An update on changes to the Strict cancellation policy

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

We recently announced that we’re updating our Strict cancellation policy. Starting May 1, 2018, guests will have the option to cancel for free within 48 hours of booking, as long as their check-in date is at least 14 days away.

In response to this announcement, many of you voiced concerns about Airbnb sharing your details with guests who may cancel. We take your privacy very seriously, so thank you for that feedback—it inspired important updates that give you more control over when your listing details and contact information are shared with guests.  

Here’s how we’re addressing your concerns

You can choose not to share your address, phone number, and last name with guests during the period that they can cancel for free. Guests will never see these details if they cancel their reservation during the free cancellation window.

To use this feature, go to Listing > Listing details > Edit location in your Airbnb account. Under Visibility for booked guests, check the box next to Share details with guests after the free cancellation period.  

This feature will be available to all hosts on May 1, regardless of their cancellation policy (Strict, Flexible, Moderate). And just in case you missed the announcement, here’s what’s changing for hosts who have a Strict cancellation policy:

• Guests will get a full refund if they cancel within 48 hours of booking, as long as their check-in date is at least 14 days away. This means that even if a guest books a reservation months in advance, they’re only able to get a full refund if they cancel within the first 48 hours after booking.  
• Guests can only get 3 full refunds per year. After that, guests will no longer be able to cancel for free.
• To discourage guests from making multiple reservations for the same dates and then cancelling, overlapping reservations aren’t eligible for a full refund.

This change helps hosts with a Strict cancellation policy compete with listings that offer guests more flexibility. Guests feel more confident booking reservations that give them room to make changes or fix booking mistakes immediately. The updated policy gives guests this flexibility, but only for 48 hours after they book.

Airbnb is committed to the success of all hosts and we know changes impact how you work. We don’t make changes like these without extensive testing, and after we change the policy on May 1st, we’ll continue to monitor the impact by providing the grace period to a portion of guests before making it available to all guests. As we roll this out, we’ll continue to listen to your valuable feedback.

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Šarka0]

@Ann10 & everyone else: 

Don't depend on the glitchy Strict policy still there. I also left the original Strict policy yesterday, even though Strict with grace was already available, also thinking they won't figure out the glitch for a while.

Today I woke up, checked my phone, there was a new reservation - pending because Government ID was not validated, also no host reviews, and no message answering my questions; I have Instant Book on and I require all those things, yet my dates are blocked...

So, back to the red thread 🙂 Today I woke up, and checked the cancellation policies and there was nothing selected! The original Strict is gone, there are only Flexible, Moderate and Strict w/G, and by the time the reservation was made, I had NO POLICY SELECTED!

So, anyone who tried to work with the glitch, check your policies again! You might not have anything selected by now which could cause big problems to you.

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

Thank you for sharing your experience so far (day 2) with the changes to the Cancellation Policy and how you are seeing this displayed on your accounts. (Thank you @Šarka0 for highlighting the 'No policy selected', to other hosts)

I also wanted to highlight that you should now be able to see the 'Visibility for booked guests' option in your Airbnb account, if you wish to select this option (more details seen in my opening post).

To recap, to use this feature, go to Listing > Listing details > Edit location in your Airbnb account. Under Visibility for booked guests, check the box next to Share details with guests after the free cancellation period.

Please do continue to share your thoughts and feedback, as the days go on. 

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Paul926]

For hosts who are still angry about this I would suggest we all turn ON the ID requirement for guests to book.

https://www.airbnb.com/hosting/requirements

Mine had been switched off without me knowing when I checked it.

[David2118]

@Lizzie could you please get answers to the edge cases I, and others, raised? I really want to understand those cases BEFORE I try them out. 

Part of my frustration with the company, in addition to the contemptuous treatment of hosts' input here, is that even when we raise factual concerns, they are ignored. In my experience with other communities, direct interaction, a great deal of support and engagement from the sponsoring company are fundamental to a positive, company-sponsored community—not one, lonely, board admin encouraging us all to "believe, believe, believe" in the goodness of absentee policy makers. Yes, there are many things on ABB's plate: but changing a MAJOR policy like this one, which WILL impact all our bottom lines (including, probably ABB's), should be carried out with care, not disdain. When we raise questions about "how it's gonna work" we deserve answers BEFORE YOU PULL THE DARNED TRIGGER. Why do you have to be told something so basic?

So, to repeat sans rant, can you please make sure those questions get answered in this forum? Or if you have already requested the answers and are waiting for others to respond, could you please say so and provide an estimate when those questions will be answered?  

