Hosts & Vaccination Requirements

[Anonymous]

Now that the Covid vaccine is being rolled out, we're seeing a lot of hosts asking questions about how to make vaccination a condition of entry. I'm not personally in favor of hosts asking for private medical documents, and in many jurisdictions it would be illegal to do so, but these are exceptional times and it's understandable that in-home hosts are trying to find a way to host safely again. As long as Airbnb grants an exemption to the cancellation policy when guests say they've tested positive, hosts have every reason to prefer guests who aren't at risk of this.

So far, the vast majority of people who are able to travel have not had access to the vaccine, but this will hopefully change over the next months. And even though it's a thorny topic, this is the time that hosts really need Airbnb to issue some guidance about how hosts can set requirements here. Can hosts request medical documents, even if they're not qualified to authenticate them? Will the Non-Discrimination Policy be applied to hosts who discriminate against unvaccinated guests? 

@Catherine-Powell I hope this is addressed in the next policy update from Airbnb, because it's increasingly clear that most in-home hosts have no real intention of adhering to the "protocol" that they were aggressively bullied into saying they would follow. If Airbnb is willing to allow people to require guests to be vaccinated, I hope we'll have an on-platform format for guests to enter their data without compromising their medical privacy. But otherwise, I hope we can at least have a loud and clear announcement of what hosts can and can't ask for, so we don't have people's businesses destroyed weeks later by a complaint that they fell afoul of a policy that didn't exist yet.

[Till-and-Jutta0]

Airbnb could define a policy, that lets the decision explicitly to the hosts (still respecting local rules). Without being accused for discrimination later by Airbnb.

[Anonymous]

@** Everyone is free to decide whom they welcome into their own homes as a general matter, but when you're doing business on a global platform, a common contract is necessary to establish what both parties' rights, obligations, and limitations are. 

There's not really a precedent for standard Airbnb hosts requiring that their guests undergo a medical procedure, or demanding that they present private medical records in order to access a home. So if it's going to allow bookings to come attached to such conditions, it's going to have to establish some ground rules that answer questions like:

-  May a host cancel without penalty if the guest can not confirm that all members of the group will be vaccinated?

- May a host demand that guests produce physical vaccination records? 

- What recourse to compensation do the host and guest have if the guest is denied entry at check-in due to insufficient records?

- Will the safety and cleaning protocol still be mandatory if all parties are vaccinated?

- If hosts require vaccinations in locations where there are barriers to access (age, class, etc), is this considered de-facto discrimination against the disadvantaged group?

- Is there a distinction between onsite hosts who share space with the guests and remote hosts when it comes to health discrimination?

The way I see it, as long as a third party is handling the money and enforcing discrimination rules, both parties have the right to know what rules and standards it will apply in the event of a dispute.

[Till-and-Jutta0]

Good point, @Anonymous .

[Sarah977]

@** So you consider those who have been vaccinated to be a danger to you? Wow, just wow. 

And exactly how would someone offer proof that they haven't been vaccinated?

I guess you could put a big notice at the top of your listing description saying "Anti-Science Conspiracy Theorists Only."

[Helen350]

I don't consider myself a conspiracy theorist, but I do consider myself one who keeps an open mind..... **

When it all started, I read some of the ** from what is now described as conspiracy theorists, but they caused me too much stress & anxiety, far more than the disease (!), so I've decided the conspiracy theorists are best avoided!  - I suppose they would say that's what ** 

I tend to trust the vaccine because of the good that other vaccines have done, in wiping out smallpox, & eradicating polio from most countries. When I went off to Papua  New Guinea for a year, I had a whole load of vaccines.

Like you @** , I've been hosting doctors and nurses throughout the pandemic.( "Have you had the vaccine?" said Sharon.... How old does she think I am, I'm only 59!") So I asked a regular doctor visitor (after he volunteered he'd had the vaccination) about the **, and he said it doesn't. He did volunteer that **. A few days ago I had a husband & wife stay who were both working here as nurses. I asked the wife if she'd been vaccinated & she said 'Yes'. I felt reassured, even tho' we both then said to the other that it's not yet known if vaccination prevents transmission!

