New Year’s is here and all of us are trying to get our party scenes sorted to bring in 2025 with a bang. But if you’re trying to plan an Airbnb party, then you would want to read this carefully. Airbnb is rolling out enhanced anti-party measures this New Year’s Eve to curb unauthorised and disruptive gatherings in rented properties.
To do this, Airbnb will use advanced machine learning technology. With this, the renting platform will try to identify and block high-risk bookings for entire home listings. The whole idea behind this is to ensure safer celebrations for hosts, guests, and neighborhoods.
The analysis will include an evaluation of several factors, including trip length, listing type, proximity to the guest’s location, and booking timing. If Airbnb finds your booking to be “high-risk”, then the booking will either be blocked or redirected to alternative accommodations. Further, before making a booking, guests will have to agree that they understand Airbnb’s strict no-party policy and that violations will lead to potential account suspension or removal.
In addition to this, Airbnb is also offering some more safety features that include free noise sensors for hosts via Minut, a Neighborhood Support Line for reporting urgent issues, and a 24-hour safety hotline. With this, hosts and guests will be able to reach out to Airbnb support in case of an emergency.
Airbnb initiated such restrictions in 2020. Ever since then, it has reported a 60% reduction in party-related incidents during New Year’s Eve in affected regions. Last year, nearly 74,000 high-risk bookings were blocked globally, including 33,000 in the US, 5,700 in Canada, and 16,000 in France. We will soon know how effective this measure was this year too.