Airbnb has blocked around 20,000 bookings since its 2020 party ban

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In the midst of the pandemic last year, Airbnb enacted a new rule that would halt bookings that were suspected to be “party houses.”

Since that rule was put into place in the summer of last year, the company has halted around 20,000 “suspicious bookings” to help combat Covid-19.

This new rule from Airbnb is an attempt to stop large gatherings from happening on their watch during the COVID-19 pandemic. What this specific rule is intended to accomplish is to stop rentals that happen solely for the purpose of throwing large parties.

READ MORE: Airbnb is permanently banning house parties

In an interview with The Denver Post, Ben Breit, head of trust and safety communication with Airbnb had this to say about the rule:

“What we care most about is trying to stop any kind of disruptive gathering. The open invite gatherings are a big priority for us, the ones where the host of the party doesn’t know everyone who is showing up.”

READ MORE: Airbnb listings outnumber rental apartments in New York City

So what exactly does this particular rule say? Well, as Breit also told The Denver Post, this rule targets younger adults who are looking to book a house close to their home location. “If you are under the age of 25 and you don’t have a history of positive reviews, we will not allow you to book an entire home listing local to where you live,” says Breit.

Whether or not the rule is effective in combatting the COVID-19 pandemic is still up for debate. What’s not up for debate is the effectiveness of the procedures for stopping these bookings.

Of the near 20,000 blocked bookings from this rule, 5,000 were blocked in Phoenix, 4,500 each in Las Vegas and Seattle, 2,600 each in Portland and Denver, 1,800 in Salt Lake City, and 1,500 in Albuquerque.

It is not known how many bookings have been blocked in other cities, but you have to think that Airbnb has been vigilant in this movement.

UPDATE 8/17/2022 11:30 AM ET: The company announced that it will screen future US and Canadian bookings with predictive analytics tools, allowing them to stop unauthorized house parties before they occur. 

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