scam

[Claudia2589]

Hello community, I have a query about potential scam guests and having hosted for the last 4 summers I should have developed more intuition but am researching means of checking them out.  They no longer seem to ask to communicate outside of the site which is good, but sometimes ask to negociate a price and the language is different to other requests.  I also check their reviews 'backwards 'and find they don't appear on their previous hosts' reviews for the dates they claim.   Is this a useful tactic or am I being extra cautious?  Is there any other way of checking, short of asking them?  I like to think well of people but I host in my own home so want to be vigilant.  Thanks for any advice or shared experience.

[Anonymous]

@Claudia2589   Discount-grubbers are not necessarily trying to pull a scam, but hosts who yield to their requests tend to regret it. They tend to be the most high-maintenance and entitled guests, the likeliest to disrespect the property, demand further concessions, and leave retaliatory reviews when you put your foot down. Invariably, I decline them and wish them the best of luck finding a listing that fits their budget. 

On the other issue, I'm not sure what you mean about the language being different, but I always try to clear up communication difficulties and potential misunderstandings before making a decision on a request. Since there is a 24 hour deadline to accept or decline, my messages will usually include a reminder of what time I'll need the important questions answered by. If I'm satisfied that we can overcome the language barrier, I have no problem accepting these.

[Colleen253]

@Claudia2589 Seconding what Andrew has said re 'discount grubbers'. Save yourself the time and hassle of vetting these folk. Slam that door hard while you say a silent prayer they came in with their red flags waving wildly in the wind, and be thankful how easy it was to dodge that bullet.

[Sarah977]

@Claudia2589  Cross-checking reviews is indeed something that provides more info, and being cautious is always wise. Seeing how a guest has reviewed previous hosts can be valuable if you have doubts about the guest. You don't want to accept guests who have a history of complaints about every place they've stayed, or who claim they've had lots of Airbnb stays, yet have no reviews. 

(Although I have had lovely guests who had used Airbnb before with no reviews showing- their past hosts hadn't bothered to leave a review, or their past stays had been under their spouse's account. But they were forthcoming with that info when I asked, their booking request communication was great, and they didn't ask for discounts or anything else)

[Claudia2589]

Thank you all - most helpful, especially the gracious way of declining discount seekers.  In terms of language, it's often more than simple translations.  The tone is often overfamiliar from the start (for a reserved Brit like me!) and littered with spelling mistakes as if they are sending lots of these messages.  But getting more sophisticated than the old 'I'm coming on business for 10 days' (to rural France, really?!).  I too have accepted guests with no reviews and they are always happy to provide some kind of information if I ask.  Is it easy for scammers now to fake their own reviews?  Something new to look out for perhaps.  Finally, to maintain our response rate, do we have to reply within 24 hours to each message of the thread, or just the first one?  Thanks again for your support.  

[Elena87]

@Claudia2589 

Once you answer the initial message from an inquiry, this stops the clock as far as the response rate goes.

Subsequent messages, if any, aren't under any measurement.

[Anonymous]

@Claudia2589 This is where the difference between Inquiries and Requests is important.

Inquiries: non-binding, guests can send them out to any number of hosts without looking at the listing, very often lead-ups to scams or discount hunts. You don't have to decline or pre-approve them, you only need to write a reply in 24 hours. The word "no" counts as a reply.

Requests: binding, with a price locked in, generally serious bookings. You're required to either accept or decline within 24 hours of the request being sent in order to maintain your response rate.

[Sarah977]

@Claudia2589  As far as these discount requests having been cut and pasted and sent to multiple hosts, yes, that is happening.

There was a guest who posted here a few months ago, very proud of his blog, directed towards digital nomads, that advises fellow guests to always ask for a discount, and to send them out to about 40 places.

As if that wasn't disrespectful enough of hosts' time, he had suggestions as to how to word the request, which were quite offensive- one was to point out to the host how much better it would be for them to have a solid guest in there for a month or two than to deal with having to clean every few days for short term guests, or that in case they didn't manage to book out all available dates, some money is better than no money. I.e. trying to tell hosts how they should run their business.

This crap is all over the internet, so it's not surprising that inquiries and requests are becoming more entitled and less personal.