Innclusive's Anti-Discrimination Practices - Sound Familiar?

[Rebecca181]

Anyone who is aware of the home-share platform 'Innclusive', and how it came to be (it started out as a direct reaction to Airbnb's perceived discriminatory policies and practices) will recognize the new (and controversial) 'anti-discriminatory' practices and policies of Airbnb's as being eerily similar to Innclusive's own policies designed to prevent discrimination. Not sure if Airbnb  copied it exactly, but it almost seems like they did. Any of this sound familiar? From the Innclusive website at https://www.innclusive.com/why-innclusive:

Discrimination happens on Airbnb and other platforms primarily through folks seeing the names and photos of guests before accepting the booking. On our platform we remove this opportunity for discrimination by introducing the photo only after the booking is confirmed.

Discrimination happens far more likely on properties that require the host to approve properties first vs instant book properties that a guest can book and be instantly approved. 99.9% of our properties are instant book, and this is by design, so there is no opportunity for discrimination in the first place.

We use technology to prevent a host from denying a booking to one guest and then making those same dates available to another guest.

[Sarah977]

@Susan17  Thank you for posting your on-point research. This is exactly what I've thought all along, but had no data for it. Airbnb has the technology to identify and censure hosts who get many bad cleanliness ratings and such, it should be pretty easy to track declines or booking cancellations according to whether those are simply random (likely due to the guest communicating in some inappropriate way or expecting amenities or guest counts which don't jive with the host's listing), versus targeting certain races, nationalities, etc.

[Susan17]

You're welcome @Sarah977. I'll post tomorrow about the research that highlights the fact that hosts are also frequently subject to harsh consequences and discriminatory practices, when host profile pics are visible. 

[Rebecca181]

@Susan17 @Sarah977 So true! This is why I will soon be unveiling my new Airbnb profile pic - It may even be up by the time Susan posts her next installation of 'Airbnb: WHAT????'  I'm sure prospective guests will really appreciate it as well. I certainly know I will!

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Rebecca181This is sad but even in this community there are some kind of discrimination.

[Rebecca181]

Naturally! What's your thoughts on this whole profile thing, @Oomesh-Kumarsingh0 ?

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Rebecca181 In my opinion Airbnb does not care about the discrimination

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Rebecca181 Discrimination towards hosts who are not using instant booking is very obvious.But there is a Russian proverb which says "Those who do not risk do not drink champagne".

[Zappa0]

I've told this story a few times on here but I'll tell it again. A few years back when I was hosting on my own boat with cabin doors that don't lock I had a guest book the back cabin. I stayed in the Vberth. It was our busiest festival week so I was shocked when I got a message from Airbnb that THEY cancelled the guest due to a security issue. They wouldn't give me any more information. All info on the guest was removed and I just remembered her first name and that she had a very distinctive face - unique looking. 

Well, a few days later someone else books the listing. Thought nothing of it since it was our busy week. I said "you're in luck I just had a cancellation." no comment to that.

Turns out, that person was her boyfriend/fiance. I always met guests at the dock - not the boat and my dog ran up to them. She looks up from petting him and there she is - that same distinct face. 

Jaw dropped. I said, wait a minute you were "kicked off of Airbnb for a security issue." She tried telling me it was because of a DWI. I looked right at her and said "I have a DWI on my record so that is not the case! " I asked her boyfriend why he did not acknowledge the it was HER who was my cancellation and he said I don't know she just told me to book it. " I told them to go to the restaurant across the way while I called Airbnb. 

They told me to not let them into my listing. AIrbnb said that. "Don't let them in." They would not tell me what the issue was. Airbnb threw apology credits at me and paid for the guest stay. Doubt they would do that now since security since then is even worse. 

Point of this story is that the ONLY reason why they weren't on my boat is because of that profile pic and I remembered what she looked like. Had she been a cat or a car I'd have a criminal staying onboard. 

[Jani15]

Never ever going to offer Instant book. Just saying.

[Sarah977]

@Jani15   I never have, either. I have a home share listing and I just can't see not communicating with a total stranger before accepting them to stay in my home.