How to verify guests when they arrive
Is there a question here? Or is this just a backhanded way to try and advertise this product to potential buyers?
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It is not an ad. The first three guests Iāve had either were not who their profile said they were and one was a hooker who had 3 different men over and I had to get police involved Airbnb had flagged her but never contacted me and are still reminding me to review her. Their vetting process is not thorough I live next door and have seen the guests and they looked nothing like their profile Hooker left a mess, smoked, had chocolate pudding all over the night stand and wall carpet, candle wax on table. Baby wipes in one bedroom it made me sick
I turned off instant book but want assurance of who is coming and going . This is a problem Hotels ask for Iād and license plates when you check in I was wondering if anyone else had these concerns
And a little snarky comment to my first post hope the rest of the forum is more polite and understanding
I donāt think ring.com can verify the identity of your guests. You might consider greeting each of your guests as they arrive, ask them to show you an id, and even ask for an ID for any guests that will be staying in the house (āregistered guestsā.) Many forum members have a house rule along the lines of āonly registered guests are allowed on the propertyā or something similar. You would also need to put the ID request in the house rules. If nothing else, anyone who isnāt interested in showing ID to stay with you would book elsewhere.
I have not, to my knowledge, hosted anyone other than the guests who made the reservation. However, I do live in the same house so attract a very different kind of person.
Thank you your suggestion. I just thought that if they ring bell and it goes to my phone I can verify they are who they are and it matches their profile picture. I thought this was such a great way to make extra income, but it makes me very nervous after only 3 guests to have this many problems. I was just wondering if any other hosts had any concerns. Apparently the hooker issue is a big problem, not for people who share part of their house. But for those who offer an entire house with multiple bedrooms, and a garage to hide the different vehicles. Itās a different world today I guess.
You canāt blame @KenH for thinking yours was a spam post - you mention a product in your first post , donāt ask a question and donāt introduce yourself as a new member.
Anyway, now you have clarified that you are looking for a way of verifying guests, the system you are looking at wonāt donāt this. You need to do this yourself. You can do this by;
Asking for verified ID on Airbnb
Communicating with your guests to find out why they chose your place and their plans
Only taking guests with a profile pic.
You say you have āseenā your guests, but no mention of you meeting them on check in and check out nor of you checking an ID in person. You can put in your house rules you do this and then ask for photo ID on arrival.
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I have a Ring doorbell. I donāt use it to verify guest identity but itās been helpful determining things like when a guest without a car is here or not. It would also be a way for them to contact me if they couldnāt get in or lost their phone, they could ring the doorbell and I could use the intercom feature. I also have a room in my house. They have a separate entrance and I advertise privacy but Iām in the same house. Periodically someone come on and posts about prostitutes and I ask them what it is about their property that attracts prostitutes. At least one fellow took offense to that but you seem to have a bit more self awareness. Like your property has an entire house and a garage for hiding cars.
Make it clear that you have a ring doorbell or other survellience cameras outside. Show a picture of it and say āRing doorbell aids with check in or for your safety.ā Make it clear that you live next door. Try to check guest in in person. When is your check out time? Maybe it needs to be earlier in the morning.
Most hosts donāt have the problems you describe so donāt give up. But it is work, not easy money.
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As @KKC says, yes itās a way to make extra money but itās very hard work and time-consuming. Itās the sort of thing that you have to throw yourself into with quite a good deal of enthusiasm and after plenty of research. (And this forum is a great place for that research).
As others have said, I believe that a great part of the problem is that you donāt greet your guests and give them the full house tour. Meeting and greeting guests is, to me, one of the most important aspects of hosting.
Many hosts will tell you that itās common to have guests who look nothing like their profile photograph. Iāve had guests whose images have been of dogs, or babies, or cartoons and in one famous incident, the Taj Mahal (and he was a lovely guest as are 99%).
Youāve also got to think about what you are going to do when you see strange activity (such as the three men being there). You canāt rely on Airbnb to hold your hand through the whole progression between the booking process and the guestsā departure. If you see or suspect anything dodgy, you have to confront the guests straight away then report any violations to Airbnb at once so that they can close these peopleās accounts.
