It’s Like They Don’t Even Want to Help

I wanted to book a room, but I was uncomfortable with verifying my ID (like, who the hell puts their SSN, even just the last four digits, or a picture of their license online?). The host I was trying to book with was wonderful- she tried everything she could to help me. After we talked for a bit (and she knew I was a real person) she tried to remove the requirement for verified ID. However, no matter what she or I did, I was still constantly asked to verify by giving either the last 4 digits of my SSN or a picture of my ID. When I tried to contact Airbnb about this issue, I found it impossible to do so (I couldn’t find their phone number OR email, and I could not click on the little fill-in box in the Help section. In the end, after three days, two calls to my credit card company (because I had tried to book and cancelled so many times due to the ID verification) and a lot of frustration, I eventually gave up and found another place to stay. Throughout it all, my host was amazingly helpful and very kind, but Airbnb was impossible for either of us to work with. I was frustrated with the ID Verification process, and she was frustrated that, even though she directly contacted them and asked them to remove the ID Verification requirement from her profile (after trying and being unable to remove it on her own) it was still there. Long story short, Airbnb is a nightmare and, though I really did wish to do business with my host, as she was lovely, I will not be using their services again in the future.

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