New strict cancellation policy update

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

The Airbnb team heard feedback from you and the host community about the upcoming change to our Strict cancellation policy. In order to address your concerns, we’re delaying the change until May 1, 2018.

Before the change goes into effect, we’ll share more about what we’re doing to address your concerns, particularly around protecting your listing details from being shared with guests who cancel. But for now, we’d like to clear up some confusion and help you better understand the new policy and how it will benefit the whole community:

Here’s how the new grace period policy will work—and some of the protections we have in place for hosts:

Limited-time refund within 48 hours after booking when the check-in date is at least 14 days away

Guests must cancel within 48 hours after booking and can only cancel if their check-in date is 14+ days away. This means that no matter how far out your guests book, they only have 48 hours from the time they book to cancel for free. We want to make sure that if guests change their mind, you have enough time to get another booking.

Three refunds per year per guest

To prevent abuse, guests are limited to three fully refunded cancellations a year.

No full refunds for overlapping bookings

To make sure guests are not making multiple bookings and then cancelling, any booking made by a guest when they already have an active booking for those dates will not be covered under our grace period policy.

Your hosting success is top of mind for us, and tests of this policy—including among hosts with strict cancellation policies in place—strongly suggest the change will result in increased bookings and successful stays. With this grace period, not only do guests book with more confidence, but they also have the ability to resolve booking mistakes without requiring your valuable time and intervention.

We value your feedback, and will follow up shortly with more insight into how your ideas are shaping this policy.

Thanks,

Lizzie

----------Update April 24th, 2018----------

Hello everyone,

Just to let you know there is now an update regarding protecting your listing details, as mentioned above. 

Here is the link to take a look: An update on the Strict Cancellation Policy

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Lizzie]

Hello @Joseph302,

Thanks for your comment here. I just want to let you know that there is now an update regarding the release of listing information. Take a look here. 

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Anton-and-Yoshi0]

This is one of the worst ideas that AirBnB staff have come up with.  We are very much against it.  Yet another reason that we think another platform will be a better way to go from here forward.  So, anyone can find out the address of your listing without even paying anything.  Just book, take down the information, cancel, move on.  This can be done numerous times with various email addresses.  For our security, we do not want this and are seriously considering cancelling our relationship with AirBnB unless there is a change in this proposed idea.

[Lizzie]

Hello @Anton-and-Yoshi0,

Thanks for your comment here. I just want to let you know that there is now an update regarding the release of listing information. Take a look here. 

I hope this helps.

Lizzie

[Jimmy-and-Dina0]

The fact that our information would be shared with any guest without a financially secured reservation is an absolute non-starter for us. This going in to effect would likely mean we would no longer continue to host on Airbnb.  

[Lizzie]

Hello @Jimmy-and-Dina0

Thanks for your comment here. I just want to let you know that there is now an update regarding the release of listing information. Take a look here. 

Thank again,

Lizzie

[Helen460]

I'm very nervous about guests getting access to the house manual during the grace cancellation period- my security access is included in this and would result in a security threat to me and my family if this information is shared widely. 

[Lizzie]

Hello @Helen460

Thanks for your comment here. I just want to let you know that there is now an update regarding the release of listing information. Take a look here. 

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Karol5]

Lizzie,

While we appreciate the clarifications, this grace period in no way assists us as hosts in Carmel.  We are booked as much as we want to be, our guests are really happy, and most importantly we are in a community full of anti-STR vigilantes and enforcement sharks.  While we object to the new policy, what is most disturbing is that a potential guest would have access to our personal data, contacts and address, before the booking is confirmed.  This really exposes many of us in our community in a vulnerable way.  Please, if you go through with this revised strict cancellation policy plan, which by the way seems to be more about appealing to guests and revenue flow rather than to hosts, please DO NOT reveal personal data, contacts or addresses until the booking is confirmed.

Karol

[Lizzie]

Hello @Karol5

Thanks for your comment here. As you may have seen above, there is now an update regarding the release of listing information. Take a look here. 

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Jackie192]

It concerns me slightly that they can make a booking, then automaticaly recieve my details (address, phone number, email) then cancle and still have all my information. That was why i picked strict policy in the first place. Am i the only one concerned about this?

[Lizzie]

Hello @Jackie192,

Thanks for your comment here. I just want to let you know that since you have posted here, there is now an update regarding the release of listing information. Take a look here. 

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Laura-and-Michael1]

I do not want my full details disclosed to guests until after the 48 hour period. That's important to me.

[Lizzie]

Hello @Laura-and-Michael1,

Thanks for your comment here. I just want to let you know that there is now an update regarding the release of listing information. Take a look here. 

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Sam44]

NOOOOOO.  I absolutely think it's terrible to share my private information with a guest who could cancel.  As a single woman who hosts MANY single women, I think this is dangerous and careless on your part.

Please consider not releasing personal information until AFTER this mandatory 48-hour policy (which is far-too long anyway).  Honestly, if you make me feel unsafe on here, I may just move my listing to another site.

[Lizzie]

Hello @Sam44,

Thanks for your comment here. There is now an update regarding the release of listing information. To take a look click here. 

Thanks,

Lizzie