Accessibilty listing checkboxes and how to use them

[Alexandra316]

Hey all,

I was supposed to have a one-week booking over March break. There was very little communication from the guest prior to arrival, even though I tried to reach out. All she sent me was a generic one-liner when she Instant Booked, saying I look forward to staying at your place. She was also fairly local. However, she had good reviews, so I tried not to worry about the local aspect or the lack of communication. She never asked any questions and never made contact after the inital booking message.

She was due to self check in yesterday, and I know she and her sister arrived at around 4 pm. We thought all was well. At about 7 pm, my husband happened to meet them in the driveway, and it turned out that there was a big problem: the guest uses a wheelchair, and she found that my space wasn't accessible for her. I did have some accessibility checkboxes checked on my listing - everything that was applicable, including no stairs, everything on one level, proper outdoor lighting, wide doorways, etc. They asked to cancel, and I called Superhost support right away and approved a full refund. The guest was satisfied, and sent me a very nice note. Airbnb was great, and cancelled without penalty and cleared my calendar immediately.

Unfortunately, I'm now out a one-week booking over March Break. I'm also wondering what I've done wrong regarding my use of the accessibility checkboxes.  I have since unchecked everything, because I don't want anyone else to get the wrong impression, even though everything I checked was accurate. I'm just feeling a little lost, and I'm wondering if other hosts use these check boxes at all. I absolutely don't want this situation occuring again.

[Marzena4]

@Alexandra316: Having read Airbnb rules, I got an impression that certain groups of guests will always be at an advantage if anything else goes wrong or even if they are unsatisfied with the listing.

[Alexandra316]

@Marzena4 That may be true, but my primary concern is that guests aren't disappointed, or aren't receiving something other than what they expect. I just don't want people to feel like their expections weren't met. I willingly gave this guest a full refund.

I think the best course of action at this point is likely to leave everything unchecked. Then if people browse my listing and have questions, they can ask, rather than relying on the check boxes which may not tell the whole story.

[Marzena4]

I know what you mean, @Alexandra316. I had the same dilema with children and the stairs in my listings.

[Alexandra316]

@Marzena4 Yes, I agree it's hard to know what to do with some of these check boxes. I wish there were more guidelines on how to fill them out. In the case of the accessibility boxes, maybe it would be helpful for potential guests to see what's not checked as well as what is checked. In my case, the door of the washroom isn't wide enough to accomodate a standard wheelchair (it's not 32" wide), but all the other doorways are. Someone who only uses a wheelchair some of the time or who uses a walker or cane could be fine.

[Alexandra316]

I've also received no bookings for the dates that were cancelled due to the late cancellation date, so I'm out that money. March is set to be my worst month since I started hosting.