Refused reservation request but guest is trying to book again

[Laura2592]

I refused a reservation request for a guest who indicated they would not follow one of our house rules involving the number staying.  We have a strict count because our house is not that big and our cleaning crew really should not have to deal with the increased capacity.  I sent a polite refusal.  

The guest is trying to book again on a different weekend saying now that the circumstances are suddenly different.  I don't feel comfortable.  What are my options? This is someone with no feedback who has been a member for some time.  

Thanks!

[Helen3]

Block them so they can't book with you again @Laura2592 

[Laura2592]

@Helen3 how can you do that at from a request? I refused the last saying I could not accommodate the number of guests.  I would have thought that was sufficient?

[Helen3]

No it isn't . Refusing a booking doesn't mean you don't want any communication from a guest going forward.

I can't remember the exact steps to block a guest, but have a look at Airbnb Help - instructions on blocking guests are outlined there. 

I think some hosts report the steps don't always work so you could give Airbnb a call too and ask them to help @Laura2592 

[Lisa723]

@Laura2592 @Helen3 it has not worked for me lately:

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Hosting/HOW-TO-BLOCK/m-p/976977

and different CS reps will give different answers about whether they can do it for you.

[Laura2592]

@Lisa723  and @Helen3  I called Airbnb. There's no more block function.  Only report this person. And that won't block them. 

I'm crafting a response that I hope is kind yet firm. Asking a bunch of questions. Geez Louise,  this cottage is where we hope to live one day I need to protect my investment.  I really wish  that it was easier to do.

[Alexandra1059]

It really saddens me that Airbnb took off the block option. Sometimes, yes, we do not feel comfortable with requests since they will clearly violate your basic rules! - some do not respond well to a nice refusal booking- and therefore, we should be able to block them. 😞

[Heather-S0]

I had a similar situation. Basically i told the potential guest that my place was not suited to their needs. You are one up from that and can openly say, based on your previous request you believe your home is not suitable and decline. Better now than later. Evidently they really like your home and want to get in but changing a story shows some element of dishonesty and you have already lost trust. So not a good reason to accept. It happens to all of us. It's good that you are screening them  . I hope that helps you. 

[John1080]

@Laura2592 @Lisa723 @Helen3, I think the blocking feature is gone - I haven't been able to find or use it recently. I had a similar issue several months back, where I denied the request. They came back with a different account, under the husband's name and requested again! 

Worried that it would drive down my acceptance rate to near 88%, I called Airbnb and they told me that since all my other numbers were high, not to worry about the 88%, that keeping my response rate at 100% was the most important. 

Of course, I always wonder if they know what they're talking about since many of the CS people do not seem to. At any rate, I denied again on the second account and then they just never bothered again. 

[Anonymous]

@John1080   The Acceptance Rate is mostly just there to scare you; there aren't any consequences for letting it get below 88%  (mine tends to be hover in the 70s).

[John1080]

@Anonymous, yes I don't give it too much thought, since that incident. Would prefer to be picky about who I host than keep that number up there.

[Susan17]

@Anonymous @John1080 

The problem is though, the vast majority of hosts fully believe that their Acceptance Rate must remain sky-high in order for them to achieve their (worthless) superhost status, and are too afraid to turn guests down, for any reason. Which, of course, suits Airbnb's "bookings at any costs" agenda just fine. As does the removal of the blocking feature. 

"Channel stuffing is a deceptive business practice in which a company, or a sales force within a company, inflates its sales figures by forcing more products through a distribution channel than the channel is capable of selling. Also known as trade loading, this can be the result of a company attempting to inflate its sales figures. Alternatively, it can be a consequence of a poorly managed sales force attempting to meet short term objectives and quotas in a way that is detrimental to a company in the long term"

Sound familiar? 

[John1080]

@Susan17, yes, that 88% acceptance rate is designed to assure that hosts will accept most reservations for fear of retribution. 

[Susan17]

Absolutely, @John1080. As are all the other ways in which hosts are being coerced/manipulated into accepting substandard or potentially troublesome bookings that they really would rather not take.

Just look at all those "glitches" in the system that are routing IBs and reservation requests to hosts, that expressly violate the specific parameters hosts have set... 

- IBs from guests with 1 star reviews

- Blocked dates on hosts' calendars mysteriously unblocking themselves

- Hosts receiving bookings at prices far lower than they had manually  set. 

- Smart pricing turning itself on, unknown to the host until they're booked at stupidly low rates

- Bookings being received for fewer nights than hosts' set minimums

- Last-minute or same-day bookings coming in for hosts who have set their preparation time at 2 or 3 days. 

- Bookings coming in that contravene the hosts' House Rules (often because guests can't actually see the house rules)

- IBs from guests who have not been ID Verified... etc etc... 

A small percentage of hosts will fight back, and engage in the tortuous, drawn out, head-wrecking process of phoning CX in an attempt to have the rogue bookings cancelled - invariably meeting with fierce resistance from CX, who will usually insist that the untenable booking is due to the host's own error/incompetence, and has nothing whatsoever to do with Airbnb's dysfunctional system. 

The vast majority of hosts though - for fear of the retribution you mentioned above, and the irrational, incomprehensible fear of losing/not achieving superhost status - will simply swallow the injustices and honour the bookings, despite the financial, operational or personal costs to themselves. 

And again... Airbnb wins, hosts lose. It would be genius really, if it weren't so despicable. 

[John1080]

@Susan17, yes, I had an IB request from a guest with what I would presume is a 1-star rating, as the review stated how awful the guest was and what a terrible state the property was left in. I host remotely, need to take extra precaution and I was mortified. Luckily, when I called, they canceled, "As a one-time courtesy to me," ha! 

Also, because of fear of retribution and little support from Airbnb, hosts will allow behavior that violates their policy out of fear of receiving negative reviews that will then not be taken down. 

The cards really are, in many ways stacked against us. At this point, the first line of defense is just being really diligent in the screening process and in whom we allow into our properties. I have been very lucky that I haven't had many issues, but I am also extremely picky and am now not afraid to decline people.