On Saturday, May 4th, two women with suitcases knocked at my door, saying they were Airbnb guests. I have never been a host on Airbnb. I never would. I said they must be confused about which apartment they rented. They pulled out their phone and showed me photos of my building, of the inside of the apartments here, and a photo of my front door. I told them I’m so sorry but I do not rent this apartment and sent them on their way.
Alarmed, I called Airbnb immediately. I was told this was an urgent matter and I would hear back as soon as possible. On Monday, still having heard nothing, I called again. I was told that I would hear back within 48 hours, that the case manager assigned to my case is only available via email. I asked if the post of my apartment had been taken down. He said he couldn’t tell me.
It’s now Wednesday. I called again. I just spent 34 minutes on the phone. I was now told that the case was originally sent to the safety division, when it should have gone to legal, but now it’s in legal and they should be emailing me. There was no one for me to talk to. Is the post of my apartment still up?
As of now, I do not know if the post has been taken down. The fact that there’s no number for me to call or I can’t be transferred to someone to discuss this matter is beyond alarming to me. How do they verify the legitimacy of a host? I have no idea but something here clearly slipped through the cracks. I am shocked that a company who invites strangers into other strangers homes seems unfazed when a stranger shows up at an uninvited doorstep.