Reservation stays on Airbnb just got a little more complicated, as you will now need to verify your identity to complete your order.
This change landed on November 16 and affects stays in the UK and 35 others destination, including the United States, Australia, France and Germany. This will likely apply to your next Airbnb reservation, in other words.
Airbnb says it will ask for “your legal name, address, phone number, and other contact information. We may also request a photo of your government ID card and/or a selfie.”
The Airbnb wording is a bit vague, and Airbnb says name, address, and “other personal information” may be “sufficient for us to verify your identity.” However, you may need to upload photos of your driver’s license or passport, and more, as IDs may need to be “government issued”, so ID cards clubs or universities will not be accepted.
Airbnb states that this information will not be shared with hosts, only your verification status. However, he may request a selfie as an additional layer of identification.
We tried logging into our Airbnb account and although there was already a “Government ID”, the entry now says; “We are unable to confirm that this ID belongs to you. You can delete it and try again or continue by taking a photo of yourself.”
You may find a similar message on your next Airbnb booking attempt, so it’s a good idea to sort that out before shopping for dwindling New Year’s stays in London. This level of identification also applies to hosts, not just guests.
Airbnb’s Partyless Future
Airbnb has also introduced anti-party technology in the United States and Canada, according to fast business. It rates reservations based on the history of the person making the request, as well as the duration, distance from where they live, and what part of the week the reservation is in.
This technology has been tested in Australia since October 2021 and has now been rolled out nationwide there. Although it hasn’t arrived in the UK yet, it’s the obvious next step for Airbnb.
Airbnb temporarily banned parties in August 2020, as part of its attempts to avoid further spreading the spread of covid-19. This ban became permanent in June 2022, after the change led to a 44% drop in party reports.
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