Member/Guest Age Rule Violations

[Donald368]

I received three inquiries in the last 24 hours from new Airbnb  members asking if an 18 year old could book my listing.  With over four years of experience as a host, I have never had anyone ask this question before.  I responded to the inquiries and let the members know our Condominium Association had an age 21 minimum for renters.   I also declined the members.  I prompltly updated my listing notes for the age requirement.  As I have Instabook on, I decided to reach out to Airbnb Support for more information.  I was told that if an underage guest booked my listing and caused a disturbance, Airbnb would uphold a cancellation.  That is helpful but it's always better to prevent a rules violation if possible.  I was also informed members must be age 18.  I think most hosts would be concerned about guests who rent and are below the drinking age in every state.  I  understand members (like hosts) provide a government ID which includes date of birth.  This is part of the Airbnb verification process. So, Airbnb should have the age of  members before a booking is made.  It would require some coding but if an option was provided for hosts to "check off" they have an age 21 requirement for renters,  and the members date of birth was recorded, an Instabook could "instantly" be rejected if the guest did not meet the listing's age requirement.  While I don't think this will get much attention from Airbnb, I thought it would be helpful to share with other hosts who may have had or could have an underage guest rule violation, the same concerns, and needs.

[Rebecca]

Hello @Donald368 👋

Thank you so much for taking the time to share this feedback with a great explanation. Airbnb have a space where you can share your feedback,  where they accept ideas and issues. They do mention that they can’t respond individually, but they’ll pass it on to the teams who are working to help make Airbnb better for everyone.

I wonder if some of our experienced hosts from the US have also experienced this issue: @Greg2406, @Greystone0 and @Helen56, have you had people under the age of 21 booking your properties previously? If so, have you accepted the bookings? 

Looking forward to hearing from you soon!

[Greg2406]

@Rebecca @Donald368 

We do not accept bookings for anyone under the age of 27.    Also, in the HR's, no one under this minimum age is allowed alone in the residence without either the Guest responsible for the booking or another individual meeting the minimum age requirement.   Early on, we learned lessons the hard way.   The hundreds of photos and videos of damages resulting in thousands in repairs and literally days of extra cleaning speak volumes as to why setting the minimum age higher is advisable.  

[Greystone0]

HI @Donald368 ,

Totally agree with your observation about AIRBNB  - minimum age requirement should be something that can be managed via the back end. Sounds simple but hasn't been introduced as an improvement despite an obvious mis-match in how IDs are used in the system. 

You may have already concluded this on your end as a step to take, but here's our process:

- we ask for an ID. The request is also stated in our listing so by the time we get a reservation it has hopefully passed the review of the booker and isn't a surprise. This works for us just fine and hasn't posed any issues.  Collecting an ID will probably become more standard as time marches forward as insurance, HOAs, permit requirements, etc are adding scrutiny to this process.

Wishing you much success!!