**

**[Content hidden due to its unverifiable or misleading nature - please note the CC is not an appropriate platform for spreading misinformation. Participants are encouraged to stay on topic and only share information from reliable sources]

[Helen350]

@Quincy WHY has part of my post been erased, and  the *hidden content warning given? - I am NOT anti-vax, and I am NOT a conspiracy theorist! 

I posted to engage with @** , to offer some solidarity & understanding, and to show her that some of us here are friendly...... And we are probably a similar age with a healthcare background, and British hosts!

I even used my comment above to quote a doctor guest (not Airbnb) to REFUTE conspiracy theory info - I thought that was endorsing the medical & government position - doing a GOOD thing - and yet you blanked it out! I WAS FOLLOWING THE PARTY LINE, FOR GOODNESS SAKE!

WHERE has this new initiative to censor relating to Covid/vaccines come from? From the mods? From Airbnb head office? From the UK or US government?

It sounds as if being 'wrong' is suddenly some sort of crime?! - The old thought police! 

[Sarah977]

@Helen350  People's opinions on the safety or necessity of vaccines is irrelevant here and there are plenty of other online forums and sites you can go to to debate such things.

This topic started by Andrew was simply about Airbnb having a clear policy on this so hosts didn't end up being penalized for questioning guests as to their vaccine status or stating whether guests have to be vaccinated or not in our listing info.

[Helen350]

True, @Sarah977 , but even if someone is talking rubbish, it seems sinister to blank out someone's sincerely held opinion! It never stopped rubbishy lies in reviews, did it?

Others have remarked in other contexts that we are all adults here, & can look up info from all angles, evaluate, & conclude! 

And I was saying how my vaccinated doctor guests were encouraging  me for goodness sake! And I am pro-vax, so why censor me! In no way did my comments undermine the party line!

[Sarah977]

@** Your opinion as to whether hosts have the right to require guests to be vaccinated isn't relevant. What is relevant as far as this being an Airbnb forum and regarding Andrew's topic is whether Airbnb will consider hosts to have that right.

And I foresee vaccine requirement being used in many workplaces and schools and businesses in times to come. Whether I agree with that or not is beside the point.

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@**

@Sarah977 

Something which your concise summation of @Anonymous's question seems to have omitted listing: "public policy" vs private property; hosts' health & safety; guests' health and safety; everyone's privacy, everyone's rights & responsibilities. At some point, civil rights lawyers may get involved, arguing all the many multifaceted issues. As this is the first major pandemic since the onset of this multinational industry,  I wager there will be a fascinating search for precedents, and no easy answers that will fail to offend someone somewhere. 

[Helen350]

You've absolutely NAILED IT! @Kitty-and-Creek0 ! 😊😀😁

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Helen350 

Nothing is ever simple, and in this litigious world, any policy anyone makes about anything has to be very carefully considered. 

[Helen3]

Also include a position on whether guests can cancel if a host/co-host/cleaner is not vaccinated. @Anonymous 

[Anonymous]

OK, I wasn't quite expecting this conversation would go exactly the way it did, but now I'm wondering if we should also get everyone's temperature on those Space Lasers.

Just to be very clear here, what I'm asking for is not a special cover for conspiracy theorists to hide behind. And I'm not trying to create a conversation that distributes misinformation. All I really want here is a clear policy on how hosts can address this issue.

I'd prefer that the people who make decisions like these show up in the forums their company created, to seek the advice of the people who have the task of enacting their policies before they impose them. That would be a really cool new way of doing capitalism. But I'm not holding my breath - this is the kind of deal that will have to go through multiple levels of legal and insurance advisors before we hear a word back, and more than anything I just want to make sure all the hosts on here know what that word will be.

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Anonymous 

Thank you as usual, Andrew. Back to center and to responding to the important and clearly stated question. I for one, have read quite enough diversions here.  - Kitty