Second thoughts about accepting a reservation

[Deb3203]

I am new to AirBnB. I have accepted the first request, from a guy whose ID is verified but has no reviews. As I'm female and my partner is away I'm feeling a bit vulnerable, my instinct is that I was too quick to accept and should only accept people with reviews. Any tips? Should I cancel as this early stage in my AirBnB hosting experience, or trust the identity verification? I couldn't find much on them doing a Google search. Not sure what to do! Any tips? 

[Nathalie-Et-Gilles0]

@Deb3203  welcome on Airbnb.

"Any tips? "

Turn off instant booking to choose your travellers.
Close the days in your calendar when your partner is not around.
Put a locker to your room.

I am not sure that to turn on instant booking for a single woman offering a private room is the best idea of the year. 

[Deb3203]

Thanks Nathalie, putting a lock on the door is a good idea. Deb.

[Colleen253]

@Deb3203 There are a few things for you to note. Good reviews will not in any way guarantee a great experience with a guest. Verified ID guarantees nothing either. If you cancel a reservation request, you will be subject to stiff penalties. If this was an Instant Book reservation, you do have some leeway to cancel without penalty.

https://www.airbnb.ca/help/article/990/as-a-host-what-penalties-apply-if-i-cancel-a-reservation-for-...

https://www.airbnb.ca/help/article/2022/can-a-host-cancel-a-reservation-without-adverse-consequences

Your safety is the most important factor here. 

[Deb3203]

Thanks @Colleen253 , you're clearly experienced with this. I will go ahead with more knowledge now thanks to everyone's responses. Deb

[Sarah977]

I am a single female home-share host. I've never used Instant Book. I've accepted both male and female guests with no reviews and all the males have been respectful, good guys. I base my acceptance on how they communicate with me.

Unless you state that you only accept female guests, which you can do if you have a home-share, cancelling a guest just because they happen to be male and you are fearful really isn't okay. In that case, you should just block the days that your husband is away. So as mentioned by others, if you feel uncomfortable with this, and it was an Instant Book, you can cancel it saying you are uncomfortable, but then either change your listing to only accept female guests or turn off IB.

@Deb3203

[Deb3203]

Thanks Sarah. Great advice, I'm sure it will be ok. I'll see how the communication side of things goes over then next few days. Do you put a lock on your door?

[Sarah977]

@Deb3203 No, I have no lock on my bedroom door. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't if that makes you more at ease.

As for good communication, here's a sort of paraphrase of the type of message I like to see from a guest when they request to book:

"Hi Sarah, I just found your listing and it looks ideal for me. I'm so needing to escape the cold, enjoy some beach time and just relax and read some books. I like the fact that your place is on the outskirts of town in a quiet area, as I'm not the stay out late at the bar type.

Looking forward to meeting you and your dog."

A guest who sends a message like that has established a polite rapport, let me know a bit about their plans, and by mentioning my location and the dog, I can tell they have bothered to read through my listing info.

I've also had initial messages like " I'll be arriving around noon".

In that case, I'll message back trying to get them to be more forthcoming and ask a couple questions the answers to which would let me know if they have actually read the info provided. That has usually resulted in a much more complete response.

If it's an Inquiry, you can indeed give a guest 24 hours to answer. If it's a Booking Request, you have to either accept or decline within 24 hours, so you can't wait that long for a response.

[Deb3203]

Thanks so much, that's really helpful. I know what to look out for now. Deb

[Kelly149]

Anything in a profile could be true or false, it is all changeable at any time. Set good protocols. Be prepared to enforce good behavior. Communicate with the guest. 
*you seeing their ID, in person, is your best confirmation of knowing who you’re hosting. 

[Deb3203]

Thanks @Kelly149! Great advice also. I'm learning that good communication is a really important part of the experience. I guess I should give them 24 hours to reply. In your experience, how would you describe good communication? Deb 

[Kelly149]

@Deb3203 I agree with what @Sarah977 has suggested... do they acknowledge the key points of the listing, do they recognize that this is my home, not a hotel, do they know how to say please and thank you. And if they don't, then there are ways to try to bring them along or find out if they're more trouble than they're worth.... "Dear PDQ, Thank you for booking, I see that your profile is new/incomplete/says you like sunsets. Did you notice that our listing is xxxxxx, and we always point out yyyyyy, and we hope that guests enjoy hhhhhhh. A successful stay is our highest priority so I look forward to hearing back from you." etc

Then either they respond well and you're satisfied or they respond badly or not at all and you're off to ABB CS to get them sent somewhere else. Good luck!

[Deb3203]

@Kelly149  Thank you! How does this sound to you:

Hi xxx, I noticed that you are new to AirBnB and your profile is incomplete. We like to know to know who we are sharing with, and the profile goes a long way in that sense. I'd be grateful if you tell us a little more about yourself. AirBnB provide helpful advice here: https://www.airbnb.com.au/help/article/67/why-do-i-need-to-have-an-airbnb-profile. If you are uncomfortable sharing information on your profile, you may wish to consider cancelling the booking. Kind regards ....

Is the last line appropriate? Deb 

[Helen350]

@Deb3203 I too am a single female host. I've always used IB, and get far more single men staying than single women. Some couples too. 

I'll admit my mind sometimes plays tricks with me when hosting a single man with no reviews. Even tho' he's booked on IB, I still strike up a conversation in the messaging, asking about his plans & saying is he OK with a shared bathroom & a dog? - The tone of the response often goes a long way in reassuring me they are harmless enough!  Sometimes if I'm feeling in need of reassurance I check their social media, which usually reassures they are a regular guy...

I've only ever had one male guest who made me feel uncomfortable, & he had a wife with him! Gave off VERY strange & aggressive vibes..... I checked out my suspicions again 2 days ago (no I don't usually stalk guests post departure!) & to my non-surprise Mr Angry had just filled a busload to THAT insurrection! (Yikes!) No wonder he made me so uncomfortable...  (I'm SUCH a judge of character!)

@Sarah977 

[Deb3203]

Hi @Helen350 that is so interesting. It's about putting assumptions aside, but also listening to yourself and your gut feeling. Thank you for sharing your story and experience with me.