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What it sounds like to me is that they didn’t understand the 10% non-refundable was just an option, and that they could choose to book just the normal moderate.
My tendency is to try to make guests aware of how it ends up for the host, when they ask things without thinking through logically, as long as they aren’t coming across as rude or demanding, but simply clueless. Because if they are made to understand, hopefully they won’t ask such things in the future of other hosts.
So I’d explain to guests like this, "If for some reason your flight got cancelled or you tested positive 2 days before flying, and you had to cancel your Airbnb booking, that would leave me with empty dates that I wouldn’t be able to fill on such short notice. As this is a business, like aany other, I’m sure you can understand why hosts have cancellation policies in place- we can’t afford to have guests cancelling a couple days before their check-in date. "
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Their persistence is a concern and rubs us the wrong way, especially 3 weeks before a major International trip. I would be concerned what kind of guests they might be or the review they might leave, merely because you did not want to assume their risk and they seem rather entitled.
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So, is moderate the right choice for you? Perhaps yes, if these types are rare. You mentioned if they did cancel 6 days out, that you would lose money with the 50% and either be unable to rebook or have to “give it away” to make up the difference. So … perhaps Strict may be a better fit? Whatever you think is best.
I would have stopped responding a while ago and just temporarily blocked a date in the time they are requesting so that they would get a message that their dates were no longer available. There are all kinds of red flags here that would concern me.
Got it. They were attracted to the price with the 10% discount but non-refundable and they didn’t see the price without the discount but fully refundable 5 days before check-in date (which is right below the non-refundable option).
It could be. Or not. If they are using their phone to look, it is easy to miss or not understand details.
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Regardless, the continued “when is our last day to have a full cancellation” crap is a big red flag - IMO.
That explains why they seemed unaware of the price that goes with the moderate cancellation policy. I always use my labtop and was completely unaware of the differences that a cell phone screen can make. I only use my cell phone for reading and writing messages.
Block a date in the middle of their requested dates. Send this reply “Based on our correspondence and your travel concerns during the Covid epidemic, we don’t think our listing is a good fit for your group. Thank you for your interest.”
I’ve done this and it works. Dates aren’t available and they get a message stating that their trip “Isn’t Possible” and you don’t get dinged by Air. Then you’ve sent them packing with a “not suitable for your needs” note and if anyone kicks, just ignore.
They can’t IB and give it 24 hours and removed the blocked dates. If they come back again, block them without a response and report them for harrassing you for discounts outside of your rule sets.
It’s nice most hosts are giving them the benefit of the doubt (ie they didn’t see the price) but they are clearly seasoned Air users (7 reviews). As soon as I read this, before seeing the comments that followed, I was thinking, “Oh, here we go ”. This immediately sounded like sly price negotiation tactics to me. Heck, I do it when I want to bargain with contractors, asking the price when I know it to see if I can get them thinking of compromising to win my business. As kindly worded as it was, they started off way wrong with that refund policy request. All downhill from here for me.
I’m very grateful for your feedbacks. Thank you very much for having shared your views and experiences with me.
I received their reservation request this morning. After all, they have chosen the less 10% non-refundable option. Their message: <<Sorry it took a bit longer as I was waiting to hear back from other hosts. I’ll submit the reservation shortly. Looking forward to the trip!
Best,>> I don’t know if they have got any travel insurance.
I haven’t accepted their request yet. I’ve asked them to confirm that they had read through the details of my listing especially the house rules and agree to respect them first. I will accept their request as they have received 7 very postive reviews and they have given 6 positive reviews (I missing).
Have a very good day, afternoon, evening, or night!
I think these guests will be fine. Where other hosts see red flags, I see guests who are careful and want to make sure they understand everything. I’m sure you’ll update us if there are problems.
NO, no and no. I would not change the cancellation policy. You will be spending time and money getting your house ready.
But yes to asking about the double jabs or put it into your house description. Vaccinated host prefers likewise!
That’s what I feel also and that’s why I accepted their reservation, although I found them exaggerating when they asked me to change my cancellation policy at the discounted rate.
I can’t agree more with you. I refused to change my cancellation policy. They accepted the non-refundable policy to get 10% discount.
I’m happy that they are fully vaccinated as everyone in my family.
There are still people including elderlies who refuse to get vaccinated in Nice. Yesterday when I went to a big supermarket, security guards in front of the entrance asked an old lady to present her vaccination proof. She was very unhappy and said that she would go to another supermarket.
When I asked my kids (18 & 22) to make an appointment to get their vaccinations in April, they were reluctant because they felt that they weren’t at risk. I told them to think about those people who were at risk and to make an effort to slow down the transmission of Covid even if we can’t stop it. I’m happy that my kids were considerate and cooperative. When I asked a neighbour who is about 30 years old if she’d got her jabs, she said that she would never be a guinea pig and she could ask neighbours to do her shopping even if she could not get into shops.
All these unvaxed people are going to soon find out there’s a lot more they won’t be able to do besides go to the grocery store. That is if they don’t die of Covid.
Almost everyone is either going to have to get covid or get vaxxed. It appears that the Delta variant is not only more transmissible but also makes people sicker. And sicker means more likely to die. The evidence isn’t there yet but it’s likely. And sicker also means a greater chance of long term effects from having covid (“long covid”).
You know these people will continue to fight it tooth and nail, convinced they won’t get sick until they or someone they are close to dies. And even then some of them won’t give up their antivax stance.
Yup. I already know someone who nearly lost his mother after a family get together. Everyone got it, and suddenly he’s on the vaccination bandwagon after claiming its “just like the flu.” Tragic that sometimes it takes personal loss for people to take covid more seriously.
I get irrited when I learn that people around me still refuse to get vaccinated for all kind of ridiculous reasons. We are facing the 4th wave of Covid (Delta variant) in France since the end of August but still seeing mass protests against the vaccine and the vaccine passports every Saturday.
”. This immediately sounded like sly price negotiation tactics to me. Heck, I do it when I want to bargain with contractors, asking the price when I know it to see if I can get them thinking of compromising to win my business. As kindly worded as it was, they started off way wrong with that refund policy request. All downhill from here for me.