Hello everyone. Some advice would be appreciated, as we have a situation which is new to us, but I’m sure, not uncommon.
Our Airbnb (in the UK), is an annexe connected to our main house, and we started letting in 2021. Our policy has been not to allow instant booking; we like to do a little checking before accepting visitors, as we don’t accept pets or children, and we like to try and build a bit of a connection with the guests beforehand. The policy has worked well so far; we have Superhost status, and guests seem really to appreciate the effort we put in to make their stay comfortable, and the place spotless. And we have had some really nice people, and very few we wouldn’t welcome back.
This time, a lady sought to book, for herself and three others, for a two night stay in September. On checking, I found she had joined Airbnb in 2020, but had no reviews from hosts, and she had not offered any information, at all, about herself or her guests.
I immediately wrote back to her, acknowledging the request, and asked if she could give a liitle information about herself and friends, but received no response (which is unusual - most people seem quite happy to tell us a bit about themselves). The 24 hour period for me to accept or decline expired (another first), but I sent her a message saying I was prepared to accept her (at a slightly reduced rate) - and the ‘slot’ duly booked.
I then wrote back to her, asking again for more information - but again, have received no reply.
This makes me nervous. As things stand, I don’t know anything at all about them; whether it is a single-sex group, or couples; whether they have read our house rules and understand them; that there must be no pets or children (we are over-18 only and one can’t rely on AirBnB to check things thoroughly), etc…
What would be your advice? Should I cancel this booking, or just cross my fingers? If we contacted AirBnb about our concerns, would they help, do you think?