Problematic communication with guest

[Marina138]

I am expecting my first guest. I am becoming increasingly worried since the booking as my guest is not replying to any of my emails. No matter what I ask he keeps sending me the same reply with just the date of arrival and request for a mobile phone which was already in my emails and in the House Instructions I sent him, which he has failed to acknowledge. He has not complied with my request for two days notice of expected arrival time, he has just ignored it, he has not acknowledged the receipt of the house instructions and when I asked him to call me so that we could clarify certain things he ignored that too. He is a Verified ID guest but I am beginning to think that there is either something strange going on or that he doesn't speak English or French in which case he cannot read or understand the House Instructions which complicates things even further. From what I have been reading I can;t cancel the booking unless dire circumstances have arisen but I am finding this very uncomfortable. I would also like to request proof and a copy of his ID upon arrival .

Any suggestions?

[Anmmar0]

Hi Marina,

I reccommend setting up government ID verification for future bookings as an added layer of security that will make you feel a bit more comfortable with whoever is booking. As for your current situation you can call Airbnb and explain to them the situation to see if they have any suggestions.

Lastly, if it's a language situation try to send them a message using Google Translate and see if they respond to that. I would text, call my guest once but not too much as not to bother them.

I hope one of my tips helps you a little

[Frank-and-Lisa0]

I believe you can cancel the reservations if the guest has not complied with your requests. I am not sure how soon your guest will arrive but you can either call him on his phone and asks if he speaks english or french or you can simply send one more email stating you will feel the need to cancel the reservation in the next (hours or days) if he does not respond. 

If this is your first hosting opportunity it should not harm your airbnb status at all. 

Good Luck! 

[Andrea9]

@Marina138

Contrary to what some hosts believe, don't ever cancel as host - penalties are too high, and the dates will be blocked.

Better to contact Airbnb to talk to them about this and how to proceed.

@Frank-and-Lisa0

[Lizzie]

Hello @Marina138,

Lovely to meet you.

As this question was posted twice, it is easier to see all of the replies in one place therefore I have now merged the response into this thread here.

I hope this is fine with you.

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Patricia86]

I agree with you regarding your comment about contacting Airbnb when you have a problem.  I have always found them to be as helpful as they can be.  

But I disagree about cancelling.  This is our home.  We live here.  I don't know these people that I am allowing inside my home.  If I cannot come to an agreement with Airbnb, and if I still feel really unconcomfortable with a guest, then I will cancel.  I would rather live with lower ratings and a loss of superhost status than to feel uneasy about the strange person I allowed into my house.  

[Mike119]

Hello Marina,

The language shouldn't be a problem since there is the option to translate the messages using google directly on each pages.

As regards to the proof of ID, simply tell him that it is a legal requierement from your town, and that you need to see his passport in order to make a photocopy of it (hope you have a copy machine or scanner in the house).

Once, I travelled to Holland and the house owner actually kept my driving license during the entire stay, I didn't have a problem with that.

From what I understand, with Airbnb you can cancel once without having to pay any cancellation fee.

Hope this helps, and good luck with your new rental!

[Helen3]

In your situation, I would call BnB and explain that you can't get your guest to respond to your questions and see if they have another way of reaching them.

I would also send your guest a message and confirm your check in times - for example mine is 6 -11 p.m. and that they must give you a window within that time for arrival, to make sure you are available to check them in.

Personally I never accept a booking unless I have agreed a check in time with the guest in advance of the booking being confirmed.