Photo required in guest profile?

I just booked a guest who is verified but has no profile photo. I thought Airbnb now requires a photo. I was able to find her on Facebook so I know what she looks like but I did suggest to her that she upload a photo so I will recognize her when she arrives. Anyone know if a photo is required? She has only been a member since March and we are her first booking. Thanks!

I just checked my booking requirements and it shows a photo is required. Wonder how this happened?

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I had a guest book the other day whose profile photograph was the Taj Mahal!

Guess they’re confusing Airbnb with FB LOL

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I guess a ‘photo’ can mean a photo of anything?

I’ve had great guests who didn’t have a photo of themselves, but, I don’t prefer it at all.

In my House Rules I state that guests need to have a complete profile including a clear facial photo. I would like to retain the right to decline someone if they don’t show me who they are. I have a clear photo in my profile to put guests at ease - I expect the same in return.

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I’ve taken guests with all sorts of images for profile pics… And they have usually been the best guests. Sometimes people just signing up are “shy.”

I made a reservation as a guest last week and Airbnb would not let me send the reservation request without changing my profile photo with a clear face photo (I had a full-length photo).

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It should be 100% required. Also, I really hate it when people wear sunglasses in their Airbnb photos. I passed over some listings because the hosts were doing this. Eyes are important in building trust.

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Our last guest had a photo of his driver’s license as his photo…

Some of my worst guests (and when I say worst, I mean more annoying of my mostly great guests, as I have only had one guest so far who bordered on being a nightmare) have been those who don’t show their faces or are otherwise difficult to recognize in their photos on Air. I suppose it’s just me, but being confident enough to show your face on your profile the way I do is just a good sign that we are more likely to “click” and have a positive host-guest experience.

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I’ve had a couple inquiries without photos, and I specifically said that I would not book them without a real current photo.

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I totally agree. Although hotels and traditional B&Bs do not require photos ID before guests book. It has probably opened up hosts to racial profiling accusations and yet I want to see who is am letting in my home. It’s a tough one.

Well, now this thread is making me slightly uncomfortable with having accepted this particular guest! :grinning: But the email he wrote with his inquiry was very much what every host hopes for.

If ABB is now requiring guests to have a clear facial photo as @Barthelemy is suggesting, I will probably take it out of my House Rules. I would rather not have to state too many “must-have’s” and “do nots” anyway. As we know guests don’t read stuff, so including redundant information doesn’t exactly help with that.

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In my country Airbnb requires a clear facial photo, however once I received a request of a guy with a picture in his profile that showed his face painted in a white, red and black mask, similar to joker Heath Ledger’s make up in Bat Man, very creepy!! I was new and for a moment I was afraid to deny the request and lose visibility, but finally I did.

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Some of my guests’ photos have been weird but in each case they’ve turned out to be lovely, lovely people.

With one guest she looked like a ghoul on her photo - so much so that when she arrived I blurted out ‘you’re so PRETTY! You need to change your profile pic’. (Luckily she saw it as a compliment) :slight_smile:

Another guest looked so severe in her photo that I almost expected her to turn up in a tank with a machine gun and a cartridge belt slung around her neck — she was sweet and delightful.

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Interesting! That’s pretty good facial recognition. The company whose software does the whole verification process declared bankruptcy, which I find interesting. I always thought it was pretty well-done process.

I was just wondering this today, I thought it was now compulsory for guests to have a ‘proper’ close up pic.
I’m still getting guests showing their feet or the likes!! I want to know who i’m getting at the door, especially since we have holiday lets in the building in other apt. It could be anyone with the wheelie case.
What’s the polite way to ask for them to change their photo, without sounding bossy or pernickety?

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It is compulsory according to the Airbnb reservation requirements BUT I have had a guest whose reservation I accepted with no photo at all and another who had a picture of something that looked like a statue. They were both fine guests but I like to know who is showing up at my door. I think all Airbnb is thinking about now is going public so the owners can cash out. There is zero customer service imho