Airbnb has blocked nearly 80,000 UK reservation attempts following the introduction of restrictions that prevent under 25-year-olds from making entire home bookings in their local neighbourhoods if they have fewer than three positive reviews. 

Introduced in August 2020, the automated measure is aimed at preventing potentially antisocial behaviour in local communities while still allowing younger guests to book outside of their local area.

Airbnb has already banned all unauthorised parties and events in listings globally and has temporarily disabled the platform’s ‘event-friendly’ search filter. In response to Covid-19, Airbnb also strengthened its policies to ban gatherings that violate public health policies. 

The short lets platform adds that it is offering its hosts discounts for noise detection devices which flag if decibel levels reach a certain level — this “helps with preventing parties and getting ahead of issues, while respecting privacy as the devices do not record or transmit anything other than decibel levels” according to a statement. 

Airbnb says it is also in the process of increasing its “global frontline Community Support staff” worldwide by over 50 per cent, and updating its online services to make House Rules more prominent. “This information is also included on the booking confirmation page and in the confirmation email guests receive to remind them of their host’s expectations before they arrive” says the platform. 

Patrick Robinson, director of public policy at Airbnb in the UK, says: “Families across the country will be looking forward to enjoying the summer safely as we welcome the return of travel. While the overwhelming majority of guests are responsible neighbours, we are  committed to tackling potential issues of antisocial behaviour on the Airbnb platform. Today’s measures mark another step towards ensuring that stays are mindful and considerate of the communities that Hosts call home.”