Thanks for this conversation. I'm a new host, was excited to get bookings immediately upon listing then . . . nada! I discovered my area also has IB automatically turned on. It takes 3 clicks for a user to turn it off -- click on the tab, click on the radio button, then "Apply" the change. Not so intuitive and takes time and thought. Many people won't bother.
My space is truly handicapped accessible (roll in shower, ADA sink, ramp to entrance) but even filtering on wheelchair accessible doesn't bypass the IB default. Guests are directed to higher-priced choices under the filter (some with bathtubs!). So I was annoyed at this push to IB.
Furthermore, the ability to exchange emails I felt helped me decline one request from someone who 1) asked questions that were already answered in the listing and 2) was asking for a friend or family member, not themselves. I've since had my gut misgivings about that guest confirmed by reading about "red flags" from you experienced hosts. I would sure like to get a little more experience before turning on IB.
I have a financial background, so I just assumed Airbnb was trying to accelerate their revenue receipts by favoring IB. Hey, they're a for profit company, so what can ya do? Then I did some more reading.
The IB emphasis is enumerated as one of Airbnb's responses to a disturbing statistical (and some documented) racial discrimination in short term rentals. I'm glad Airbnb is addressing this and that they've engaged former AG Eric Holder for advice.
BUT, I agree with some other analyses I've read about one way to approach this problem -- remove guest and host photos. You could still be required to submit a photo to Airbnb -- so Airbnb could do its photo matching behind the scenes as part of their security. Just don't include photos in the reservation process. Why not start there? I can understand the concern of those who share rooms in their home (not an investment or separate property) in wanting to screen guests. All savvy landlords of long term rentals screen their tenants.
No one should be discriminated against. Hosts who are sharing their own homes (again, not those arbitraging long term rental and investment property revenues -- that's a different debate) can't afford to do credit/background checks, and don't have the staffing and security infrastructure of a hotel to protect themselves. I haven't seen statistics on problems or crimes for IB vs. non-IB Airbnb properties. That would be helpful. There needs to be a solution that recognizes the legitimate needs of all parties.