Platform FAQs

Our software uses state-of-the-art technology, and our team continually investigates the functionality of our product so you can be sure of our screening results.

Our vacation rental guest screening is available globally.

If our vacation rental guest screening system flags a suspicious guest, our team will investigate further. If we do not verify a guest, we will notify you before the booking starts, so you can make an informed decision on whether to continue with that booking.

We only verify the lead guest as they are responsible for the booking.

Currently, these checks only support sex offender registry searches against guests that are US citizens.

Our sex offender screening tool can only be used in conjunction with either our Guest Screening Plus or ID Verification solution.

Vacation rental guest screening is a common practice in direct and indirect booking. Homeowners, hosts, and property managers proactively run legal and non-discriminatory checks on each guest to evaluate and mitigate the risks they may pose. Contact us and learn how to significantly reduce the time spent on manual checks and automate the vacation rental guest screening process with Guest Screening Plus software. You are most welcome to read a more in-depth explanation of What is guest screening in our article.

Vacation rental guest screening takes place at the beginning of the guest’s booking journey. First, the guest is invited to submit the required data including name, email, date of birth, country, and phone number. Then, our vacation rental Guest Screening Plus solution conducts checks on guest data in real-time against authoritative databases including our internal guest database, open data, and sex offender list (applicable in the US). As a result of the screening procedure, the host receives an evaluation of potential risks posed by the guest.

Airbnb runs checks of hosts and guests. According to the latest Airbnb article, the platform runs checks on hosts when guests book a stay or right after a host creates a listing but those rules apply to India and the US. Booking submits the guest’s or host’s name, last name, and date of birth to approved background check providers.

Vacation rental guest screening minimises the risk of hosting problematic guests, prevents illicit parties, helps avoid fraudulent bookings, and reduces the risk of credit card fraud. So what you get by running vacation rental guest screening is reduced potential property damage, less money spent on fixing broken furniture, and, ultimately peace of mind.

Direct vacation rental guest screening allows property managers, homeowners, and property management companies to protect their properties and ensure a smooth experience to their guests. The main reason is that it allows property managers identify bad guests or prevent fraudulent bookings.

You can do guest screening manually or run it through specialized vacation rental guest screening solutions like Truvi regardless of the number of properties you manage. Here are a couple of tips to use if you prefer to do manual vacation rental guest screening:

1. Review the profiles of your guests
2. Ask for guest IDs
3. Get curious about the purpose of visiting the city
4. Search your guests on social media platforms

If you’re considering streamlining your vacation rental guest screening experience, here are a couple of steps to follow:

1. Apply a vacation rental guest screening software
2. Ask guests to sign a short-term rental agreement
3. Check if your property is ensured
4. Require a damage waiver or damage deposit

Our software uses state-of-the-art technology, and our team continually investigates the functionality of our product so you can be sure of our screening results.

Our ID Verification solution is available globally.

If, for some reason, our system flags a guest, our customer experience team will investigate further. If we do not verify a guest, we will notify you before the booking starts, so you can make an informed decision on whether to continue with that booking.

We only ask the lead guest to supply us with their identity documents as they are the ones who are responsible for the booking.

Our Damage waiver is putting the money in your hands to choose where the money goes, whether it be updating wear and tear or cleaning the rug. Please note that theft and malicious damage are not covered by our damage waiver. If you have purchased our STR Protection add-on, which includes our Host Guarantee, this will protect you from these instances.

We take a small percentage of the fee to cover our administrative costs for damage waiver facilitation.

Yes, you do. The damage waiver works best when combined with our guest check software guest screening or ID verification.

Our damage waivers offer revenue-earning potential to property managers with 50+ properties. The additional revenue you make will depend on the waiver amount you set, the number of bookings you take, and whether or not accidental damage occurs.

No. It is no longer a requirement for you to have an underlying home insurance policy in place to use our Protection Services. Please note that Truvi is not an insurance provider. It is still encouraged that you have a homeowner/landlord insurance policy in place as a professional standard when operating a short-term rental.

Yes. Guests are responsible for the costs associated with any damages that they might cause during a booking, and a big part of our role is to ensure they honor this responsibility.

No. Our Host Guarantee only covers a booking if the guest has been verified by either our Intelligent Guest Screening or ID Verification service and therefore can not be used without it.

Yes. Truvi operates globally with minimal restrictions. Any Property is eligible for this guarantee unless it is located in a country that the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office has determined is not suitable for travel on the day the Booking begins.

• Cosmetic damage
• Pet damage (excluding service animals)
• General wear and tear
• Management fees
• Maintenance expenses
• Damage from a party that took place with the host’s consent
• Unpaid booking
• Acts of nature
• Damage not caused by a guest during a booking
• Bodily injury or loss suffered by the host or guest
• Alternative accommodation cost
• Interruption of business or a loss of income

Yes, we reimburse the delivery and the repair or replacement costs.

It depends on the host’s Terms and Conditions and the location of the listing. In some places, the wind can do great damage to the house.

In case of fire damage caused by guest negligence, we’d expect a fire report and further incident investigation.

Police report and that’s it + before and after listing + proof of purchase.

