Will home share hosts have to wear masks at all times in shared homes under new cleaning regs?

[Helen3]

When Airbnb announced new mandatory  cleaning regs, it says as part of this that home share hosts have to wear masks in communal areas at all times. 

In the UK hosts such myself who have asthma and other medical conditions are exempt from wearing a mask in restaurants, theatre’s, because longer term use creates breathing difficulties. 

I asked Airbnb to clarify last week as to whether hosts with relevant medical conditions would be exempted from wearing a mask  in home share situations, under airbnb’s new cleaning regs,  but sadly there has been no response.

i would not be able to wear a mask for anything but short periods so would have to give up hosting.

@Nick  @Katie 

Please can you clarify are hosts like myself going to have to stop hosting under your new cleaning regs? 

It would seem unfair that Airbnb would discriminate against hosts with long term conditions and disabilities, when governments, the hospitality and leisure sectors and others are exempting people with health conditions from wearing mask.

[Caron3]

It’s illegal in Canada to ask for a doctors note, if I say I cannot wear a mask that is sufficient according to the Canadian Charter of Rights.

[Xavier-Neszvecsko0]

Thanks !

[Sarah977]

So how is it discriminatory for a host to ask for documentation from guests of a disability or their intention to bring a service or emotional support animal,  yet not discriminatory for Airbnb to insist on documentation from hosts for their disability, like asthma, which prevents them from wearing a mask all the time in their own home?

@Katie

[Caron3]

I’ve contacted Airbnb twice, once by phone and the second via messaging. Both times they asked me for a doctors note re:my medical exemption, I explained it is illegal for them to ask me for that in Canada. Both times they said if I wouldn’t provide a doctors note to put on my file then they couldn’t help me. I’ve added on my listing that I do not wear a mask and write each guest saying they are free to cancel if this is an issue.

[Helen350]

Katie posted this Airbnb update/edict in response to my questions on another thread.

http://airbnb.co.uk/help/article/2839/what-are-the-health-and-safety-requirements-for-airbnb-stays 

This article says "Wear a mask or face covering WHEN INTERACTING IN PERSON"

So, no big deal! We DON'T have to wear face coverings at ALL times in our own homes at all! - ONLY when interacting in person! - So just stay away from guests, and if it seems rude, explain! Problem solved!

@Helen3  @Rich30  @Caron3 @Sarah977 

[Jennifer2619]

I live in a very small rural community in NZ and lost my guiding job because our borders are closed, so my only potential income is my AirBnB accommodation. I also refuse to wear a mask in my own home as it is neither necessary nor useful!  I will ask my guests that have already booked to sign a waiver! There is no CoVID here in NZ and our borders are strongly controlled with quarantine measures. I have sent a message to AirBNB but haven't got a positive reply yet. Hopefully they will see the light.

@Helen3  I share my home because I love interacting with guests.... why else?

@Rich30  @Caron3 @Sarah977 

[Helen3]

The issue for me is my main eating/dining space is shared with the guest. So if they are eating/sitting in the dining space and I want to cook or visa versa I will need to wear a mask. @Helen350 

So it is not possible to ‘stay away’ from the guests.  We may also pass each other in hallways upstairs and downstairs. 

A key reason guests choose to stay with me is the large open plan living/dining/cooking space.

[Helen350]

Same here @Helen3  (well an open door between cooking/dining) - but I just figure I'll have to stay out of it when a guest is in it!) - Guess if also your main living area, then a problem..... 

At least in the UK we DO have a real risk of infection, as you yourself point out! Bummer for the NZ/Aus hosts for whom it's OTT....

[Helen3]

No I have a separate living area but I can’t stop cooking and eating every time I have a guest stay.

Anyway a moot point as Airbnb have already said they will exempt hosts with medical needs from wearing a mask at all times in shared spaces.

The issue is now that they say we would need medical confirmation which is not possible and not in line with government guidelines 

[Helen350]

@Helen3 I've brought in a 10 min meal rule for kitchen use since lockdown; partly following the disasterous SpareRoom couple who cooked for THREE hours a day (!), but also so that all may access the kitchen whilst maintaining social distancing.... And in fact, most of my 51 post lockdown guests have stayed out of the kitchen altogether.

[Debra300]

@Helen3, @Helen350 

I know it is British social tradition to have a cuppa with house guests and have a little natter no matter the time of day, and wearing masks inside the home would greatly interfere with this practice.  If you don't mind, I do have some questions, because your homeshare  set ups are very different than mine.  I have never shared kitchen and dining area facilities with my guests.  These questions are not about if you or the guest can or should wear a mask and follow social distancing guidelines, nor if Airbnb is overstepping their boundaries.  Also, I am aware that London has just moved to Tier 2 lockdown, and restricts people from different households cannot meet while inside, and this may be imposed on others areas in the UK.  So, these questions are solely about hosting inside of your house when and where allowed.

