off a whole barrage of emails about cancellations and refunds (We have a moderate policy. The request was for 2 days ahead of the request). So much back and forth...

Second guest: Made the request, but SHE doesn't want to confirm it 100% until I give her more info about the location. Request is still pending while she makes up her mind.

So, my question to you all is: Is there something different about the booking process, or the verbiage that appears during the process, leading guests to think that a request is just an inquiry and not actually a booking request? I've had plenty of requests over the last year from new members, but they all understood that if the request was accepted, the booking would be paid for. Now, within 24 hours, I get 2 different people who don't get it...Coincidence or platform change?

[Mike-And-Helen0]

@Jennifer1421 especially when you don't want to find it.

[Jennifer1421]

@Mike-And-Helen0RIGHT?????!!!!

[Steven65]

@Jennifer1421 Hi. This happens to me fairly regularly and I have posted before. Guests confuse the inquiry and booking. They even send a booking request with payment for dates they dont need,  then i have to ask them to cancel. Awkward and time consuming. 

[Jennifer1421]

Awkward and time consuming is exactly what it is, @Steven65 ! As is the "workaround" that Helen mentions upthread - asking the guest to withdraw their request.

Though, I'm not sure that there is a way to design the interface better, given the need to include the 2 streams of inquiry (ie booking vs. enquiring).

Douglas Adams made a very applicable comment regarding this situation:

“A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.”  

[Steven65]

@Jennifer1421 To avoid penalty, knowing the dates they have booked are wrong and the ones they want are unavailable, you have to accept their booking within 24 hours, then ask them to cancel it! Crazy. 

[Ute42]

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@Jennifer1421 

Thank You for the word „upthread“. I have just added this expression to my airbnb-dictionary.

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Hosting/Day-20-Improve-Your-English/m-p/1198081#M289503

[Alexandra316]

@Jennifer1421 I had a guest tear a huge strip off of me because I answered their questions, then sent a pre-approval, and they accepted. They called and sent me a bunch of harassing messages because it was apparently my fault they booked. I know that it's a really poorly kept secret, but some guests just don't read. Very annoying.

[Jennifer1421]

Annoying to say the least, and to be polite about it, @Alexandra316 🙂

I think what gets my goat (that one's for you, too, @Ute42. Definition: to make someone annoyed or angry.)  the most is how rude and abusive people can be to total strangers, even when the mistake is their own. I mean, I get that everyone has a lot of stress to deal with, but that's still no excuse to be a miserable human to others. Sigh.

[Alexandra316]

@Jennifer1421 Absolutely! Probably the same people who never say thank you.

We all make mistakes, but I'm 99.9% sure that if they just called Airbnb and explained what had happened and asked for a refund, they would have gotten it. Instead, they chose to be angry and ended up losing the service fees. They made their own life worse by being a jerk, not just made my day moderately less pleasant.

[Chill-and-Relax0]

We also have plenty of requests that, in fact, are just inquiries. Unfortunately, the way how the website is designed is the major cause of the issue. 

If guest want only to ask a question they have to click somewhat hidden 'Contact host' link; I think many people aren't even aware that this will allow them to send a message, so they go straight to the huge red button 'Reserve', and if they have a credit card on file already they just keep click 'Next' until message is send. 

Also, I took that screenshot on a laptop where everything is laid out nicely, and I know what to look for, but on other devices like phones or tablets, site layout is different, it gets much worse, particularly for someone who seldom uses Airbnb.

[Sarah977]

That "Contact Host" should read "Have questions for the host before committing to a booking? Click here."

It would be a no-brainer for Airbnb to make it clear to guests when they should send an Inquiry and when they should send a Booking Request. 

[Chill-and-Relax0]

The website is designed in a quite non-intuitive way and requires some experience from users, to be navigated easily, so I guess half of the blame is on ABB, half on guests. Putting 'Reserve' and 'Contact host' next to each other should do the job.

However, this whole thing wouldn't even be that big of a problem if guests would keep the persistent flow of communication and respond to our, sometimes, immediate responses in a somewhat timely manner, until the issue is solved or agreement reached.

Instead, they throw a question, you respond to them within less than a minute, asking for some clarification or adjustment, and the next message from the guy/gal comes after six or so hours, if at all. In the meantime, your calendar is blocked and your response rate lowered with every passing hour. 

The real kicker is that about half of these requests, we do not accept for their own good; we know right away from their message that they have no clue what they are booking, i.e. they didn't read even basic info about our place and location.

[Kevin1322]

I'll happily be corrected on this if it does not work any more  but another workaround (we did this last year) is to ask the guest to request a change of booking date to sometime random in the future and inside the free cancellation period you have in your terms, accept the request, then they can cancel the "new" booking themselves.

I very much agree that the format of booking request vs enquiry might be confusing, also that some guests don't seem to read very much.

Reminds me of the lady who made a best offer on a tile cutting machine I was selling after I'd finished tiling the ground floor of the house, then wanted to cancel because "I didn't realise that if you accepted my offer I would still have to buy it"

Some people are "special".

[Jennifer1421]

Too right, @Kevin1322!

[Huma0]

A few months ago I had a guest book one of my rooms for two months (I generally host long-term guests). After she arrived, another guest asked how long she was staying and she replied, "A month, and then we'll see. I haven't decided." She then turned to me and said, "Oh by the way, just let me know if anyone books the room the second month and I'm sure we can work something out."

I sat her down and explained how Airbnb bookings work, the long-term cancellation policy etc. She didn't want to listen. So, as it turns out, she decided to leave after the first month (seems the 10 minute tube journey was too long a commute for her). I was actually relieved because she was such a royal pain in the butt and happy to give her a refund as I knew the room would get booked anyway (she later asked to stay after all, but too late as the dates were already booked by someone else). I even managed to convince her to leave 10 days earlier than that!

However, it did baffle me that a guest had so little understanding about the booking process and cancellation policies, especially one that is booking for a long stay. I put it down to her being clueless, but perhaps there is something else afoot?