I need some advice

[Jeanne246]

I am currently hosting someone for the weekend. I received an inquiry which turned out to supposedly be my guest’s husband. He stayed he noticed in the booking it was for 2 guests and thinks his wife is having an affair, wants me to call him and not mention anything about it to her. Now obviously I have no intention of speaking to him, but should I send a return saying something to the effect that I do not discuss guest’s Reservations or do I just ignore it totally? Should I tell her about it? I’m at a loss. Also knowing he has accessed the booking he has my address, what if he shows up?

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Jeanne246

auuuu 😄 😄

it seems you have a third-party reservation which is not allowed (as you see for a good reason) and it is a really tricky situation.

If you discuss it with your guest she may cancel her reservation and ask for a refund for the rest of her stay. You will lose some money.

If your booking is on husband's name he can cancel the reservation and the result will be the same as above.

If the husband shows on the door and you refuse to let him in he can call Airbnb and Airbnb will cancel the reservation ON YOUR BEHALF because you didn't let him in (reservation is on his name remember)

So, whatever you do it is not good for you I am afraid.

This is just another reason why hosts want to see guests profile photo on Airbnb and why some smart hosts ask for photo ID on arrival. You just never know...

For now, I would tell the husband  "I do not discuss guest’s Reservations"

[Sarah977]

If this reservation was on the wife's account, that he was snooping in, and then sent you an Inquiry about from his account, I'd contact Airbnb, ask them to look at the Inquiry message and ask what they would advise or ask them to deal with it. 

If the booking was on the husbands' account, as Branka and Sylvia said, it's a third party booking and against the terms of service.

Are these people local? Like could the husband just drive to your home and start some violent scene? If so, make sure you voice those concerns to Airbnb as well.

[Jeanne246]

Exactly as your 1st proposal Sarah. Thanks for your advice. They are from a couple hours away from here

[Mark116]

I usually agree with @Sarah977, but in this case, I wouldn't want to get anywhere near a domestic dispute.  I wouldn't contact airbnb unless you feel  your safetly is at risk.  If the reservation was made on the husband's account but its the wife who is there, I would give as neutral a reply as possible, such as that you are simply offering housing accommodations and don't get involved in your guests personal issues.  If it was the wife who made her own reservation, I would say the same.

ETA, I'm not sure if a husband and wife using each other's accounts would count as a third party booking, b ut maybe?

[Jeanne246]

@@Branka and Silvia- the reservation is not under the husband’s name, it’s under my guest’s name. I’m assuming he just knows her log in, or maybe her password was stored on her computer and he happened upon it. Please don’t insinuate I am breaking the rules; I don’t need trouble from Airbnb!

[Sarah977]

@Jeanne246  I don't think anyone was insinuating that you're breaking any rules- but we see posts on here all the time from hosts who don't realize that third party bookings aren't allowed and that they're not covered by Airbnb if the host accepts them.  Don't worry, no one from Airbnb reads these posts and makes trouble for you based on anything said here.

[Jeanne246]

On hindsight my post could have been clearer- this guest made her own reservation a few days ago, just today I received a message as a booking inquiry from an account stating he is the husband. 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Jeanne246

I didn't insinuate you are breaking the rules, if it would be third party booking without your knowledge then they would break the rules.

If the booking was made from wife's account then this is a much better situation for you. You don't have to answer husband's questions or let him in or be afraid that he may cancel the booking. 

But I also think it would be smart to tell your guest as @Helen3 suggested.

[Sarah977]

@Mark116  Maybe you're right, but my suggestion was intended to ensure that she didn't get involved in any way about this with either the husband or the wife. His Inquiry message was inappropriate, which is why I suggested she call it to Airbnb's attention. But I suppose that could backfire in some way.

Definitely a short response as you suggest is in order, I can just see the husband not leaving it at that and continuing to send messages or show up at the door.

[Sandra126]

I would tell the wife.

[Helen3]

How bizarre @Jeanne246 

You don't say whether your guest is with a partner, but presume if she wasn't you would have said.

In your situation I would take the guest to one side and tell her you have been contacted on her account my someone claiming to be her husband and can she check her account and leave it at that.

In that way you are not getting involved.

I wouldn't respond to the husband. It is not his account and he is not your guest.

By the way your place looks supercheap I would increase your prices unless that is what other comparable places are charging.

It is especially important that you do this in case he turns up.

If you feel your safety is compromised and the husband might turn up you will need to flag it with airbnb and ask them to cancel the booking,.

[Lisa723]

I second @Sarah977's advice... something like that happened to us once; we had a young couple here and the guy's other girlfriend appeared, no idea how she got the address. It was quite a scene, but fortunately no serious violence... He gave us an excellent review.

[Jeanne246]

So, I told her. She was not surprised. She assures me he would not come here. My next question: since he sent the message to me as a booking inquiry should I just decline it? I don’t want to let it expire and affect my response time...

Thank you all so much for your help!

[Lisa723]

Accept it, without comment. He's not going to follow through.