Verifying Guests

[Paula40]

Hello!

Let me start off by saying I'm new to hosting and have not hosted anyone yet but I have accepted some requests for next month. I'm a little uneasy and unclear about the verification process. I've seen others post about verified badges but I'm not sure what I should be looking for. I have a pending request currently for a young man that has Verified listed on his page but the logo doesnt look like the one listed in Help and Training. It's just a green blob with a white checkmark in it--is that what I should be looking for or are there "levels" of verification? He has 4 items listed in his Verified ID box (email, phone, Facebook, Offline ID) but none of that info is available to me. So what does that really mean? He has no personal information and it doesnt show his  last name so I cannot do any further investigating myself. Why is that?

[Stephanie6]

Hi @Paula40, Before accepting his reservation, I would ask him to tell me the purpose of his visit (work, visiting friends, tourism, etc.).  If the reservation is for more than one guest you should ask who will be staying with him.  He probably is new to airbnb does not realize that he should complete his profile so hosts will be more likely to accept his booking requests.

I have had good experiences with guests who were not reviewed.  However, I did find out the purpose of their visit before accepting the reservation.  I had to turn off instant book because some guests do not provide that information even though the booking form is clear that the information is needed.

[Kate-Mary0]

I agree with Stephanie. Just because a guest doesn't have a review yet, doesn't mean they'll be a bad guest. Everyone needs to start somewhere, right? I also ask guests a couple of questions regarding the purpose of their visit. To me, the tone that they use when they're communicating also says a lot. You can check out this post with more tips on how you can screen your guests: https://www.airbnbtips.com/hosting/how-to-screen-airbnb-guests/

[Gerry-And-Rashid0]

About 50% of our guests are new to Airbnb so have no reviews - verification is a bit of a misnomer - it really tells you nothing about the person(s). Just go with your gut feeling and exchange emails until you are comfortable with them staying.

[Nelson4]

Why Airbnb doesnt allow us hosts to see the facebook page of a potential guest?

[Gerry-And-Rashid0]

Just look it up on Facebook - or LinkedIn, or whatever...

[Nelson4]

But dont we have only the first name of a potential guest?

[Sally86]

I want to limit bookings to people who have at least one review. How can I do this?

[Janelle3]

I am a newbie to hosting and having the same confusion.

I'm unable to get any information other than the first name, airbnb "verifications" and sometimes, a photo of the person or whatever they chose to upload.

When I try to exchange information like email or phone or facebook link, it is consistently blocked by airbnb. I do see that once I accept their booking request I can contact them via email and phone, but at that point if I have concerns, I'm a little stuck right?

How can I put a face and story to a name before accepting their booking?

Please advise and thank you in advance to the community, the articles and tutorials here have been most helpful! 🙂

[Paula40]

Like both you and Nelso stated--we don't get the full information on the potential guests (such as FB and phone or even last name) until you pre-approve their request which seems backwards to me. I should be able to get all their information up front so that I can do my own verification before deciding on whether I want to approve.

Additionally, while the suggestion of exchanging emails to get more information from them makes sense, we have a time limit (is it 24 hours?) to approve or decline without being penalized and I don't feel that gives enough time to allow both parties to communicate effectively. 

[Ed-and-Hugh0]

@Paula40 It's important to protect the privacy of hosts and guests. Ther are so many criminals and scammers out there...would you want these people to have access to your Facebook account, e-mail address, or phone number? If you don't have enough information within 24 hours to make a decision, then you can decline and invite the guest to make another request when they have provided the information you need. Lots of hosts do this, and it's not really an issue.

You might also consider letting guests know in the listing what information you require so they know what to put in their messages. Also consider whether you are asking for information that may not be necessary and see if you can streamline the process.

[Janelle3]

I do understand about protecting the privacy of individuals. However I am not able to exchange information that the guest and I willingly offer up during the conversation because airbnb messaging system blocks all links, emails and phone numbers. How are you even able to use email to converse with someone after an inquiry? I'm hoping I'm missing something here...

[The-Queen0]

The way I see it all this is not because they are trying to protect anyone's identity but, after they have gathered all the personal data from either parties (host and guest) they are afraid that both host and guest might end up with some arrangement outside the company which is totally stupid since hosts need safety and that is why they agree to be members.

Furthermore, airbnb do not allow guests who are new members to move forward with any reservation unless they verify their ID although, they have provided and verified credit/debit cards, email and phone number, social media profiles etc. and although, hosts do not ask for that. The company claims that is for transparency and trust reasons. I wonder whose?

[Tora-Birgitte0]

have the same concern. Ive been hosting for a year now and have not had any problems but i have had recently heard a couple of scare airbnb stories from other hosts plus my husband's debit card details was stolen and someone managed to book a stay with his card which amazes me as i thought that the person booking needed to be 1. verified and 2 have a payment card in his own name.

I am thinking about asking the guests for their passport copy, has someone done that? I would be curious to hear thoughts and outcomes.

I am renting out my flat as i live in another city and so I never actually meet the guests. I do do what has been suggested here such as ask questions and names of all the people travelling and also ask them why they are travelling etc but it would still be good to have a proper verification.

[Min33]

 Hi Tora, after a bad experience with a guest, who stole our cheque book, I now tell guests on receiving booking inquiry that I will require them to show me valid driver's licence on checking in. If they agree, I accept their booking, if they disagree, I don't accept their booking. I also set my booking time to 2 days in advance, to allow me time to communicate with them.

When bad things happen to host, in my case the guest cashed $9000.00 from our account using the stolen cheques, airbnb didn't provide me with any information on the guest to assist police investigation, even disregarded request from the police detective. Luckily, the bank reimbursed me, and the police caught the guy assisted by cctv footages from two different banks