Guests with no ratings

Answered!
Kim3759
Level 2
Glenview, IL

Guests with no ratings

Hello,

 

I have had a request 2 times from a 2 different people requesting to stay at my Airbnb who have no ratings.  They claim to be from Norway and are currently living in Los Angeles.  When I as them to tell me a little more about themselves, they both said they are working for "Renewable Energy" and are launching this company in the town where my Airbnb is.  I declined the first one because they didn't answer all my questions.  I'm wondering if I should ask for the name of the company that has employed them and get the guest's full name so I can verify that they are indeed being hired to launch this project.  Or does anyone have any other suggestions.

1 Best Answer
Jennifer1897
Level 10
Irvine, CA

Hi @Kim3759 It is definitely good to be cautious and vet your guest. A while back my area started breaking ground on a high-speed railroad and for months I was getting newbies requesting to stay saying they were assigned to work on the project in some capacity. So multiple people coming into town for larger projects is not entirely farfetched. 

 

A good thing to do is ask questions and gauge responses. Legitimate people/bookings will likely be open to answering your questions and be forthcoming in their answers.  A lot of the sketchier request or inquires I get are people that provide little to no information, and never answer any follow up questions. 

 

If someone is brand new I usually lead with a friendly welcome message such as the following, "Thank you for your inquiry/request, I am excited to potentially be your first stay, would you mind telling me a little more about yourself and what brings you to the area?" 

 

As far as verifying their employment, that might be tricky, as not everyone is publicly listed as an employee with a particular company. Also, as a guest, this might seem a bit invasive. However, ultimately it is up to you. 

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3 Replies 3
Jennifer1897
Level 10
Irvine, CA

Hi @Kim3759 It is definitely good to be cautious and vet your guest. A while back my area started breaking ground on a high-speed railroad and for months I was getting newbies requesting to stay saying they were assigned to work on the project in some capacity. So multiple people coming into town for larger projects is not entirely farfetched. 

 

A good thing to do is ask questions and gauge responses. Legitimate people/bookings will likely be open to answering your questions and be forthcoming in their answers.  A lot of the sketchier request or inquires I get are people that provide little to no information, and never answer any follow up questions. 

 

If someone is brand new I usually lead with a friendly welcome message such as the following, "Thank you for your inquiry/request, I am excited to potentially be your first stay, would you mind telling me a little more about yourself and what brings you to the area?" 

 

As far as verifying their employment, that might be tricky, as not everyone is publicly listed as an employee with a particular company. Also, as a guest, this might seem a bit invasive. However, ultimately it is up to you. 

My gut feeling was probably a good thing because both of these people who inquired,  their messages now say "This message has been hidden because the person no longer has access to Airbnb."  But thanks for your response, it is good to know a polite, yet welcoming way to vet this kind of guest.

 

Thanks!!

Bhumika
Community Manager
Community Manager
Toronto, Canada

Hi @Kim3759 ,

 

Thank you so much for coming back and sharing the developments with us! 

Would love to thank @Jennifer1897 as well, for giving such great advice.

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