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Hello - Very new user here. I got an instant book today from a woman who I suspect is doing a third party booking. She lives in a close suburb of my city and simply wrote “friends in town” into the booking note, which is a bit of a yellow flag for me. I wrote back saying, “Great! I assume you will be checking in and staying with them?” No response yet. It’s possible that she could be doing this to have a good time w/ her friends in the city - but her town is like a $15-20 taxi/rideshare ride away (or a $3 light rail ride) so not likely. She has a single good review and is gov ID verified. Not sure how to handle.
Other threads on this topic seem to suggest that 1) third party bookings are not worth the risk; and 2) I should call Air if it is a third party booking and they will cancel. How have others handled this issue?
Background: I am on my fourth visit, doing this short-term in my personal home because I unexpectedly lost my job when the tide turned on the election. Basically, I am the swamp, and I am getting drained
TL; DR - How do I know for sure that it’s a 3rd party booking and should I cancel it?
‘Friends in town’ could mean so many different things, so my suggestion would be to just ask her up front!
Hi Guest
Thanks for your booking. I’m just a bit confused about who will be staying. Is the booking for yourself or your friends (or both?), and how many people will be staying?
That could be the answer to the question Air asks guests: Reason for visit?
Friends in town, visiting friends in town? Or my friends in town. Agree it is a bit cryptic. But it doesn’t sound like a third party booking to me. It’s pretty rare for guests to do that, especially now since it is totally against the rules. In my 7.5 years doing Air I have never had a third party booking request.
Whatever you do, don’t cancel the booking yourself. If it needs to be canceled make sure either the guest cancels it or Airbnb cancels it. You will be heavily penalized if you cancel it yourself.
Thanks, all! She ended up confirming that it was not a third party booking. For some reason, this would have been my second third party. I had already let the first one slide because it was a daughter booking for elderly relatives and I honestly just didn’t know better.
So do you mean she confirmed it was a third party booking ? You wrote it wasn’t a third party booking but then said it was your second after letting the first one slide.
Yeah I’ve had a few attempts at third party bookings too. One got through because I didn’t know any better and they also happened to cause damage. Never again!
I posted about a potential 3rd party booking a few weeks ago. The actual guests ended up booking themselves, which I was surprised about since the friend trying to book got a little pissy with me. They turned out to be fabous guests but I was glad I was firm and stuck with policy.
Every race and gender is welcome in my flat, but I’d rather don’t take bookings of friends or family out of the same town. As it is simply too risky…Keys could be copied and in case of a bad guest experience, problems could continue even after the guests have left. Better safe then sorry. Next to that I had only one third party booking and it was a desaster. That’s why I dont take any automated bookings. I really like to know who’s coming. It’s still my own living space were I invite people. As my city is well sought on AirBnB, I do understand that not everybody has the luxury to pick their guests…
Hi. Sucks when ppl don’t treat your space like their own. If a company provided you with the guest staying in your (verified via facebook) would that make you feel better about third party bookings?
