So after a couple of notices I answer the Airbnb research survey to “help make hosting better.” The first questions ask about requiring verification and then asks to describe “How I feel about this?” So possible answers are frustrated, annoyed, happy, etc. REALLY - what difference does it make how I “feel” about this, what matters is if I am confident that the verifications are accurate and adequate to insure the true identity of the possible guest staying in my property. I am totally at a loss to understand the way this survey was conducted. Did anyone else think the same thing or am I just being totally off the charts here. Also I have noticed that potential guests do not have the usual number of verifications that I require so I am thinking that Airbnb may be sending out this survey to justify this change. Thanks for reading this and your experience and thoughts would be wonderful.
I’m all for full verification, but I have not received this noticed from Airbnb. No one can book with me until they have been verified, government ID provided, linked to social media, and recent face photo upload to profile.
I work in market research and data analytics and that survey was one of the most worthless, poorly designed pieces of junk I’ve run across in quite a while.
I am for full verification, and I want authentication that the ID uploaded matches the selfie. I would also LOVE if guests were screened for sex offenders. Statistically, I think we’ve probably all hosted at lease one sex-offender, maybe more!
I have the strictest verifications setting as well but my two most recent inquiries had only one and two verifications respectively. So maybe Airbnb allows you to send an inquiry but when you book you have to provide all of the host’s requirements for booking. Not sure. Oh gosh the thought of hosting a sex offender makes my skin crawl!
I think that works both ways. I have an Australian Working with Children ID Card and Police Check through volunteer work I do with people with intellectual disabilities. I am absolutely surprised that hosts who allow children in their homes where they live themselves in the shared space with access to guest bedrooms and bathrooms are not required by AirBnB to undergo the same checks as teachers or anybody in Australia who works or volunteers with children or PWIDs. I know it would put many off becoming hosts but why would they assume AirBnB hosts are less likely to offend than someone else? Their parents being on the premises is no guarantee of safety as many sad cases have shown.
I know that I’ve rattled on about this before, but I’m afraid that I truly do think that today’s Airbnb hosts are very lucky to get the information that they do - even if photographs are deceptive or profiles are erroneous.
In the old days, pre-internet, when I ran a bed & breakfast business in my own home, we had no checks at all. No profile information. No reviews. No profile photographs. No verifications. We didn’t even know that the guests were giving their real names. (It was pretty traditional for unwed couples to be ‘Mr & Mrs Smith’.)
They just turned up on the doorstep with a suitcase.
I know, this is one of those you-youngsters-don’t-know-you’re-born things but honestly, compared to those days, the Airbnb sevice is pretty wonderful.
This.
As far as I can tell for those concerned anything AirBnB might do is minimal, if you read their policy you will see it is full of get outs.