Finally, is there some RULE or POLICY that says that Airbnb, product managers, engineers, execs, technologists, etc. can't participate on these ABB-sponsored boards? Or is the lack of engagement with the host community just evidence of their disdain for it, an accusation that permeates has permeated this conversation?

The silence is from ABB management is, as they say, deafening.

[Ann10]

@Lizzie-Sorry, I was asking for the link for my posting that was moved from the host voice. Someone told me the reason I couldn't  find it is because it is hidden. Sorry for the confusion. I am following it now.

[Ann10]

@Sean0-Airbnb did this to themselves by giving me 263% less views, and even though I suppose I'm still a rare find they, for some reason, no longer call my place a "RARE FIND". Maybe it's only a rare find if it's booked up w ABB bookings. I'm a bit confused. Doesn't the the guest who cancels within 48 hours also get the service fees back? Or only if they book another ABB place?  July is complely blocked out and it's my only ABB for the summer. According to BP my "health" is bad because I'm already too booked up. There is no way I will make myself available to be cancelled on 14 days out. I have blocked out the entire calendar except May 12, 13, 14 and unsync w other platforms. Now, I get messages saying, you won't get booked if you don't unblock the calendar. Ha ha! I know that.

 Sean-

[Ann10]

Šarka-I was about to unlist my listings that didn't have 30 day cancellation policies. Before I did that I did a search to see how many people were just falling in line. I noticed a lot of people did not have free cancellation, including me. You are right, I had nothing selected, but I thought it would still be strict since it didn't say free cancellation on my listing. I guess I was completely wrong. Since I won't do IB, it seems I will never get booked again. Plus, now I have the entire calendar blocked except May 12, 13 and 14 so I won't have to deal w last minute cancellations. 

[Ann10]

@Lizzie- Ok, I guess I was really confused. I did ask for the link to the old thread for this discussion. Also, someone told me the thread that was moved out of the HV was hidden, so I also needed a link to that one also. However, I now am following that one in spite of the fact that I have no idea how to find other than the instructions you gave and then looking through 1000s of threads. I guess if I remember the title or key words that might work.... Sorry for my confusion. Is it really hidden? 

[Denis-And-Valerie0]

Airbnb needs to be very cautious about releasing hosts' private information--for their own benefit. What's to stop guests from making private arrangements with hosts, since they will be given the contact information? Not that I'm interested in any private arrangements, but the world is full of people with no scruples. Airbnb might find itself with less revenue in its own pocket. Releasing contact info while guests may still cancel is a bad move, they may well come to regret this.

[Lizzie]

Hello @Denis-And-Valerie0,

Nice to meet you. Thanks for your comments here.

Just thinking on your message, I agree this is an important area. Due to the feedback on this share here in the Community Center,  we have implemented the 'Visibility to booked guest' option (which I mention in my open post here), which delays the release of your listing information to your guest until the free cancellation policy has past.

Does this help to address the point you make here or have you got further ideas on this? 

Thank you,

Lizzie

[David126]

There are plenty of Hosts who take direct bookings.

So somebody books subject to the 48hr refund, Host replies and mentions that ohh by the way do you realise you can book direct, save money and get a full refund from AirBnB.

[Katie193]

Lizzie, since it is now 2nd and Airbnb has ignored all host comments not to change the strict cancellation notice, I tried to follow your directions so people within the 48 hours of cancellation time you gave them(but not to hosts) cannot see my personal information, but there is no option under location to change anything. When I click on my address, it tells me I cannot change it. This is a huge safety concern for multiple reasons. I do not wish my information to be shared until a booking is confirmed. Instead of making it automatic Airbnb made it a step we had to take so it is not visable, yet that step option is not available. If something happens, Airbnb will have a huge media and legal backlash for not protecting my safety. 

[Lizzie]

Hello @Katie193,

Thanks for checking about this. This feature should be available on your Airbnb account.

Just to double check, if you click on 'edit' on the location section of your Listing details, then once in 'edit' scroll down to the bottom of the page, you should see this option 'Visibility for booked guests'.  Is this not there?

Speak to you soon.

Lizzie

[Tj5]

My rentals require a 30 night minimum due to HOA and local regulations. This type of hosting requires more lead time with many fewer potential guests. Any days that my properties are offline due to a cancelable reservation is potential guests lost during the interim.

On a related subject: Long term rentals like mine are punished by the  Airbnb requirement for Super Hosts based upon quantity of individual bookings rather than total number of hosted days in a quarter. This restricts my ability to demonstrate my superior hosting while Airbnb benefits from the commissions generated from such easy income streams. Why?

[Ann10]

@Tj5-Maybe you could have different people in the group make shorter reservations. That way you could get more reviews. I'm not sure how that would work out w service fees though. It's a good point though!