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If a guest makes a booking request, the only options I receive from Airbnb are "Accept" or "Decline." If I decline the booking, this has a negative impact on my statistics, even if the request from the guest violates the rules. Removing these requests from my statistics takes considerable effort and has to be done via Support. For example: I rent a 6-m2 room with a 90-cm-wide bed. Although the room has been set up as being for "1 person," there are always booking requests for this "1-person" room (cheaper price for a tiny room) that state "a couple" would like to stay. I always have to ask guests to withdraw the request because the room and infrastructure of the apartment are not designed for this number of guests. However, the guest is the one who has ignored the "Room for 1 person" designation. I propose that a third button be added and that declining a request under these circumstances should not negatively impact the host: "Declined due to violation of rules." If this button is pressed, a drop-down menu should appear that contains valid reasons for declining a request: - Incorrect number of guests - Guest wishes to arrive outside the check-in time - Guest wishes to bring a child, even though the listing states "Not suitable for children" - Guest wishes to bring a dog, even though the listing states "Not suitable for pets" - Guest wishes to book on behalf of another person - Guest wishes to book a short break and extend their stay outside of Airbnb If anyone has experienced any other reasons, please add to the list. If there is a rule violation of this kind by a guest and the request is declined as a result, the following should appear in the reviews: "Date: Host declined the booking due to violation of rules." This should be the same as the review that a host receives when they cancel a guest's booking: "Booking canceled by host." Poor behavior by guests should remain in their reviews, as is the case for hosts. This would lead to guests taking more care when booking.
Response from Airbnb
Some guests, though well intentioned, may not closely read all the information in a listing or may be hoping that you can “bend the rules, just this once.” Sometimes you just have to say no, and we understand this, which is why our system allows leeway for hosts to reject reservations.
A few rejections won’t have negative consequences. However, consistent rejections could lower your search rankings. We want both hosts and guests to have a positive experience on Airbnb, so as a host, you should be aiming to accept most of the reservation requests you receive. If you find that you’re rejecting as many requests as you’re accepting (or nearly as many), this may indicate your listing settings could be adjusted. Here are some things to check that might help you avoid inappropriate requests:
- Be as clear as possible with your House Rules. For example, you can say that you will reject requests that exceed your maximum number of allowed guests.
- Keep your calendar as up to date as possible. Limit how far in advance guests can book to minimize surprise requests.
- Check your controls for Instant Book. This article explains which settings you can adjust to help avoid bookings that don’t fit your House Rules.
Please remember that all hosts agreed to Airbnb’s non-discrimination policy, and it’s vital that each host maintain a community that is inclusive and respectful.
Hopefully, the above tips will help you minimize the number of reservations you need to reject and alleviate your concerns around your acceptance rate (which isn’t published anywhere, by the way). If you’re still getting a lot of inappropriate reservation requests, please keep communicating with us so that we can look for other ways to address this particular issue.