MODERATE OR STRICT THAT IS THE QUESTION?

[Shaun69]

Hi folks, we have been employing a moderate cancellation policy since we joined BNB at the beginning of last year. It has served us well up until the last couple of weeks when we have had some cancellations.  I know that this happens to all host somewhen or another but the reasons for these cancellations have been very interesting to say the least. I would personally like to thank the guests who cancelled for being honest with me, they confirmed that they had double booked their accommodation and had used a period of time to identify the cheapest option with the best cancellation terms!!!!  My moderate policy meant that cancelling me was their cheapest option!!!!!!!!

I have read about guests booking one set of accommodation as a backstop then trying to find another cheaper option, it has never to my knowledge happened to me before but maybe I have been unaware of the issue. If these guests have booked another BNB then cancelled my accommodation then I suggest BNB needs to look at its rules regarding this issue. There will always be ways around rules but I suggest the present situation is two easy for potential guests to abuse the system!!!!!!!!

Now back to the real issue which I can control, which cancellation policy to use? I will take a survey of my guests over the next three Months to identify if cancellation policy was a factor in deciding which BNB to book, we are on three platforms and our own site, so the survey will include guests from multiple sources. Later in the year I will report back to this forum with my results, however input from other hosts would be welcome.

Regards Shaun.

[Shaun69]

This was the message I recieved from a guest who cancelled, you can all see he is honest and just uses the system as he finds it!!!!!!!!

"Hi Shaun, sorry I had to cancel the booking- I booked your accom on the back of a previous booking for similar accommodation, but the cancellation policy on my original booking makes it almost impossible to cancel without a substantial penalty ( over 30%)"

If this is widespread (and i am not sure it is) then we as hosts and BNB as a platform need to put in place a method to block multiple bookings at different listings on the same dates unless a check is made regarding validity.

[Alexandra316]

@Shaun69I recently went through this conundrum after a spate of guest cancellations, and I ultimately decided to switch to a strict policy. I was getting really tired of the constant bookings and cancellations, and made the call after getting 5 cancellations in one week. I did notice that after doing it, my position in our market dropped from 1st place to 12th, and per Your Porter rankings. Not sure if that was the cause or not.

[Mark116]

@Alexandra316  We were wondering about the search rankings also.  We've already dropped far down despite trying all the fixes we can think of short of Instant Book.  But we also have experienced a very significant increase in cancellations starting in Nov/Dec. of last year and would definitely move to strict if  not for fear we'd go to the last page again.

[Alexandra316]

@Mark116Yeah, I've been in #1 spot for a while, and I don't want to do anything to jeopardize that, especially as I have a few competitors moving into my market now. I was pretty safe for a while, then all of a sudden, competition. 

[Shaun69]

@Alexandra316  Thank you for your input, from what you are saying it seems that a less than strict policy might have an effect in North America, not sure how that will relate to UK but time will tell.

Regards Shaun

[Alexandra316]

@Shaun69Your cancellation policy definitely does affect your search position. There are 100 factors that are considered in the rankings, but they all boil down to one thing: how likely a guest is to book with you. A strict cancellation policy is a deterrant for guests. 

[Paul154]

@Mark116 

As a guest, I definately will choose flexible policy over moderate. 

I will only choose strict IF the hosts have something amazing or if all the other competing hosts have strict policies.  

When I choose strict, I double check and triple check my dates. I also search for more flexible hosts during the 48 penalty free period.

In my mind as a guest, strict means mean.

While strict policy may seem great for a host, you must weigh it against that which you don't see - that being lost business.

Good luck

[Lisa723]

@Shaun69 @Paul154 @Alexandra316 @Mark116  Personally, I think the reasons for guest cancellations are irrelevant. This is a business decision. If you are regularly getting cancellations you have to refund and being unable to rebook the dates your policy is too loose. If that's not happening and you are not as booked as you want to be it might be too tight. Flexible is too loose for all of my listings. Moderate is too loose for my big lake house. Strict is too tight for my basement guest suite. It really depends on your market I think.

[Shaun69]

@Lisa723 @Mark116 @Alexandra316 @Paul154  Thank you for your comments I appreciate your time, I will factor in your views when we finally make a decision in about eight weeks time having gathered the appropriate information.

Regards Shaun.