Does Airbnb send test inquiries?

[Andrea4477]

Every couple of months we get 2 different inquiries on the same day, almost back to back, always asking something similar: are pools open? & will we have the pool to ourselves?, for example. They are always from verified accounts, but one always is a new account, having only joined within the month. Bookings never come through and we never get a response to our answers. We are thinking Airbnb does random checks to see if/how we respond...???  It is very frustrating to think bookings are going to happen and then never do. Does this happening to anyone else??

[Ann72]

@Andrea4477  It's an interesting question to ponder!  I've never heard that they do that, but who knows?  They obviously wouldn't tell hosts if they did.

Inquiries that go nowhere, frustrating as they are, are just part of being a host.  If people don't book very quickly after getting an answer, I archive the message and forget about it.  If they end up booking, yay, if they don't, something else, often better, usually comes along.

[Andrea4477]

Thanks for chatting about it with me. We just find it curious and suspicious that they come in 2s... always the same day and follow the same theme, whther about pools or pet policy, etc.  Those who do end up booking, rarely ask questions that are so obviously answered in our listing. Food for thought 🤔.  Have a great weekend!!

[Ann72]

@Andrea4477  Most definitely odd and too frequent to be random!

[Anthony608]

@Andrea4477- There are indeed a lot of rumors that AirBNB is doing this, or has done this in the past.  At present, with the staff cuts at AirBNB, fruitless inquiries checking amenities and your replies to such, are probably not the doing of AirBNB.  More likely, as many have already said, just strange inquiries which go nowhere, something that happens to all hosts from time to time (I've had at least a dozen in the past two years).

With that said, back in 2018 the kind of thing you suspect was definitely going on.  AirBNB was creating accounts and testing hosts to see if they were complying with standards regarding non-discrimination.  Also this was a measure to check on fake host profiles offering non-existent properties - this was a huge problem around 2016 and was reported in the media a few times, prompting AirBNB to take action.

Myself, I do not think I have ever been "tested" by an AirBNB created profile.  The one time I really did have a disabled person in my home, I went out of my way to accommodate him.  It was actually something of a nightmare as he was hearing impaired and on the first night he arrived he pretty much expected me to be a caregiver, provide for all his needs, and drive him around the local area for his activities.  He also helped himself to my food, something which is dead against house rules.

I was very fearful to leave him a negative review since I felt I would be liable for a discrimination charge due to his handicap.  I gave him a generic review, 4 stars in all categories, and he gave me four stars as well.  In his private feedback, he stated "you didn't take care of me" which I found quite ridiculous.