Another very important issue for you is to review these people honestly. Airbnb is built on a trust system that relies on hosts (and guests) being honest about their experiences. Presuming that youād like to prevent other hosts from having the same problem, reviews are a must.
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I used Airbnb as a guest before hosting and no one greeted us and actually didnāt want to be there. I thought it was what people wanted.
Fortunately I own the house next door and as soon as I saw the activity I contacted Airbnb who informed me her account was blocked .
They never notified me. And air Bnb vetted her with supposedly strict guidelines just as I had to show my Facebook page and friends when I booked
Whether or not people want it (and I donāt like it as a guest) as a host then itās essential if youāre able to. Developing a friendly rapport with guests is an important way of making sure that they respect your property. In addition, there might be quirks about the place that you need to explain, plus basic house rules and whatās expected of them.
Airbnb do vet the guests to the extent thatās possible on the internet (such as asking for the upload of ID and connecting with Facebook etc.) but none of these can determine whether a guest is a hooker, or likely to be noisy or any of the other things that hosts hate. Thatās when we are on our own.
Itās not strictly true to say that Airbnb is simply an advertising platform but itās better to look at it that way. They introduce the host to the guest, see to the financial side and after that, itās basically up to us.
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The hooked had no reviews Facebook page or anything. I found a 5 year old twitter account for her and that was it. She should
Never have been allowed to book. They caught it the next day but she was already there. She wanted another night I guess business was good found 4 condoms in the trash and parts of false eyelashes on the sofa it was disgusting
Iāve rented this house for 15 years and it has been updated each time a tenant moved out. It is a very nice house in a great location and Iām used to a certain level of clients Iām not new to renting and I did put a lot of money and effort in it.
Bought all new furniture including new beds and bedding
I will be asking for ids more references such place of employment if things seem fishy. and let them know I am next door. Iām just glad someone wasnāt stabbed or shot disputing her rates like it did in New York
And no more I instant books or last minute one nighters
And only registered guests can be there.
Thank you for your input I appreciate it. Now I know Iāll have to do more vetting of guests and as previous person noted, they can stay elsewhere if they donāt want to comply.
A learning experience for sure!!!
Thank you for your advice. Getting ring for sure and cameras and will let them know up front as is abb policy.
Check out is 10:30 guest before last had a truck in garage, left early, cleaning people were there when at 11:30 someone else pulled in drive and saw door was open and then texted me saying she was checking out. Not even close to her picture. Totally different person. Just need to be more deligent house is too nice not to be picky about who stays there. Thanks again. Hopefully future posts will be positive. At least one booking I knew her mother small world.
I require a government ID on the AirBNB website, but I donāt require any social media. My luddite husband has NO social media. In fact, so little that AirBNB probably wouldnāt verify him at all. I also do not allow last minute bookings, however, in my market they are not needed to get bookings. The guests that I get are planning in advance to visit for a thousand reasons. @KKC does allow last minute bookings and hasnāt had any hookers, etc. [to my knowledge] but again, her space is attached to her house.
I am going to venture that either your location or listing is encouraging a lower form of life. And without meaning to. Make sure you are setting a fair price [too low and people will swoop in to take advantage]. I also understand that new hosts tend to get more of these types of guests since without a bunch of reviews, they might be rented closer to the rental date.
I know you didnāt mean to
Put down my listing. I lived there for 30 years and It is in a very nice safe And affluent part of town with the top rated school district in the state and the rent is $125 to $145 a night I think itās worth more due to the amount of space etc but Airbnb suggested the price and first guest gave it a 4 for value. 3 br 1 b w/d 1300 sf 2 car attached garage and private fenced patio with outdoor dining.
Airbnb encourages ib and when I changed it they warned me how many bookings Iāll miss. Iād rather miss than get the last 3 guests
Itās definitely a learning experience. But no location and price are not encouraging lowlifes but thanks for the thought.
That sounds almost cheap for so much space in such a nice area and so much space! May I ask how much a nice hotel room nearby would cost your guests? [My concern is that this is the price that AirBNB suggests. They are ALWAYS way under!]