Truvi damage protection covers unintentional guest damage in vacation rentals and small damages in STR. Most home insurance companies don’t cover short-term stays. Unlike an insurance company, we minimize the chances of letting the bad guest with Truvi’s screening and take over when the host reports damage.

If we make a cash settlement for lost or damaged items, we may make a deduction for wear and tear.

After we settle the amount we pay out for the damage, the payment is made within 3-5 working days of receiving bank details.

Only guests approved by Truvi are covered by the damage protection Guarantee.

You don’t have to address Airbnb or your insurance first. But if you already have, inform us so we can take any settlement from when we review the incident.

You can report the incident within 10 days of the end of the booking unless deposit return dates have been shortened as per at host’s request.

The images taken before and after the stay with timestamps are the easiest way to prove that the damage has been done by the guest. You can take them by yourself or by third-party service providers like cleaning service companies.

Submitting clear and comprehensive evidence plays a crucial role in verifying the nature and extent of the damage. Photos showcasing the damage, repair estimates from qualified professionals, and communication records with the guest (where possible) all contribute to a swifter resolution.

As a rule, we cover the incidents as long as you report a damage incident within 10 days after the end of booking. We may also cover the damage if a host can provide proof that the damage happened during the stay.

To maximize protection and enhance the likelihood of recovering damage costs, we strongly recommend capturing images upon arrival and replicating the same shots during checkout.

This should include both wide-view shots and close-ups of specific furnishings. While not always feasible, implementing this practice whenever possible provides an added layer of protection for property owners. These images can be conveniently taken during the cleaning process before and after each booking.

Owning it? Not a problem: To help process your claim, we usually ask for the original purchase receipt as proof of ownership. But if you don’t have it, no worries! We can use photos, bank statements, or even links to similar items online to verify.

Each incident is unique but we always try and fix things that can be fixed and replace items that can’t be fixed. As a rule, we try and repair a damaged part of the floor instead of replacing it entirely.

No, we don’t cover wear and tear.

You don’t have to have insurance to use Truvi but we advise hosts to get their homes covered outside of the short-term rentals and for maintenance issues.

1. iPhone

• Take a photo
• Go to your gallery
• Select the relevant image
• Press the ℹ️ at the bottom of the screen

2.Android

• Take a photo
• Go to your gallery
• Select the relevant image
• Press the ℹ️ at the bottom of the screen. The timestamp will be revealed.
• Send a screenshot of the image with the timestamp included.

Yes. With Truvi’s API integration, property managers and hosts are allowed to use our solution on Airbnb’s platform through Airbnb’s offline fees feature, as stated in their own guidelines.

Communication is key. Being as clear and concise with your guests prior to booking will avoid any pushback and improve the guest experience. That’s why we provide you with specific wording you can add to your listings on any booking platform and your automated emails to guests.

Fill in our business form and select a time for a demo with one of our experts to get started with Truvi.

You can check out our complete marketplace for more details on our property management software integrations. If you are unsure whether your PMS is an integrated partner, simply ask us during your demo.

We currently have our guest journey in German, English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.

If you have clearly provided the correct wording on your listings before the guest booking one of your properties, and they refuse to complete the verification or deposit/waiver, we suggest you think twice about hosting them in your property as our solutions are designed to help you avoid bad guests. Ultimately, accepting the booking is your decision.

We currently accept payments in: GBP, USD, EUR, ZAR, AUD, and CAD.

Yes. However, please note that a level of our guest screening is compulsory for our Damage Protection Services.

Truvi provides a dedicated account manager to any client who uses our service with 20 or more properties.

Log in to your Truvi account, go to the ‘resolutions’ tab on the left-hand menu, and submit your incident. This information will go directly to our dedicated, in-house resolutions team.

Damage Waiver – Guests will pay a non-refundable fee (much lower than a deposit payment) to waive their liability of accidental damage up to a set amount. It is designed to help build an additional pot of money, which can be used to cover small damages.

Damage Deposit – Guests will pay a refundable amount of money (usually higher than a damage waiver fee) to cover any damage caused during their stay. This is provisionally held until after checkout. If no damage has occurred, the money will be refunded to the guest.

Yes, and we encourage you do this to make sure you have the right risk management solution in place for all your bookings – especially your direct bookings.

Coming soon. We are currently implementing this feature within our dashboard, allowing you to block bookings form specific channels (Airbnb, for instance) and verify all the rest.

Truvi offers a unique ‘One Step Link’ integration, where we provide you with a verification link you can add to your automated booking emails to guests. We also have an open API for direct integration.

Yes! Guests are less likely to provide details if they knowingly planning a party without your consent. If a party occurs, Truvi will help provide you with all the necessary information to help settle an incident.

No. If a guest is already verified, they do not need to verify with Truvi again unless they have been flagged due to damage after their previous checkout.

You can customise the amount you wish to charge for a damage waiver or deposit for each property you have with us. Your dedicated account manager can set this up for you.

If guests decide to pay the deposit, we will hold the deposit for 14 days. However, this can be changed and reduced at your request to 10, 7 or 5 days.