How to(almost) always cancel Airbnb bookings without a penalty
In all the owner groups I'm in, the 'cancel without penalty' option is 'I don't feel comfortable with this guest.' The fewer details you give when you do this, the better. You can do 3 of these cancels a year for free, BUT you'll lose superhost status before you hit that limit. This option is available if guests 'instant book' your home BUT you CAN'T use this option if you manually approve the stay. In other words, if a guest has 0 reviews they send in a question and I answer and 'pre-approve' their stay, they can't be cancelled this way.
I've discovered a better way and have been using it for a few months from my property management clients with success. Free cancellations, no penalities, no headaches.
Backstory:
Earlier this year, I had a guest book a 1BR but didn't answer my house rule request (Please send a guest list+ages). Since they were local, I suspected a party and wanted to cancel since he was violating my house rule by not providing info. When I called to try and cancel penalty free, Airbnb agreed he was in violation BUT told me that I had to give him until the moment of check in to provide that list. If I had to cancel, well, he was already in the cabin and I'd have no real way to get him out. (Turns out he did have a party but thankfully didn't trash the place too bad)
Anyway, after jerking with Airbnb support for a couple of hours, I kept asking about their policies and asking 'what if' scenarios to get a better handle on how the system works. They never would give me a straight answer, but I had a hunch that is now my secret recipe.
The Secret Free Cancellation Method:
I made a house rule that says: Must be 25 and up to rent. For security purposes, please upload a copy of your photo ID within 72 hours of booking or we reserve the right to cancel.
The reality is very few people remember to mail in a copy of their ID so this gives us the path to any penalty free cancels we need. (That said, I still send reminders to the guest to actually get a copy of their ID for two reasons... I want to verify the booking guest matches the ID and I want to know who is staying in the cabin in case I need to pursue damages.)
If/when you want to cancel a stay penalty-free:
- Call into Airbnb support
- Let the first human you talk to know you want to cancel due to a "house rules violation". They'll bump you up to tier 3 support.
- Tier 3 support will want to contact the guest to get a copy of the ID. Decline that request.
- Tell them "I'm not comfortable with this guest staying in my house but more importantly I want to cancel due to the rules violation. Please don't contact them, just cancel."
- Done!
I've used this method a many times with no trouble at all. Parties, local stays and ultra high maintenance guests have been avoided and everyone is happy.
Note: Airbnb changed their Terms of Service earlier this year on IDs; they now discourage us from collecting them. An exception carved out if the ID is required due to insurance/city/HOA requirements. Use that to your advantage.
Good luck out there!