My neighbor is an Airbnb host, not me. I tried to contact Airbnb regarding issues and questions I had related to my neighbor’s hosting, and it’s impossible to contact them through their website without providing the host’s listing information. Seriously? There is no email listed on their website. So, my questions relate to Airbnb’s verification process and how they protect neighbors if a guest damages the neighbor’s property, attacks the neighbor, steals from the neighbor, etc; and so, I called Airbnb. They planned to refer it to their legal department, but they refused to do so unless I provided my neighbor’s information. Seriously? In what universe would I trust Airbnb with my privacy if they can’t even provide an email or phone number on their website in which to contact them? I can’t allow my neighbor to know I contacted Airbnb. So, I asked to speak to the customer service representative’s supervisor; until I through a complete and utter hissy fit and repeated over thirty times “I need to speak to your supervisor” did I get to speak to someone who could take down my information to get back to me. I wasted 32 minutes on the phone trying to get a few simple questions answered on top of trying to go through their website.
Tag Archives: airbnb legal issues
Airbnb Nightmare Ends in Police Arriving
I made the mistake of renting from someone who had never rented before. I should have known it was going to be crazy from the start with the slew of emails. From the moment we arrived we got emails threatening they were going to cancel the booking. I had violated the rules because I had booked for my son and husband despite the fact that the host was notified two weeks in advance that the booking for my son and his roommate. Upon arrival, he demanded the video cameras inside the listing be turned on or he would cancel the booking. He continued to call and email me to the point of harassment. He showed up at the listing four times in one day. After two days of continual harassment my son finally turned the cameras off at which point he showed up and told them to get out of his house. This is when I called the police. We had no idea how this unstable person would act, especially after he said he had loaded weapons in the house.
Airbnb is allowing illegal subletting!
Airbnb has some very serious due diligence problems. They obviously have grown too big, too fast and too greedy to properly vet Hosts who are illegally subletting, especially single family homes in R1 neighborhoods. Worse, airbandb seems only vaguely interested in correcting or taking down illegal listings, preferring to hide behind boilerplate excuses. The customer service reps are either total nincompoops or obviously trained to do as little as possible to fix problems. Calling 855 424 7262 is pointless, all you’ll get is a frustrating run-around. I am speaking from a very unpleasant experience where a tenant I am trying to evict for non payment listed with airbnb, even got their pro photos and a very exaggerated posting and is illegally sub-renting my property. At this writing it is reserved as a party house for New Years and airbandb has done nothing to help. Airbandb was a good idea now gone very wrong, more Hosts and Guests alike are going to be bitterly disappointed. But, the unaware property Owners are at greatest risk. Airbandb should check real estate title and contact Owners for permission and approval before accepting and posting renters who sublet. They don’t and this is bordering on criminal aiding and abetting. 855 424 7262 is useless BTW.