It's been a month since new cleaning initiative was announced-- when will we see details?

[Lisa723]

https://www.airbnb.com/resources/hosting-homes/a/coming-soon-a-new-enhanced-cleaning-initiative-for-...

@Lizzie @Stephanie @Quincy @Airbnb 

When will we get more information on this?

[Pat271]

The world is learning more about this virus every day.  Current thinking and studies indicate that there is less than a .01% chance of getting this virus from hard surfaces after a few hours.  Maybe that is why less attention is being allotted to it.

For now, I’m just following CDC guidelines, which aren’t much more complicated or time-consuming than what I was doing before.  The extra work is disinfecting doorknobs, handles, etc. and washing bedding and linens using the hottest water.  I want my guests who are still worried about getting the virus this way to be comfortable.

[Lisa723]

@Pat271 great, we have our own cleaning procedures too, but the question here is about the status of Airbnb's new initiative to categorize listings based on hosts' selection between commitment to an as-yet-undefined new cleaning protocol and a vacancy buffer. Airbnb announced that details would be rolled out this month, which is almost over, with no new information. (See the link.)

BTW, if you have a hard link to any study substantiating your "0.01%" assertion I'd love to see it. I haven't seen anything that specific.

[Pat271]

@Lisa723   Here a leading epidemiologist claims that odds of infection from the type of transmission we are discussing is probably more like 0%.  Still looking through my history to see where I saw the .01%, which was in a much more exhaustive study.

https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/coronavirus/heres-how-long-coronavirus-lasts-on-surfaces-and-in...

[Debra300]

@Pat271, 

Like, @Lisa723, I am very interested to see a link to legitimate source which states the 0.01% probability for positive transmission rate.  I checked the CDC's site, and found nothing that supported your statement, but did find that on May 11 they did change their wording to say that touching surfaces is not believed to be the main way the virus is spread:  https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/how-covid-spreads.html

[Pat271]

@Lisa723  Right, I understood the question, and was just speculating why we haven’t heard more about it lately.

I have gotten most of my info about COVID hard surface spread from the CDC.  Current thinking is that even if the virus is present on hard material, it takes thousands of microns of it to actually infect you.  There are actually 0 cases that have been confirmed to have been spread from a hard surface.  The vast majority of cases are believed to have been spread from people visiting, talking, singing, etc. indoors for extended periods of time.  The .01% may have been interpolated from other data - I’ll continue to try to locate where I read that.

[Sarah977]

@Mike-And-Jane0  What I have read on this is saying that surface transmission is "unlikely" or not thought to be a significant means of transmission. I would imagine that there is little to no risk if someone who is infected happens to touch a surface that you then touch. However, if someone who is infected coughs or sneezes all over that surface, you touch it and then touch your face without thoroughly washing your hands, that could be a different story. Personally, until hard evidence to the contrary comes out, it's not a risk I would choose to take.

[David6824]

@Lisa723  the cleaning up program which will give us another medal on our profile picture gonna be end of may. Brian said in his last video meetup. cheers 🙂

[Melissa63]

I'm also getting antsy for more information on the new cleaning initiative. I cancelled back-to-back reservations and implemented the 24hr buffer between guests... I'd really like an update on the program!

[Lisa723]

@Airbnb it's June. Please provide an update. Thank you!

[Lizzie]

Hello @Lisa723,

Sorry for not getting back to you sooner. 

The Enhanced Cleaning Initiative should be rolling out soon. It is still expected to be rolled out in the US first, with other countries to follow soon after. I will keep you updated as soon more details become available.

Thank you,

Lizzie

[Kat162]

Thankyou so much @Lizzie !!  For hosts outside of the USA, how much lead time/notice will we have in regards to the Enhanced Cleaning coming into effect for us? Should I begin buffering 24 hours around my summer stays? What can we do NOW to protect our future guests and businesses?!

Many Thanks! ❤️

[Kat162]

Thankyou so much @Lizzie !! 

For hosts outside of the USA, how much lead time/notice will Air BnB provide us in regard to launching the Enhanced Cleaning?
What can non-USA hosts do immediately to protect our future guests' reservations and our businesses?
Should we begin buffering 24 hours around our summer/fall reservations now? Many of us are about to entering into our peak seasons.... Please advise!

I also read for hosts with back-to-back reservations, they can not enrol in the Enhanced Cleaning program until there are no back-to-back stays. This is very difficult for many of us moving into our busiest seasons, and for many who may already be fully booked.

For example, my country has had it's borders closed for months AND my province has it's borders shut within our own country.  While still under provincial restrictions, our economy is reopening and it is very likely we will see only guests from our own province this summer. Should Air BnB not leave it up to hosts to adhere to their own state/provincial/national  guidelines? 

Many Thanks  for your time and guidance - we are in this together. 
@Stephanie @Quincy @Lizzie @Airbnb 
@

[Mike-And-Jane0]

I don't know why Airbnb are doing this. The scientists cannot agree what the right thing to do is because a) there just isn't the information available and

b)it depends on the level of risk someone is willing to take.

No one cleans houses to operating theatre levels but that is probably what would be needed to 'guarantee' no virus transmission.

Oh well at least we can all have a good giggle at whatever comes out of this exercise.

[Mark116]

@Mike-And-Jane0  Well, what is likely to come out of this is a policy that doesn't do much to protect anyone's health, but puts hosts in a bind, financially and legally, a policy that will cost them money in cleaning expense and lost revenues while potentially opening hosts up to new liability.  The only benefit is that it gives something for airbnb to spin.