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Airbnb and security camera disclosure

jeffreybigham.com

51–60 of 406 posts

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The legal temperature limit for what? For paid accommodation, for hotels? What is that limit; what law is it in?

It's Germany, livable space has to be at least 20 degrees Celsius(68F). He has summer blankets in the room with spare blankets and tries to charge 1.5 Euro per extra blanket.

Is that limit applicable domestically - like would children be able to enforce it against a carer/parent. Or does it only apply to commercial arrangements?

Do you get to demand 20degC at work?

20degC is a bit hot for my liking, 18 degC as a minimum, perhaps - one should expect to wear a jumper in Winter.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#52
post #15
post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

An alternative here would be a meet in the middle type system where venues could opt into a private regulatory body that entailed obeying a system of rules and regulations, and accepting adjudications of the body in case of conflicts. In return, entities could advertise membership as a selling point, and the regulatory body itself could provide lists of participating entities to anybody who'd like to find, for instan…

What you describe already exists with things like franchises, trade groups, and consumer organizations. For example, if I told you that I stayed in a Hilton last night, with no further information, you probably have a good idea of what the place was like and what kind of rules it had, despite having no idea where it is or who owns it. If I tell you that I stayed at a AAA approved hotel, you’ll know it met certain standards.

What you say also describes governments pretty well. They just tend to base membership on physical location. For your example of sink depth, if a business doesn’t like California’s rules, they can resign their membership and join a different government by moving there.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#53

There are two reasons I’ve decided to not use Airbnb again - specially when I’m overseas. 1) fear of getting locked out of Airbnb. I stayed in an Airbnb in Dublin in late 2017, place was OK, not too great -cheap ikea bed, cheap ikea couch, heater that was either tundra or Sahara. However getting in to this place required memorizing 8 digit number or having your phone on you. After that stay I genuinely appreciated 24…

I was nervous the first time I stayed at an Airbnb and needed to remember a gate code and apartment code (in addition to the complex set of turns required to get to the apartment once you were in the gate), but eventually I realized that I’ve never not got my phone on me and in the absolute worst case I can blow the money on a hotel room for a night until I can get things sorted back out.

Of course in the scenario where you get mugged in a strange city none of that applies and I honestly have no idea what I would do... show up at the embassy and cry on the door until they opened on Monday, probably.

As for a safe for your passport, I guess it depends upon country. In many you’re required to always have valid ID and proof of visa (ie: the stamp in your passport) at all times. Usually those are also the more likely countries for being robbed, so there’s a bit of a catch 22 there.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's Germany, livable space has to be at least 20 degrees Celsius(68F). He has summer blankets in the room with spare blankets and tries to charge 1.5 Euro per extra blanket.

Is that limit applicable domestically - like would children be able to enforce it against a carer/parent. Or does it only apply to commercial arrangements? Do you get to demand 20degC at work? 20degC is a bit hot for my liking, 18 degC as a minimum, perhaps - one should expect to wear a jumper in Winter.

> Do you get to demand 20degC at work?

Yes, if it's office work or other work without physical activity. Limits are lower for more active work. (and of course special rules exist for environments where working in cooler/cooled rooms is required)

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#55
Never had a similar experience with Airbnb. But I switched back to Hotels and I found it way more comfortable and easier. Just good reviews and reasonable prices. Hotels are in good competition these days and you don't hear these scary stories about them.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#56
post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

I can only echo that! We did an around-the-world trip for an entire year from 2017 to 2018 and did not use AirBnb a single time. We looked up AirBnb places maybe a handful of times only to find out that the quality and location of AirBnb homes was worse for often a more expensive price than a good hotel. We ended up booking everything via booking.com and hostelworld.com.

Hotels were often cheaper, in better locations, had a better service (longer reception hours, etc.), often breakfast included, room service, other guests which we could connect with and most importantly, no creepy cameras!

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#57
post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

> It's funny to me, because AirBnB runs in to all the same problems we had with hotels a hundred years ago. We have dozens of taxes, rules, regulations, building codes etc now for hotels. I imagine at some point it will be the same for AirBnBs. What's old is new. An industry can only be disruptive for so long. Eventually, it will either fail, or be successful and become the new status quo.

> Eventually, it will either fail, or be successful and become the new status quo.

The book "Animal Farm" is so prescient, it's scary. I know it was written about governments but it applies to a lot of different organizations and industries:

"The creatures outside looked from to , and from to , and from to again; but already it was impossible to say which was which."

Just swap out and with:

Uber/taxis

online streaming/cable

AirBnb/hotels

Not saying all of these will come to pass, but generally as the disruptive are encumbered with ever increasing regulation over time they eventually become again

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#58
post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

Hotels are cheaper and more convnient for shorter stays anyway. Also the checkin process and key pickup is abominal sometimes

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The legal temperature limit for what? For paid accommodation, for hotels? What is that limit; what law is it in?

It's Germany, livable space has to be at least 20 degrees Celsius(68F). He has summer blankets in the room with spare blankets and tries to charge 1.5 Euro per extra blanket.

Are you refering to the obligations of long-term rental landlords? I don't see that having much legal relevance to short-term rent like Airbnb.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#60
post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

This: "I've also noticed the quality of the places I've found on AirBnB has gone down."

Is the direct result of people listening to your own own advice: "Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it!"

I rented my home a handful of times when I knew I would be out of town on the weekend. The first renters were great, the next 2 caused a combined $1,200 in damage that Airbnb refused to cover. Refunding me the cost of dry cleaning my comforter that was left with blood stains(!) instead of the cost to replace it was bullshit but that was all they'd offer. There was also no real recourse for one of the guests having at least a dozen people over for a midnight afterparty. I was still finding cigarette butts and trash out of my backyard landscaping for months after that final rental. There's just not enough money in Airbnb rentals for people who only have their own property to rent and don't desparately need that extra income, this the noticeable decline in quality. You're not the only person I've heard say that Airbnbs are becoming more like cheap motels than nice hotels.

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