instant booking

[Amanda20]

Is instant booking more risky as I would not know who guests are?

[Dave-and-Deb0]

Hi @Amanda20,

Yes, Instant Book can be more risky as you do not really get a chance to ask questions of the guest and decide if you feel comfortable with them.  Airbnb realizes this so they do have two things to which may make you feel more comfortable.  The first is when you turn IB on, you have the option to allow only those guests who have been recommended by other hosts.  The second thing is you can cancel 3 IB bookings without penalty "IF" you feel uncomfortable with them.

I am one who tends to flip flop on whether to have IB turned on or not.  Right now I have it turned on.

Here is an article covering cancelling IB bookings (scroll down to IB section): https://www.airbnb.ca/help/article/990/how-do-host-cancellation-penalties-work

Dave

[Donna15]

Yes. Some hosts of course swear by it, while others prefer to have potential guests send a reguest first. 

I used IB for a few days, and had a couple of bookings which turned out to be fine. However, I switched back to 'Request' after reading a number of threads on the forum about the risks. I'm a woman living on my own, and I want to know exactly who will be sharing my space. 

When someone sends a request, there's an opportunity for a relaxed and informative dialogue

prior to the booking being made. Both parties can then determine whether in fact the host-guest-accommodation 'match' would be suitable.