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Hi! My name is XXXXXXXX and I’m in charge of finding housing for my husband and I and 2 other couples. Our son has an airbnb cabin in MT and I am using his account since this is new to me! I still haven’t heard from one of the couples so hope they will be pleased with my choice! Your cancellation policy says I will have 48 hours to cancel without being charged. Hopefully I won’t have to cancel because your guest house looks wonderful. We will be going to the XXXXXXX and will all arrive sometime Wednesday, Sept. 11.
I declined and asked her to set up her own account and re-book.
I immediately get this:
I just got a test from my son saying my request to rent your airbnb for 9/11-9/15 was denied since I am using his account. I am using my Visa card. Since I don’t know how to open my own account, I’m not sure what to do. Can you help me?
Seriously?
Her son has an established account as a super host. WTF? Why doesn’t he help her? I told her to go to Air’s site and look under help.
I know what I’m thinking but what are everyone else’s thoughts?
I don’t do technical support or even open up that can of worms. Airbnb has all kinds of resources and even a customer service line to help guests with that. I provide the hospitality, not the technology.
But yes, I also don’t accept third party bookings. When I get one, I call Airbnb customer service and ask them to cancel the request or reservation so it doesn’t hurt my statuses. Then I BLOCK the guest because these guests usually send follow-up reservation requests.
I think it’s a good booking made well in advance. Some people are a bit clueless about how Airbnb works and after that kind and honest message I’d be inclined to help her. Then later she could book other people’s Airbnb’s and wouldn’t be put off by the process.
I’d at least send a direct link to Airbnb on where to get started setting up a new account and tell her to follow the instructions. I don’t know why the son didn’t already help her. Maybe he’s a busy professional. Tell the guest that booking under another account is against policy and ask the guest to have her son help her set up a new account. If she can’t get it done after that, she probably won’t be able to communicate with you effectively for a reservation.
I’ve had this often. It’s just someone who doesn’t understand the system, that’s all.When they inquire, just say:
“Thanks for your inquiry! As you’re new you probably don’t realise that this is against the Airbnb system. Your son must be coming if you’re booking through his account. It’s really easy to set up your own account. Just call Airbnb and they’ll walk you through it. I look forward to hearing from you again and seeing you here in September! Please let me know if there’s anything I can do to help”.
I think that every time, Airbnb and helped the guest and they’ve booked under their own name. No problem.
Oh I should have noted: butter wouldn’t have melted in my mouth I was so sweet in my reply to her (I was short and to the point in the post here because of course you all have heard it before) and I mentioned Air’s policy re: third party bookings.
I was going to send the link to help but are links blocked? I could have suggested she call them but I’m such an online person it didn’t occur to me.
I’m sure she’s a perfectly nice person but if she could figure out how to find my listing and send a booking request using her son’s account surely she can navigate Air’s site and set up an account.
I agree with Mexican - I’m not tech support beyond telling a potential guest where to look for answers.
THAT is exactly what I do. I give them the contact number because usually it is people in my age range (60 and thereabouts) and not all of them are tech savvy or had kids like mine that did mean things like leave a line in the DOS boot up that said “Mom, I win until you can remove this line” (Windows 3.1 LOL). It has always resulted in a booking and they have been very awesome guests as well.
So I just got a second request from her with her own account. I told her I was glad she now had her own account as it would work better for her and this was her adorable reply:
I am so excited too. My friend came and helped me set up my own profile – it only took us 3 hours!! We agree to all you mentioned in your email. I will get the other two couples’ email info for you soon. Please accept our booking request! See you in September.
For your sake, I hope that you don’t have self check-in! She sounds like my late mother, who couldn’t operate any device that didn’t have a simple on/off switch. It sounds like she’t totally clueless.
No. I’m one of those annoying hosts that lives next door and insists on checking in each and every guest giving them the full tour and heaven forbid I like to talk to them about where they are from and what they are interested in seeing in our small town.
Not much is complicated about the house except, evidently the coffee maker. It’s a Bodum pour over which I think is pretty basic. I had one guest tell me I needed a Mr. Coffee for people who couldn’t figure it out. Literally you put a paper filter in the cone, fill it with grounds and pour hot water over it. I do supply a “how to” guide with a nice write-up on the local roastery where I get my coffee but maybe it was too much, too early before coffee for this particular guest.
Jesus, they are old people. I’d say ask your son to book this for you. My parents wouldn’t be able to create an account on airbnb, with all the customer service in the world. If I don’t take care of them and give them simple instructions they wouldn’t be able to do anything for themsleves.
I as a host, had several young people book one of my bedrooms for their respective parents. The old people were dropped off and picked up by relatives. They only stayed at my house to sleep and shower. But the daughter explained this very clearly to me and I accepted.
In this case I would have declined as well because there are several old couples involved. I’d tell them frankly to make up their minds and have the son book for everybody. But that’s me. ALso I noticed that old people do not damage anything. They like to talk more than anything.
Sounds like a sound booking to me… This blog wouldn’t exist if ABB platform was easy to navigate.
Gosh she’s trying, I accept bookings from older family members regularly.
It took my son’s girlfriend spent 2 hrs trying to set up an account with my help ( she is super tech savvy & hardly clueless at all ) … I just ended up booking for her.
I’ve taken third party bookings and I’ve read many reviews that are of 3rd party bookings. So while Airbnb won’t back you up for 3rd party bookings and we regularly advise against it here there is a significant market of 3rd party Airbnb bookings. And that makes it frustrating for hosts who don’t want them as well as guests who make them. If you’ve booked multiple times for someone else and then run up against a host who won’t take them then you are going to blame that host. Airbnb really needs to change their policy so that there is some consistency.
@JohnF I accept 3rd party bookings from case to case. I refused for example a helicopter mom who was trying to book my bedroom for a month for her undergrad son, internship or something.
I said why doesn’t your son book it? He seems capable.
On the other hands I accepted a booking from a medical student (girl) who was using her dad’s account. Also a month, but the way she spoke to me made me approve her. she seemed mature.
LOL!! It just keeps going. I did accept her booking request and today got this message:
this came to me — the friend — cause we were using my air bnb app to get XXXXXX photo taken so she could book. I have forwarded your message to her, but her email in case you need it is XXXXXXX
Sounds like a great property.
So something went sideways when they were setting up the account or they just switched out names/pics on the friends? Oh well. I think it will all work out. Comedy of errors.
It sounds like the friend installed the app and logged in as your guest so they could take & submit photos. She should probably just log off/delete the app!
