Instant booking by a third party

[Rhonda45]

What does a host do when there is an instant booking for a relative?  In this case a daughter booked for her elderly father.  How is this handled?  A cancellation by the host or contact AIRBnB? 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Rhonda45 I would allow this. I recently booked a place for my mother who just couldn't cope with the Airbnb website. The only difference was I asked in advance.

[Huma0]

@Rhonda45 

Personally, I don't allow third party bookings. Firstly, you are not covered by Airbnb if something goes wrong (technically, it is against Airbnb policy). Secondly, I want to have correspondence with the guest staying and make sure they have understood the listing and house rules because, if not, this can lead to all sorts of problems, including a bad review.

When this has happened to me, I have firstly asked the guest to cancel and rebook using a profile for the actual person staying. If they refuse, or they are no longer within the period where they can get a full refund, that's when I call Airbnb for a penalty free cancellation, which I have managed to get every time.