3rd Party Reservations

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Debbie106
Level 5
Bradenton, FL

3rd Party Reservations

I had a guest book on instant book for her mother.  This is against Airbnb rules so I cancelled and explained to the guest why I had to cancel the reservation.  I got penalized by having the date blocked and losing the Superhost opportunity.  I learned the hard way that what I should have done was messaged the guest and ask her to cancel the booking and explain why.  If she refused then I would have to cancel it.  

 

Its never a good idea to accept a 3rd party reservation.  You are not covered by Airbnb in any manner.  The guest does not go through the ID and verification steps so you are also at risk.

1 Best Answer
Andrea9
Level 10
Amsterdam, Netherlands

@Debbie106

 

What you should take with you for the future is:

 

When a guest goes against Airbnb principles, they are the ones at fault.

 

Yes, you should make them aware of this to cancel.

 

If they don't, then no, it's not your problem to cancel.

 

BUT you should call Airbnb and tell them about the booking going against Terms  of Service.

They have to undo the booking.

If you simply cancel the system software registers that as host cancellation because it can't read minds.

So in these kind of precarious situations, you need to do it by involving Airbnb.

 

Help minimize your guest risk yourself:

Make sure you get the full name of the guest booking. Otherwise ask them for it.

If the reservation is for more than one person ask for full names of all guests.

Mention in your house rules somewhere that there will be ID checks on arrival.

Keep a registry like a hotel and make sure you include ID nos.

In the case of somebody arriving with a different name, you need to tell them "We have a problem, because booking is not for you and I'm not covered by Airbnb for 3rd party bookings". Don't even let them into the room.  In their presence you call Airbnb, the no. of which I'm sure you have on speed dial. They will have to solve the problem since that booking will be against their own TOS.

 

 

 

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14 Replies 14
Linda108
Level 10
La Quinta, CA

@Debbie106  Did you speak with Air BNB about what happened?  Did you have the conversation via the Air BNB messaging system?  Perhaps you can have this looked at by Air BNB staff and reverse the cancellation penalties.  Under IB you should be able to cancel without penalty if a guest is breaking rules.

I cant reach them.  I was on hold for 20 minutes and finally hung up.  Ive emailed and sent messages to them.  Hopefully they will respond eventually.

Andrea9
Level 10
Amsterdam, Netherlands

@Debbie106

 

What you should take with you for the future is:

 

When a guest goes against Airbnb principles, they are the ones at fault.

 

Yes, you should make them aware of this to cancel.

 

If they don't, then no, it's not your problem to cancel.

 

BUT you should call Airbnb and tell them about the booking going against Terms  of Service.

They have to undo the booking.

If you simply cancel the system software registers that as host cancellation because it can't read minds.

So in these kind of precarious situations, you need to do it by involving Airbnb.

 

Help minimize your guest risk yourself:

Make sure you get the full name of the guest booking. Otherwise ask them for it.

If the reservation is for more than one person ask for full names of all guests.

Mention in your house rules somewhere that there will be ID checks on arrival.

Keep a registry like a hotel and make sure you include ID nos.

In the case of somebody arriving with a different name, you need to tell them "We have a problem, because booking is not for you and I'm not covered by Airbnb for 3rd party bookings". Don't even let them into the room.  In their presence you call Airbnb, the no. of which I'm sure you have on speed dial. They will have to solve the problem since that booking will be against their own TOS.

 

 

 

I tried to call them and was on hold for 20 minutes, finally hung up.  Ive sent several messages to them.  You have great ideas that Im definately going to implement.  Thank you!

@Debbie106  I can understand how frustrating it is to stay on hold when you want to reach ANY customer service.  One thing good about the Air BNB phone line is that it is available 24 hours per day, unlike most other customer service lines.  Therefore, calling in the middle of the night really works!  I happen to be an early riser so when I call at 5 AM, I rarely have to wait.  Try that and let us know how it goes.

Thats a good idea.  Thank you!

@Debbie106, did you call airbnb? 

 

Something similar happened to me and they were very helpful in resolving my issue.

 

If you havent already, do so, call them and ask that the cancellation be removed.

Thank you for your reply.  At the time I was very new to ABB and could not find a way to contact them that worked.  Im more seasoned now and have taken steps to make sure this doesnt happen again.

Tom415
Level 2
Austin, TX

I just had a 3rd party reservation.  I informed the individual that booked the stay that I would require that his employee, who would be staying there, to go though a sign in process and provide a goverment issued ID.  The employees violated several House Rules as well as violated the agreement that I had them sign.

Airbnb sided with the guests.  I had included a daily inspection of property during their stay.  They complained and I was told that my agreement held no weight.  They smoked and I was told that I could not stop them from smoking on my property.  The moved my furniture outside to smoke around an outside table.  I guess a Hooka is not considered smoking!

Airbnb sides with the guest.  They can always get another Host.  Keeping their guest customers seems more important than protecting the Hosts rights.

James1531
Level 2
Ojai, CA

Lex from support promised to cancel a third party instant booking HMARSBRJDA. Kept his word neither time we spoke about two separate reservations booked against contracts terms. I’m looking for an attorney referral if anyone can help 

Lorna112
Level 4
Orlando, FL

OKay - this tells me I need to go read the rules book on what I can and can't accept... Thanks!  Are there any other tips or most common error - forst timers to AirBnB makes - that you can point out?  Thank again

Lorna112
Level 4
Orlando, FL

1st - Hi - I'm new to AirBnB today - checkimg out awesome tips from season super host - anyone you know coming to the Orlando area - I would appreciate referrals... do they have referal fees or ways I can pay you withing AirBnb to refer disney area guest etc to a particular host?  Thanks for the tips 

Pat365
Level 3
Sugarloaf, CA

I had a guy with no reviews request a booking which is against my policy. I explained it to him and then his Girlfriend instant booked under her account! I told the girlfriend that 3rd party bookings are unacceptable due to liability issues and my guests must have a previous positive review.

Then they used a 3rd profile to book again!

I explained to the Help Desk and the reservation was  Cancelled, but then I get a notice of a " one time Courtesy Cancellation", along with a list of charges that I could be assessed!

Why do I constantly feel Airbnb only cares about Guests? I shouldn't be reprimanded for a cancellation when the guest was breaking rules.

Very disheartening and frustrating.

Your policy of not accepting guests with no reviews only applies to Instant Book. Anyone can send a request, which you can either accept or decline (I've accepted several guests with no reviews, and they've all turned out to be fine guests- I base my acceptance on how they communicate with me during the request process) .

 

Those requirements you can check for IB are safeguards for IB hosts since guests can book without communicating with you first. But requests should be considered, not just rejected out-of-hand because of no reviews, because your ability to communicate with the guest who sends a request gives you more control in making a decision of whether to accept or not.

 

But I certainly agree that Airbnb shouldn't be threatening hosts or acting like they're doing you some big favor by letting you cancel on scammy guests.

@Pat365