Renter possibly under age 18?

1

Never mind. I found him through Pipl and he is over 18 (not by a lot, but enough) - he just posted an old picture on AirBnB.

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2

If I were you, I would call Airbnb and ask them to verify that he is 18 years old. I had a guest who was 17 years old and was open about his age. His verification documents included his passport. As he was not independent enough to be traveling alone; I called Airbnb. I told them that they should have checked his age when he signed up. The representative told me that if the passport is photographed at a certain angle, the date of birth can’t be read. I told her that it is Airbnb’s job to do what it takes to verify that the guest is over 18.

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3

Why don’t you remove Instant Book or set a minimum stay if you don’t want short stays?

4

I had a 13-night “hole” and a five-night minimum, and they booked exactly in the middle of it, leaving me 4 nights on either side. Our perception is that very few people travel to St Lucia for just a few nights and book a large property like our villa, so I fear the possibility of getting those two sets of four nights booked is very low. But maybe Air is the right platform for short stays.

Yes, I might turn off instant book, but I’m afraid we won’t get seen if I do. And this is the first time I have ever had someone Instant Book before inquiring, as our rates are high (this booking is at $660 US per night).

I’ve texted the guy since we had communicated via text last week, and he didn’t realize he had really booked our place on AirBnB - he thought it was just an inquiry!

5

Ohmygoodness! Good thing you texted him. That could have been a disaster for an 18-year old.

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He was booking on behalf of his family, and he is 23. He’ll be in the group, so it’s OK. I’m not thrilled with their choice of dates, but that’s the risk I take for the reward of being seen with Instant Book. For the rest of my “holes”, I’ve increased the minimum stay, increased the rates for the weekend days, then written in my listing to ask about discounts for those higher-priced days. My next openings of any length are in early July, so I have some time to be a little “picky” about what I accept. And if someone wants to IB with the higher prices, I can live with that!

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