I once had an enquiry from a lady with a common American last name. She said my apartment looked wonderful and asked if she could stay for a certain period of time (I believe a bit longer than a week, if I can remember well). First of all, I can never understand why they ask you if they can stay for certain dates, if those dates are available. Why don't they just go ahead and book instantly then? Suspicion number one.
When she arrived for check-in, she looked a gorgeous lady - sth in the air gave away that he was a transgender guy from Taiwan somewhere. Suspicion number two (too late now), but hey, it's a free country and I don't have a problem with any kind of people.
When I signed her in and asked for her ID or passport, (I always do), she gave a passport with another name. Sign number three. But an absolutely gentle and polite person.
Half an hour after showing this lady around the house and leaving, I received a 'spamming' message on my mobile, from her number, informing that anyone interested in a different kind of sex can contact her, this cost per hour, that cost for-I can't remember what.
Obviously she came to town for business. I freaked out! I contacted Airbnb immediately but it took a few hours for them to deal with this unusual situation, so the time had passed and it was clear that without guidance from Airbnb I couldn't get her out and she would spend that night in my property.
So while waiting for Airbnb to contact me, I decided to play detective. I found a place to sit where I could have a clear sight of my property's entrance without been seen . Sat there for a couple of hours wondering if what I'm doing is comical or really tragic.....Saw no one coming in or out, till I felt fed up and tired as it was around midnight, and left for home. By that time, Airbnb had contacted me and I could officially deal with the situation. She was informed that she should leave for these certain reasons (I had sent a screenshot of the message from her where her mobile was clear, and unfortunately for her, she had used the same mobile she had uploaded on Airbnb platform!)
Next day she packed and I checked her out. I made no fuss, she accepted the situation and left politely, didn't even demand any money back.
When I went to clean the apartment, ( I do this myself), I found a condom on the floor, which proved all suspicions right!
That was a hell of a booking! And I ask this....How can I trust the guests profiles, if everything submitted by them that Airbnb says is required for authentication can be actually fake? What protection do we have, in the end? I mean, why is it allowed for someone to use another name than the one written on their ID or passport, for example? I'm sure this person has now an account with another profile and another name.
Anyway, I don't want anyone to get me wrong, Airbnb handled the situation perfectly, but since the check in was in the evening, and there had to be an investigation from them first, plus time difference, didn't allow me to get the guest out before spending the night. Wanted to prevent giving the idea to any local that my grandma's renovated house was used by me as a brothel. It's a small town. Well, I think I saved it.