Ahem... asking for Covid proof upon booking part deux

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I have an automated email that goes out when IB happens (courtesy of RemoteLock and their awesome software). Can the hive comment on clarity and usefulness? I had asked for insight as to how to get guests to comply with my house rule about CDC (or country equivalent) cards upon booking. Please comment and improve:

Welcome {{ guest.name }} to Greenwich Walk check-in.
Here is the final step before your reservation is confirmed: forward your up-to-date CDC card or equivalent for every member of your party to us now (within the next hour at latest). You can upload it here in messages or text it to my number below. Upon approval, we will activate your booking. Thanks! (If you have already stayed with us, no need to upload again).

And, when I get a reservation request they will get this quick reply:

Here is the final step before your reservation is confirmed: Confirm that you will forward your up-to-date CDC card or equivalent for every member of your party to us now (within the first hour at latest). You can upload it here in messages or text it to my number when I approve this request. Upon approval, we will activate your booking.

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Your wording for IB bookings isn’t true, though, as IBs are already confirmed, hosts don’t “activate” them.

It’s also incorrect for requests, as those are not “activated”, either. There’s no such thing as a host “activating” a booking. (And in fact, fake Airbnb scam listings use this language, telling their marks that as soon as they send money to a bank account, the (fake) host will "activate"the booking)

And for requests, don’t you communicate other things with potential guests before deciding whether to accept or not? In other words, wouldn’t it be better to just have that vax proof info as a cut and paste you can add to whatever other pre-acceptance communication you have with guests, rather than sending it as a quick reply on receipt of a request? If the vax proof info was the first message I got after sending a request, rather than a “Thank you for your request…blah blah blah” opening response, I would find it odd.

I’d revise the wording to be accurate. Also, “within the hour” seems like an unreasonable window. I realize you don’t want unacceptable bookings or requests blocking your calendar for long, but guests also have lives- they may be at work, be driving their kids to school, out shopping, having dinner, whatever, and not necessarily have their vax card with them to upload that quickly.

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good points.

I was trying to infer that I was not ready to host them (even after they booked) if they did not follow through. Maybe ‘activate’ is not accurate, but I am trying to let them know that this request, when completed, will satisfy me as a host and I will not cancel them etc. Is there a way to word this in such away that they feel that without the card info their reservation is not ‘settled’?

I disagree that they are not able to fulfill what is in my house rules because they may be out to dinner etc - they are sitting by their computer or phone to make the IB, they get this message reminding them that this is what they agreed to (sending upon booking). Based on what they read and agreed to on my house rules, that should have been readied at that time.

Maybe replace ‘activate’ with ‘accept’?

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  1. Consider saying in your rules: “At the earlier of 48 hours of your booking and 24 hours before x pm of the arrival date you need to upload here your up-to-date CDC card or equivalent for you and every member of your party. Or text it/these to my number provided upon booking. Failure to do so will be treated as a guest cancelation of your booking per the cancelation policy.”
  2. Add to your scheduled replies upon booking the same language.
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For IBs, I would say something like, “Thank you for your booking. As is stated in our listing info, we require proof of Covid vaccination to protect both hosts and guests. Please send a screenshot of your vaccine card ASAP, as we will have to ask you to cancel the booking within your free cancellation period if this is not provided.”

For requests, as I said, I’d add it to whatever you normally message your guests when they send a request, saying you will only be able to accept their booking after you receive it.

I disagree with your thinking on the timeframe to respond- guests may very well have just sent their IB or request from their phone or computer, but that doesn’t mean they have their vax card with them- it may be at home and they may not be. Now that proof of vax is no longer necessary to provide in many places, when entering various businesses, as it might have been a year ago, people may not be carrying those cards around with them.

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Nice! “ASAP” is good for folks that are booking for next day, but if they are booking a week or two out, the question is how to put pressure. I suppose the ‘cancellation period’ might encourage that but what about those that book the 'non-refundable 10% off" folks?

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Doesn’t non-refundable also have a free cancellation period?

I guess you’d have to tailor that message a bit to impress the urgency, like “We’d hate to have to leave you in the lurch on a last minute booking, or have you miss the free cancellation period if you can’t comply with the vaccination status proof, so please make sure to send this info as soon as you possibly can. We can’t let anyone check-in before receiving it.”

