AirBnB's crusade against wild parties
Last year, the vacation rental media was up in arms over AirBnB's announcement to ban parties in homes offered on the platform. The platform also limited the capacity of the latter to a maximum of 16 travellers and blocked last-minute bookings by young people under 25 years of age near their main residence.
Some have chosen to transfer what they did in bars and discos to houses, sometimes rented through our platform'
Airbnb
Just over a year later, AirBnB has released the results of this move. The giant has announced that it has blocked or redirected more than 240,000 people since the measure was put in place. This includes 53,000 people in Paris, 7,000 in Marseille and 4,000 in Bordeaux, among others.
This year again, the American platform is not left out. New measures have been added to regulate wild parties once again:
- Overnight bookings: Customers who do not have a history of positive reviews will not be able to book a one-night stay for entire accommodation listings.
- Two-night bookings: tighter restrictions will be placed on two-night bookings in the run-up to the New Year. AirBnB plans to strengthen technology that restricts some local and last-minute bookings by guests who do not have a history of positive reviews.
What about rentals on other platforms?
If this decision only affects properties rented on the American platform, it remains very difficult for the players of the holiday rental industry to protect their live bookings against these lockdown parties.
'There was a lot of damage (broken jacuzzi nozzle, the house's lift pump out of order due to the throwing of various objects not adapted to the drains, which required a complete renovation and a change of the lift pump, table and lounge benches of a luxury brand damaged and irretrievable due to the spilling of liquids, marble support in a bathroom completely cracked, a lot of acidity stains on the marble floor impossible to repair etc.).'
Anonymous customer of Swikly
Take an interest in the tenant's profile
You will need to be extra vigilant when the tenant is a young person living near your property. Indeed, although this profile does not represent in a certain way that of a wild party organizer, the majority of the undesirable travellers correspond to it. It is not our intention to systematically discriminate against these tenants, but to insist on the following recommendations to minimize the risks.
Check out your travelers' reviews on OTAs, their profiles and their backgrounds. You can avoid unpleasant surprises by talking to them on the phone before confirming their booking.
Ask a few non-invasive questions to get an idea of their profile:
- What is the reason for your stay?
- Do you have any plans during your stay?
- How many guests will be staying in the house?
- Will you be inviting other people over during your stay?
If you are concerned about their responses, consider passing and choosing other travellers to avoid problems.
Regularly ask for confirmation of the reason for your stay
Although partygoers will probably not tell you the real reason for their booking, your concern and insistence may discourage them if they feel discovered. Indeed, they will certainly prefer to cancel the stay for fear that their party will be compromised, in order to fall back on less informed owners.
Let your travellers know that you will be nearby during their stay
If you have several homes nearby, offer to meet your travelers at a property close to the one you are renting. If not, simply imply that you don't live very far away. This proximity will be awkward for partygoers who will be afraid of being discovered and that their event will fall flat.
Work on your general terms and conditions of sale and your rental rules
It is essential to emphasize the prohibitions in effect on your properties. It goes without saying that you must explicitly prohibit parties. But you must also warn travellers that noise pollution or smoking may result in the collection of their deposit. The clarity of your position is also a deterrent to avoid being selected by partygoers in their search.
Even if you do not live in your accommodation, it is essential to respect the neighbourhood. Once your travellers have arrived, a little reminder of the rules won't hurt. Indeed, you can emphasize the strict prohibition of parties. You can let them know that you have sensitive neighbors or that you have had bad experiences with guests who have broken the rules in the past.
As always, stay professional and friendly. While you need to protect yourself, you also need to think about the quality of your reception and customer experience.
Prohibit one-night stays
This is the most effective measure you can put in place. Wild parties are indeed organized on a single night for the sake of simplicity, budget, and discretion. Like the measures that AirBnB has put in place, you can impose a minimum length of stay.
Use a volume detector
Due to the increase in wild parties in short-term rental properties, several companies have developed connected volume detectors. These devices allow you to be alerted when a certain volume threshold is exceeded. However, check with your OTAs to make sure that the use of these detectors is within their terms of use. Also make sure that you only use modules that do not record sound or image. We recommend that you only use detectors that are specially manufactured for this purpose, such as NoiseAware.
These devices can detect excessive noise by measuring the pressure of sound waves in the air. You can often customize the maximum decibel level. When the noise exceeds this level, you receive an alert that allows you to contact guests.
Request a deposit with Swikly
It is common among this type of travelers that the cashing of deposits are disputed. By requesting a deposit on Swikly, you ensure that in case of damage caused by your travelers, the cardholder who has used to deposit the deposit will be cashed. You are therefore assured to receive the funds in case of damage, without having to deal with the recovery of funds.
