Not blocking reservation requests / hiding listings that are against house rules? (Pets & Kids)

[Marina481]

Hello Everyone! I've been a bit frustrated this season getting a fair amount of reservation requests that are against my house rules. If someone is searching for dates that aren't available on my listing's calendar, I know it doesn't show for that potential guest in the search results. I also believe if they are filtering for anything (wifi, parking, etc.) that it wouldn't show. However, it seems that if they have children, infants, or pets listed on their reservation request, even though in my house rules under age 12 and no pets, my listing must show because I am getting requests. I always ask in a message about it (since I see it listed) to confirm and they say they either didn't notice it in the rules or they thought they would request anyway. It's a bit awkward having to tell them 'no' over message and then trying to convince them to cancel on their end. I usually end up taking the penalty either in my response time because it expires (even though we had been messaging) or for cancelling as a host. Is anyone else encountering this? Have a better way to handle it? Thanks!

[Kath9]

Hi Marina,

You can decline a reservation request without being penalised. You don't need to 'cancel' a guest 'unless they have actually booked. However, it is important to respond to your guest (either by accepting or declining) within 24 hours, otherwise you will be penalised for not responding.

I also don't allow kids or pets but do occasionally get requests to bring children. I usually politely decline by saying that I have an old dog that isn't very tolerant of young children (which is true) and I'd rather not take the chance of jeapordising their kids safety. That usually puts them off!

[Marina481]

Thanks, Kath! Didn't realize the difference in 'declining' vs 'cancelling', that's helpful. Hopefully Airbnb in the future will filter results when kids and pets are listed. Glad to hear I'm not the only one. 

[Letti0]

Be careful with the declines if your Accepted Reservations falls below 88% now you will not meet the Basic Requirements anymore. 

[Marina481]

Ok thanks! That's what I thought. I don't think I should be penalized for declining requests that are against my house rules in the first place. 

[Anne1057]

Yes,  I have had issues with this too. My property is not suitable for children - there is furniture and items that make the house unsafe for toddlers and it's a very quiet area. I still get numerous requests from people who want to bring their baby and my profile suffers as a result. 

I expect Airbnb favours bringing babies under the notion of "inclusion", which is frustrating. I don't want the added liability, wear and tear on the house, higher hot water bills, etc. Surely I within my rights to make this choice about my own property? Yet I feel pressured by the current set up and by these people who ignore the description to do something I am not comfortable with.

[Suzanne302]

My rules are set for no children/infants and I had an inquiry from a guest who had an infant. She had graciously read my complete listing and rules because she noted that I had come up in her search even though she had it filtered. I actually ended up accepting her booking after explaining I was NOT set up for kids or infants whatsoever as long as she was okay with that. I even offered her an extra room for more space. Her and her husband turned out to be fantastic guests!

That was probably my one exception I'll make to my no kids rule! But, long story short, apparently non-kid-friendly rooms will still pop up even using the filters.

[Kelly149]

ABB considers your Not Suitable for Children a suggestion, not an imperative. If you feel more strongly than that I would put it several times in your text.

There are various scenarios that change your response times: Inquiry vs Request to Book and Declines do matter so read a few more of the help articles about those

Good luck