1. From your experiences, on a daily basis how much time do you estimate that you and guests unavoidably spend time in the same space in close proximity to each other? 
2. How difficult will it be to maintain social distancing with guests, or for multiple amongst themselves?
3. What impact do you think it would have on the guest's visiting experience to amend your hosting practices and house rules to adhere to Airbnb's guidelines?

I am tagging a few others who homeshare in different countries.  I know most of them are not currently hosting, but do appreciate their insight.

@Huma0 @Sarah977 @Anonymous @Jessica-and-Henry0 

[Helen350]

@Debra300  I'm currently in Tier 1.

1. I often offer guests a cup of tea on arrival; some refuse, some take it to their room, some sit in my dining room, either at the dining table or on the sofa, and I sit with them and chat.

- When we came out of lockdown on 4 July, my first guest, who'd stayed in March & been the chattiest EVER; several hours, now avoided me like the plague & kept his distance, being scared of The Virus. Some guests after him accepted tea, & I made an effort to sit 2m distant at opposite ends of the table. As time went on, and we ALL GOT MORE COMPLACENT(!), I sat with guests at closer range, or chatted standing up, aware that no one was concerned about social distancing...

I host many guests who I never see at all, apart from arrival. Those here for work don't tend to want to be social, or are too tired. Single tourists can be up for chat; I find couples just want to stay in their rooms all the time, even before Covid. It is very rare that guests ever want to socialise with other guests! Most treat me as a super-cheap crash pad!

2. I think social distancing is quite easy. I sleep downstairs, guests sleep upstairs. We can choose to mix, or not. Yes, we share ONE bathroom/toilet. It's possible to nip in when others are behind closed doors. - If I'm half way up the stairs & I glimpse someone exiting the loo, I can run away! - Does that momentary  glimpse mean both of us should be masked up in anticipation of an encounter??? - I don't know! - If I can make it into the loo without clapping eyes on another guest, I reckon we're all OK sans mask?!

3.Impact of guest experience? - Some might JUMP at the chance not to feel obliged to chat over tea!!! And think 'What a blessed relief!'- Others might feel  a lesser experience, but I would say the guests I have tea & chat are the exception, rather than the rule!

Some use my kitchen for evening meal, most don't. - Tho' breakfast is 'help yourself'; for most, before I'm up!

Some parts of the UK are now in the 'No household may mix zones' - Tier 2 & 3. So it could be argued, that guests staying with me are lucky to be allowed to stay at all! - Staying with less host contact, or no kitchen use, (which some hosts have introduced) is better than having booked in a newly declared 'No mixing' area.

Tomorrow I have tourists from Colorado Springs staying! Currently they are in an Airbnb just outside Lancaster, which IF a homeshare would be illegal! OK if an entire place.

[Debra300]

@Helen350,

Thanks for your quick response.  I surmise from your comments that there are only fleeting periods in which you and a guest may have unavoidable close contact.  

[Anonymous]

@Debra300  I blocked my own listing's calendar indefinitely starting in February and the circumstances under which I'd consider re-opening seem a long way off.

Pre-pandemic, my stays were about evenly divided between two types: 

a)  3-4 night visits from active tourists who probably chose the listing for its location and price, and spent most of their time out and about

b) the "original Airbnb" type guests who were specifically attracted to the Homestay element described in the title, and would frequently hang out in the living room, join us for meals or drinks, and use the shared kitchen.

I feature my friendly dog prominently in the listing, and even my least sociable guests tend to enter the common area for some canine interaction. Given the size of the house, social distancing would not be a realistic option.

While I have no intention to resume in-home hosting during this pandemic, if I were to consider it I'd have to take into account that the current restrictions and curfew have drastically altered the experience tourists can have in Berlin - meaning that leisure visitors would tend to spend more of their time in the house and have greater need for the common areas. It's also bottomed out the prices of hotels and private apartments, so to remain competitive I'd effectively be yielding more use of the home - and accepting more risk of infection - for less pay. 

I'd assume that most people who are willing to stay in a shared home at this time are already pretty complacent about the virus, so hosts who try to enforce a mask rule in the home will have to suffer the same punitive reviews they get for enforcing other rules. Another inevitable effect of Airbnb's requirements will be that guests who catch hosts not observing them will get an easy refund. But in a setup like mine, the Airbnb guidelines are the least of my concerns.

[Debra300]

Thanks for your input, @Anonymous.  It was insightful to see hosting has been impacted in your area.