Latest Scam, and no help from AirBnB CS

[Greg2406]

We just received a request for booking at 11:26PM last night for a stay on 7/23 to 7/25.   We replied at 7:36, Perspective guest had wrong number of persons listed on request, which is red flag #2 (first one being a near midnight request).   Second red flag was that they hadn't provided a credit card form of payment at the time of the booking.   My restrictions are listed that full payment must be made at time of inquiry and before the request is sent to us.   Payment form must be on file with AirBnB prior to accepting the booking.   In this case, AirBnB did not require perspective guest to remit payment form and to top it off, is allowing, what we believe to be a scammer, to withhold payment for 24 hours and blocking any legitimate booking for this time, thereby causing me not to be able to rent the home to anyone else (due to short stay notice) and our turnaround on the 25th.    This is the second time this has happened in the last 30 days and is costing us substantial loss of funds.     Anyone else have this happen?    If so, why can't I cancel this scammer without incurring AirBnB issues and suspension?

[Shelley159]

Hi @Greg2406 

There are potential issues with last-minute bookings if payment is not fully processed before check-in. I recently had guests book very last-minute, and Airbnb only discovered that there was a problem with the credit card after they had already checked in. Fortunately they immediately paid with another card as soon as Airbnb made them aware of the problem.

What happened with the previous guest that you mention, who did something similar earlier this month? Did you receive payment in the end, or did they stay over without paying at all?

[Greg2406]

@Shelley159 

With the previous guest, she also listed wrong number of persons staying.  When I asked her to correct, she modified the number of guests from 2 to 4.   In a subsequent message, she modified it again to add one or two more.   I cancelled after I had accepted the second modification.    She knew exactly what she was doing in that for each guest over 3, we charge an extra (small) cleaning fee.   She intentionally withheld the number so that she decreased the payment.   As Hosts, we need to (1) Vet much better (see note below), (2) effectively get to review ALL guests making reservations prior to accepting them, (3) have a well drafted House Rules (one I have and will share with anyone). (4) Pressure AirBnB Corporate to make substantial changes that will ensure Host protection from scammers, hacks, and individuals that don't pay or follow house rules. 

Note:  I am writing a rather lengthy article on what I have learned in how to do Olympic Gold Medal level  vetting and how to read Red Flags.    and lean how to say "No thanks, but unfortunately we have to decline the request".    Done the last one several times and we are confident that it was the right thing to do.   

Greg and Nettie.

Nettie's Hideaway

100%  5-Star reviews - and we plan to keep it that way!

Rockport, Texas 

[Greg2406]

Hi Shelly, 

Yes, the guest made payment, but it was only the late evening (midnight) of the day before check-in.    The fact that payment wasn't immediate at the time of booking acceptance, especially on such a short time advance (2 days), then this is an issue.   Should the guest back out, the property is tied up for extended time and we would have been unable to accept another booking, therefore a substantial loss of proceeds.   Not sure if AirBnB had any recent policy changes, as I have noticed that some 'new' ones are dated June 2024, we need to do further review.  

Thanks, 

G & N

[Kia272]

@Greg2406 

"My restrictions are listed that full payment must be made at time of inquiry and before the request is sent to us." 

That's requirement makes no sense. You have no control over guest payments. AirBnB has complete control. Full payment at time of inquiry and before request? I still don't understand. 

If you approve, the payment should go through. If you don't approve the request, it doesn't matter. 

AirBnB will not change the policy on 24 hour holds for payment. They will make money when the guest pays, and if the guest doesn't pay, they don't lose out, the host does. 

You can maintain some control over this by modifying your settings. If you require advance notice for bookings, you can untick the box that allows people to inquire or request to book. That should help. 

Basically, right now you have a requirement that doesn't work, because AirBnB's policy automatically overrides it. Getting upset won't change things. 

You CAN not accept the request, so why are you saying that you can't?  You can turn down a request to book. It's as simple as that. You've said in your response below that you're going to teach people how to say no and decline a request. So why don't you do that with this one? 

[Greg2406]

Sorry for the late reply.  Perhaps I wasn't clear,..it was a last minute booking, they made changes after booking acceptance and there was no payment at booking confirmation.   My settings are that on acceptance of the booking, payment must be made immediately,..not 24 hours after booking acceptance.  This would have put the property at accepting final payment at 1 hour before check-in.   The fact is that the payment message send "pending" is problematic and one that is unacceptable to any standard business practice, especially on last minute bookings.  The fact that if I had cancelled the booking, AirBnB, based on their written policy, would have charged us for the Host cancellation.   AirBnB already did this to us once before when a confirmed guest had a heart attack and requested a cancellation 48 hours before check-in.   As soon as we cancelled, we were hit with a fee and threatened suspension.   So is that okay with you, to have fees and threats of suspension when a respected guest has a life threatening issue?

And yes, I will teach any host how to vet better and how to recognize red flags.   Considering that since the first 3 months of operations, 33% of our guests were hit with fines for damages and repair bills; from illegal drugs, to extensive property damages, ..to say we've learned lessons the hard way is the understatement of the year.   

[Sean1692]

Hi Greg,

I'm a newbie and in the process of preparing a property to be an Airbnb, it sounds like you have some shocking stories to share about some guests.  

Could you please share your "House Rules" so I can incorporate some of your rules into ours? 

Thanks

PS - We were thinking of offering some bikes for guests to use. After reading some threads, a liability waiver is definitely on the To-Do list

[Greg2406]

@Sean1692 

Sure would Sean.  Please IM me and I will share the HR's and other items.  I have an editable MS Word document that now includes a summary of suggested measures to take on your property that will help decrease any incident rates.  

Yes the bike and liability issue would be of concern.   For our situation being in a beach/fishing location, any Guest wishing to rent bikes, golf cart, paddle board or kayak; we have businesses in the area that cater to each.  

Greg