Not sure about the guests intentions

[Rhonda343]

Hello everyone   My name is Rhonda. I’ve been a Airbnb host for a little over a year and it’s going quite well. This is my first time to post anything here so I hope I am doing this correctly and putting this in correct place. 
my issue is with a potential guest. He wants to book my cottage for 27 days and he is using his sisters profile. I have no problem with longer bookings, in fact I welcome them.  It’s that he is using someone other than his own profile. He had asked about the kitchen. I told him it was fully stocked.   He then asked me to send him a video of the kitchen. I told him that I could not do that unless the booking had been confirmed. He then sent me his phone number in riddle form. I didn’t quite get it at first but then I did. I then sent him a text to that number asking if this was him. I got no response. I immediately started thinking I’m being hacked. And then went back to the Airbnb website and sent a message asking if he had received my text? he said no. then about 20 minutes later I got a text back from him saying hi it’s Emma’s brother   I did not respond. Now all sorts of red flags are going up in my head. 
My husband told me to forget it. To just tell him that I don’t think this booking is going to work out.  
Do you agree with my husband? I’d love to hear you thoughts and opinions on this matter. 
Thanks so much 😊

[Jennifer1897]

@Rhonda343 Way too many red flags in my opinion. If it were me, I would politely decline his reservation. I 100% agree with your husband. 

-Third party reservation are not allowed through Airbnb unless the individual joins the airbnb for work program, which allows them to book reservation for employees/colleagues.

-Communication outside the platform is strongly discouraged. Aside from potential scams, you want to document everything through airbnb in case any issues arise

-I looked at your listing and the photos are a good representation of the property. I don't see any reason to request additional videos 

[Lorina14]

@Rhonda343 

I agree with your husband, too many red flags and he’s not serious or a scammer. Advise all people to create their own Airbnb account (it’s quick to do so) and third party bookings are against the terms and conditions for Airbnb and extremely hard to deal with if you do by chance allow them (see many postings here in the community center that discuss difficulty with the guests knowing the rules as their company or boss booked the room for them, problems communicating with the guests, guests not following rules because their parents booked for them, etc.)

[Elisa]

Hi @Rhonda343 😊, 

Thank you for asking this in the community center!

It's always good practice to check what other hosts think about a specific situation.

I’m glad you’ve found hosts who are able to share good advice with you!

What do you think about them? Did they help you make a decision?

Don’t hesitate to let us know!

Warm regards 🌻