COMPULSORY enhanced cleaning protocol unrealistic for many

Belinda55
Level 10
Bundeena, Australia

COMPULSORY enhanced cleaning protocol unrealistic for many

Dear Airbnb,

Please quit your paternalistic and bullying ‘one size fits all’ policies. There are many locations in the world with little or no community COVID infections, so to coerce hosts (by threatening blocking of calendar and bookings) into complying with a global policy is both unrealistic and unfair.
There are no other booking platforms doing this! Hosts are able to comply with local regulations and requirements and do not need this heavy-handedness from you. I have been a Superhost, with a perfect record on cleanliness, for 7 years straight, and am insulted and offended by your approach. Talk about ‘biting the hand‘ ... we are now planning to prioritise other booking platforms.

237 Replies 237

I'm not sure quite what you're asking. They are threatening to delist hosts who don't agree because it's all about Airbnb PR, not a matter of actually being concerned about safety- "Look what a responsible company we are, requiring all hosts to commit to clean to over hospital-level standards".  

And it also absolves them of any responsibility as far as some guest claiming they got COVID from an Airbnb- by making it mandatory in order to remain on the platform, they have now made hosts solely to blame.

 

@Jennifer715 

Belinda55
Level 10
Bundeena, Australia

What the new rules do say about calendar blocking:  https://www.airbnb.com.au/help/article/2839

This article does not mention blocking days between guests, but it does say this: “Hosts who don’t agree to these practices by 20 November 2020 may have their calendars blocked.”

Coercive and bullying IMO.

Alea1
Level 2
Tulsa, OK

Agreed! Nothing says “monopoly” like this kind of strongarming nonsense.

Belinda55
Level 10
Bundeena, Australia

So I posted this earlier but it seems to have vanished ...

Dear Airbnb

Instead of bullying all hosts into compliance to a global policy, how about having a checklist of measures for hosts that can be checked off as appropriate for different contexts, that is then visible to prospective guests? THAT would feel reasonable and respectful of your hosts.

 

@Catherine-Powell 

@Katie 

@Anna 

@Airbnb 

@Lizzie 

 

Belinda55
Level 10
Bundeena, Australia

Far out - twice I have posted this but it was removed (for moderation?)

I had tagged multiple community admins, let’s see if it is acceptable without the tags 🙂

 

Dear Airbnb

Instead of bullying all hosts into compliance to a global policy, how about having a checklist of measures for hosts that can be checked off as appropriate for different contexts, that is then visible to prospective guests? THAT would feel reasonable and respectful of your hosts.

@Belinda55  One has to question how they could possibly suggest such a checklist.

 I've yet to see motel operators comply with some of the most basic hygiene standards.

Tell me a private individual who will be bothered if a private room in a shared home would be too concerned about a lot of those things listed, let alone do them in their own homes.... I bet your bottom dollar they don't, nor could they be bothered.

 

As is mentioned in the New Zealand related topic, it should be In Proportion and telling Hosts they must agree or may get there calendars blocked or delisted is as you rightly point out, Coercion.

 In these current times it could push some who are already struggling to breaking point and homelessness.

 

It would be interesting to know what msg Guests get on their end when booking to adhere to these protocols....

Cathie19
Level 10
Darwin, Australia

@Belinda55 @Helen427 @Sarah977 @Debra300 @Keith352  @Anonymous  @Robin4 @Kath9 @Lawrene0 @Clara116 @Ann72 @Christine615 @Lizzie @Katie @Stephanie @Nick @Quincy @Helen350 @Emilia42 , @Ricardo85  @James292  @Leyla13  @Charlene189  @Cave0  @Dianne256 


I’ve been following the variety of cleaning requirements with interest, setting in place my own mitigation of risks. 

An interesting scientific summary, published widely in the Australian media, six days ago,  from the Australian CSIRO has shown some disturbing data regarding surfaces. CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific Industrial Research Organisation) undertook controlled experiments to provide evidence as to the presence of Covid19 on surfaces. The time it survived on the different types of surfaces as well as factors like the temperature.

As I am in the tropics, I live in warm temperatures of the 30s Celsius. However, my working environment is always air conditioned, set at around 22-24° Celsius. So that actually makes my working environment less safe than my shared laundry room, that is never air conditioned. But the reality and risks are real in both environments. 

If you are interested, here are two links to the study:

 

https://www.csiro.au/en/News/News-releases/2020/CSIRO-scientists-publish-new-research-on-SARS-COV-2-virus-survivability

 

https://virologyj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12985-020-01418-7

 

 

Debra300
Level 10
Gros Islet, Saint Lucia

@Cathie19,

Thank you for sharing this information.  Hopefully, these findings will lead to a better understanding of the infectious viability of fomites as time elapses.

@Cathie19 Banknotes and mobile phones, very dirty...  It really goes to show, people really need to use separate equipment when they're taking lines of coke!

 

In all seriousness though, research like what you linked illuminates just how much we really don't know about this thing, no matter how much magical thinking we might wish to do when it serves our own financial interests.

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

I read that stuff a few days ago, too. Makes you realize you can't let your guard down and be complacent.

@Cathie19

Belinda55
Level 10
Bundeena, Australia

Clearly the risk is very different in different locations, regardless of the possibility of surface transmission. If Covid is not in the community, it cannot infect surfaces.


In terms of risk, consider new daily Covid cases:

Australia 12, NZ 3

(This includes travellers in quarantine, as there are strict controls on interstate and OS travel, quarantine requirements etc)

US 69,000

UK 15,000

France 25,000

@Cathie19 @Anonymous @Debra300 @Sarah977 

If there isn't any community transmission, then saying you have to wear masks doesn't make any sense, but unless there are no products coming into your country from elsewhere, or all products that do are checked for COVID, contamination is still possible.

I just read a couple weeks ago that in China (or it may have been somewhere else in Asia, I can't recall) they found COVID on a shipment of frozen fish that had been imported from somewhere in South America.

  

 

@Belinda55

@Sarah977 

Agree, it’s possible. But given our local situation I still say extremely unlikely. I am very happy to follow our local guidance on Covid measures, which have been working well, not happy to have Airbnb play ‘big brother’ with the whole world.

Martin3573
Level 2
Chichester, United Kingdom

They can't prove you don't follow it fully just keep it  clean and tidy ?

Liz4022
Level 2
England, United Kingdom

I find these new regulations draconian - simply because it is a one size fits all solution - and this at a time when circumstances are changing from day to day.  As can be seen here, hosts find themselves in very different circumstances and it is clear that these regulations are not appropriate for everyone.  Personally I have problems with the regulations:  firstly because due to health issues I purposely chose to leave at least three clear days between bookings so that I wouldn't have to do some aspects of the enhanced cleaning - but there is no allowance for this in the new regulations.  And secondly I object  ethically on the basis of increased use of chemicals and having to throw away stuff like hoover bags  before they are full.  To date I have had no complaints about the way in which I have prepared for visitors and I am clear with them about what I have done.