Airbnb just took their anti-party crusade to the next level. After prohibit this type of event In times of pandemic “for reasons of public health”, the company made its permanent global ban official about a year ago.
Despite this last strict measure that established penalties for offenders, some people continued to use temporary rental accommodation as a place to set up parties. The latest from Airbnb to prevent this is a change that affects everyone.
Identity verification on Airbnb
The developers of the application announced through a statement that all guests and hosts from Spain and 34 other countries will need to verify their identity. In case of not complying with this requirement, they will find the following inconveniences.
For one thing, guests won’t be able to make reservations on Airbnb. On the other, the hosts will suffer the blocking of their calendar. This means that they will not be able to accept new reservations, a measure that will result in a direct economic impact on all those who do not comply with the rules.
From Airbnb they point out that they have several ways to verify the identity of people. can use government IDssuch as a driver’s license, passport or ID and sometimes request a selfie to compare photos.
“We may also use information such as a name, phone number, address, date of birth, or, in the US, a Social Security number, and match this information against secure third-party databases,” they say in the statement.
The identity verification comes along with other measures that seek to address the problem of fraud and unauthorized parties on the platform. Some of them are the recent alliances with the National Police and Confianza Online experts, as well as new reservation filters.
They also explain that hosts in Spain will be able to obtain a free noise sensor to address sound problems “respecting the privacy of guests.” Let’s remember that in the past some hosts were placing cameras in their houses.
In the particular case of Barcelona, a mandatory verification protocol has been implemented. Hosts must provide a complete and truthful address. There they will receive an activation code that will allow them to publish accommodation ads.
Images: Brian Babb | Jorik Kleen
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