Because our background checks are limited, we can’t guarantee that they’ll identify all past criminal convictions or sex offender registrations by a guest or Host. Therefore, you shouldn’t rely on them as a guarantee that the user has no criminal background or other red flags. Here’s why.
Learn what you can do to help improve your safety when interacting with Hosts and guests.
We don’t run background checks on every Airbnb user. If we have at least a first name, last name, and date of birth for a US-based user who creates a listing, or is associated with a booking, we may perform a background check on that user. We also may perform background checks on India-based Hosts.
These checks only work when people give us their full, correct legal names and dates of birth. Even if they provided all required information, we can’t guarantee it’s accurate or that it even really belongs to them.
While we have a process for periodically reviewing criminal records of active US users, their most recent review may have been months before you’re due to interact with them.
For users who live in the US, we don’t always check all state and county courthouse records, criminal registries, and public databases, such as but not limited to Moving Violation Reports and Driving Records. Due to variations in local laws and reporting systems, criminal record information that’s searched and reported in each type of check can vary by state and county.
Because of differences in foreign laws, language, and the way foreign records are maintained and reported, we may not run background checks on users located outside the United States, and even if we do, the scope and accuracy of coverage may vary.
The databases we check are not necessarily complete and may not include records of prior criminal conduct.
Also, as determined by applicable law, public records databases may be limited to records of conduct that took place a certain number of years prior to the date of the check, ex: The prior 7 years in certain US states.
People may find ways to circumvent even the most sophisticated database or search technology.