Cancellation...?

[Jennifer80]

I have a booking for this coming Friday, but the guest just emailed me that he got hit by a car/bus..... He was not expecting a refund, but would like a rain check. He was booked by instant booking. 

When I took a closer look at his profile, I started to have questions about his verifications. There is no any real photo of him, and he used a review which was addressed to a different name. I am unsure what to do for this particular circumstance. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 

[Sandra126]

You can always ask for a medical certificate. Your cancellation policy would come into play regarding any refund/rebooking. Up to you. The review to another name is odd indeed.

[Helen3]

Hi Jennifer

Well if he wants to move the booking date -  he does actually want a refund as he wants to move his booking dates without a financial penalty.

In your situation,  if you are not comfortable the guest is who they say they are,  you could speak to BnB, explain the circumstances and ask for their advice. The guest could cancel the booking and if there are extenuating circumstances (he will be able to show a police report/hospital report) then BnB can refund him. Then if he wants to book at another time and he is able to provide proper identification and you are comfortable with him, you can accept the reservation.

Going forward, I would recommend you only accept verified guests ie those who provide a passport/driving license as well as social media links, so you can have confidence that the person who turns up is the one who booked. If a guest doesn't have a clear profile picture of themselves I always ask them to upload one before confirming a booking.

[Christine1]

If the guest cannot attend then their options are to request an alteration or a cancellation. If there is extenuation circumstances then the guest will have the opportunity to demonstrate this to Airbnb you won't need to concern yourself they will sort any proof needed. If you get a formal refund request you can deal with it then, full refund partial or not, you can choose. 

Keeping the existing reservation and moving the dates will avoid the guest having a financial penalty and allow them to have another attempt at staying. But there is a down side for you as a host.

As a host you will not be reimbursed for the dates discarded, unless you can rebook them. 

Your cancellation policy will now apply to the new dates and if the guest cancels them early enough they may be able to facilitate a full refund depending on the terms in your policy. For whatever period these new dates appear as booked or blocked on your calendare. You cannot book them. Your payment will now be postposed untill the new dates as well. 

terms in your policy. For whatever period thes new dates appear blocked on your calendar

[Jennifer80]

Thank you all for the input! It was very helpful!