Guest Reliability Standards

Community policy

In addition to behaving in accordance with our Community Standards and Health and Safety Requirements, which apply to all community members, guests who stay in listings on Africabooking must meet the following guest standards:

• Respect surrounding communities
• Respect listings
• Respect hosts’ rules

Our goal is to ensure that these standards are clear, and that our enforcement is proportionate to the severity and persistence of the violation.

Africabooking’s guest standards for stays

Respect the listing

Regardless of a host’s house rules, we expect that all guests abide by the following standards at all of their Africabooking reservations:

1. Check-in time: Guests should respect their host’s check-in window. Any check-in before or after the designated window should be approved by the host.
2. Guest authorization: Guests should respect the approved number of guests—both for overnight stays and for other visits to the listings -- and should inquire with their host if they're unsure about the rules for visitors.
3. Pet authorization: Except for assistance animals, guests should not bring any pets inside a listing that was designated as “no pets” in the house rules, bring more pets than are authorized into a space, or fail to disclose any pets brought along to the host.
4. No smoking: Guests should not smoke inside a listing unless they are otherwise authorized to by the host. This includes the use of tobacco, cannabis, e-cigarettes, etc.
5. Security device interference: Guests should not tamper with or remove an approved and appropriately disclosed security or monitoring device from the listing property.
6. Cleanliness: Guests should not leave the listing in a state that requires excessive or deep cleaning (ex: with soiled carpet, moldy dishes, excessive trash, etc.). Cleaning fees are only meant to cover the cost of standard cleaning between reservations (ex: laundry, vacuuming, etc.).
7. Checkout time: Guests should complete checkout by the designated checkout time indicated on the Africabooking reservation, and should not leave belongings at the listing past the designated checkout time for storage or later pickup without authorization from the host.
8. Key return: Guests should return any keys to the Africabooking listing by the official checkout time.

Respect the surrounding community

Guests represent the Africabooking community in all of their interactions both within listings and in those listings’ neighborhoods. Guests should be mindful of the standards that, when violated, have a substantial impact on a hosts’ experience on Africabooking, their surrounding communities and hosts’ abilities to maintain positive reputations with their neighbors:

1. Noise: Guests should respect all designated quiet hours, and keep disruptive noise to a minimum (ex: loud music, shouting, constant stomping, slamming doors, etc.).
2. Parking designations: Guests should be mindful of designated parking locations and hours, and the number of cars that a host allows at their listing.
3. Litter: Guests should put their trash and debris in designated trash receptacles and be mindful of excessive amounts of trash that exceed the neighborhood norm.

Respect your host’s rules

Each listing is unique. Often, guests are staying in someone’s home, and they should respect each place to stay accordingly. Hosts may have house rules that serve specific purposes such as recycling instructions, removing shoes inside, designated pool hours, etc.

• House rules: We expect guests to respect the house rules that comply with Africabooking’s Terms of Service and company policies and inquire with the host if they have questions before booking a reservation.

Reporting a violation

Africabooking accepts reports directly from hosts that contact us, as well as from neighbors.

If you are a host who is dealing with a suspected or actual violation of these guest standards, we ask that you:

• Communicate with your guest—this is often the quickest path to resolution.
• Document the issue through Africabooking message thread correspondence, an emailed complaint from a neighbor, photos, etc.
• Report any issues directly by contacting us or request payment for any damages through the Resolution Center.
• Leave an honest review with feedback so that the guest can improve for future hosts.

Holding guests to these standards

Africabooking encourages hosts to promptly report violations of these standards. A reported violation of any of these standards is considered alongside past violations, which informs the enforcement decisions made by Africabooking. Reports are reviewed on both the severity and frequency of violations.

If it’s determined that a guest has violated these standards, we’ll provide information about the policy and warnings. Guests who frequently or severely violate these standards may be suspended or removed.

Tips for hosts

We encourage hosts to clearly outline expectations for guests in their listing descriptions, through Africabooking message threads. It’s particularly important to specify rules around parking, pets, and smoking so we know what should be considered unauthorized under the policy.

In setting house rules, hosts should be mindful of neighbors and think of rules that will minimize disturbance to them. Limiting the number of guests, establishing quiet hours, and designating parking spots are all ways to help prevent nuisance reports from neighbors. Africabooking will only assist in enforcing house rules that comply with Africabooking’s Terms of Service and company policies.