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No. You were trying to imply :wink:

Yes, there is. You just said it. See above. There’s no reason to be passive-aggressive. You seem very clear about it so be very clear about it.

I disagree. You are not doing these people a favor. They are guests and they are paying you. Their schedule is not of your business. Set a more reasonable time frame (48 hours or so) and include it in your house rules. And then it is your job to reach out and remind them. It is, exactly, the job part of making the money.

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…which is why I remind them that they AGREED to send this info at time of booking. Adding 48 hours to that will not work for us since many bookings are ‘night before’. Also, I am not happy that a potential failed guest holds my schedule hostage for 48 hours.

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So, make it 3 hours or whatever works but be prepared to cancel some guests. You’re herding cats. It doesn’t serve you to pretend it’s different than it is.

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I have and I will cancel guests who do not make the deadline, for sure.

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What is “the” deadline? You’re going against the whole point of IB.

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Please reread the posts - they can IB but if they do not provide what my house rules ask for I will cancel them. The ‘deadline’ is the time after they commit to sending me the cdc info and fail to do so, after which I will cancel them for not following my house rules - that they agreed to in order to book.

Parsing words is fun and all, but content is king… and this is what we have come up with:

Welcome {{ guest.name }} to Greenwich Walk check-in.

Thank you for your booking. As is stated in our listing info, we require proof of Covid vaccination to protect both hosts and guests. Please send a screenshot of your vaccine card ASAP. You can upload it here in messages or text it to my number below. We’d hate to have to leave you in the lurch on a last minute booking, or have you miss the free cancellation period if you can’t comply with the vaccination status proof, so please make sure to send this info as soon as you possibly can. We can’t let anyone check-in before receiving it Thanks! (If you have already stayed with us, no need to upload again).

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…and while parsing these to make your ‘comments’, please be aware that my posts and responses are sincere and personal. Please do not make fun of my comments on the grade school level, it is hurtful and diminishes the forum, which is here to help and support the members of the forum.

A good rule of thumb is if you say something that is not helpful or constructive, it probably does not belong here.

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You should use RTB instead of IB. You should not expect your paying guests to get back to you asap. That is what I said. You asked.

And maybe look up the word parsing. Either you don’t know what it means or you’re really not listening.

Nevermind. I looked back and you didn’t actually ask a question. lol.

I really think your expectations of guests are skewed in a manner that’s not useful to you. A lot of guests don’t read the house rules. Everyone knows that. So many aren’t going to IB and then right away send their vax info to you. You never clarified what your deadline is but if it’s an hour, I really think you’re setting yourself up to pay a lot of cancelation fees. And that will suck for you.

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the ‘rolling my eyes’ comment was cruel and sarcastic. So is the comment about parsing and asking a question. Trolling is unacceptable here.

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Not “ASAP” but some specific formula with a reminder of consequence for not doing so. The message should mirror the house rule.

That’s why I suggested “At the earlier of 48 hours of your booking and 24 hours before x pm of the arrival date”

If there’s a question that they might not reasonably able to do so 24 hours before x pm of the arrival date then make ‘24’ a reasonable ‘x.’ Should x be 12?

Edit: You should not pay cancelation fees if your house rules say "Failure to do so will be treated as a guest cancelation of your booking per the cancelation policy.” Of course, I don’t know that Airbnb will enforce that. But why not? Maybe @PitonView has a thought here as that’s where I got the idea. But I take full responsibility if I am using it out of context.

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You’ve been missing from the forum for a bit. Now you’re back making nasty comments to others. It is tiresome.

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I deleted it. But, seriously, you were just coming across as so entitled. I’m so tired of entitled hosts.

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You too! Thanks. As usual, you can scroll on by. But I’ve known Rolf for a long time and I care about him and he sounded like he needed some advice. He made a post so the assumption is that he was welcoming advice. And it was good advice. No one should expect their IB guests to respond within an hour if they’re having dinner. It’s not reasonable. And I’ve earned the right to say what I think. And it’s okay if you don’t like it. I’m okay with that.

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