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I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

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Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#281

Post by apacheCamel »

munificent wrote: post #269
apacheCamel wrote: post #261

I am not sure why, but reading this article just made me feel pretty ill. How does someone (multiple someones?) have the moral ability to do these kinds of things? I seriously can't believe the whole stack, from AirBNB to the scammer, just let these kinds of things go. At the end, where the author states she will continue to use AirBNB because it is cheaper kind of rubs me the wrong way. For a company to allow such s…

There's a weird fundamental flaw in social groups which is this: 1. Trusting trustworthy people increases efficiency. The less checking and verification you have to do, the less redundant work there is and the more easily things go. 2. As the number of trustworthy people in a group increases, the value of choosing to trust a random person increases. The odds get greater that they will be trustworthy, letting you reap…

That makes sense but I guess the question is why? If things work and people are happy with a system, why do the opposite and ruin it? I know it isn't an easy question to answer and could really be anything, but sometimes I really just want to sit down with them and find out why. It is fascinating stuff, but it hurts to think about sometimes. Just because the value of becoming a scammer goes up, doesn't mean we should embrace it.

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#282

Post by chachachoney »

lb1lf wrote: post #142
gesman wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> The main downside for me concerning AirBnb is it takes a long time to analyze the listings to find quality accommodations. In my view this is major. To describe it better - need to read "between the lines" of misleading representations of properties. Lots of property owners goes to great extends to make property look way better, bigger, nicer than it really is and to conceal obvious negative points that become app…

> Try to get refund from AirBnb for misprepresentation or deliberate omissions of negative points. -I don’t know whether their policy differs from country to country, but after using AirBnb 30+ times traveling with wife and three kids in Northern/Central Europe, I’ve only had two issues - once the place we were to stay was double-booked (and we arrived last!); the other it turned out what was described as a ‘bedroom’…

It's amazing that a billion dollar digitally facilitated reservation system in 2019 allows for double bookings.

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#283

Post by afjl »

pentae wrote: post #213
tus88 wrote: post #166

> Airbnb advises the guest to request a cancellation if they’re “not okay with the switch.” This is beyond vile. The booking had already been cancelled by definition by the host, the refund should be automatic. They act like it's Hotel where you haven't booked a specific room. I'll never touch this POS company.

Yeah when i'm travelling the last thing I want is surprises with the place i'm staying, but people are so price sensitive they will put up with a lot. One common thing I see in this thread is people act like theres only two choices: Hotels or Airbnb. I've never had a booking on HomeAway that wasn't on par or exceeding expectations.

This is actually the first time I've heard of HomeAway, thanks. The only short term rental company I've ever used or heard of was Airbnb. I'll probably be shopping around the next time I travel.

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#285

Post by lb1lf »

bluGill wrote: post #173
lb1lf wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Try to get refund from AirBnb for misprepresentation or deliberate omissions of negative points. -I don’t know whether their policy differs from country to country, but after using AirBnb 30+ times traveling with wife and three kids in Northern/Central Europe, I’ve only had two issues - once the place we were to stay was double-booked (and we arrived last!); the other it turned out what was described as a ‘bedroom’…

I don't want a refund in either of those cases so much as a place to stay that matches my requirements NOW. (good customer service says the replacement will be better, hotels try to reserve their best suites until last just to ensure that they have the better room around just in case). I'm some new city and I want to get my family to sleep...

>I don't want a refund in either of those cases so much as a place to stay that matches my requirements NOW.

-Don’t get me wrong; I’d much rather have no fuss at all - but when a bad experience occurred, AirBnb were better than I had feared with regards to setting things right.

The double booking was after a ten-hour drive with kids aged 10, 5 and 3 in the back seat. I didn’t need that.

Luckily, the host had friends nearby who shacked us up for the night, so disaster was averted - but this was way out in the Swedish boonies and I envisaged having to drive another couple of hours before finding a hotel.

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#286

Post by komali2 »

tempsy wrote: post #228

I find it pretty crazy that AirBnB's tech never really evolved on the host or guest side at all. The experience is still basically like a pretty Craigslist with payment processing. I sometimes wonder what an engineer there even does other than maintain a CRUD app. For example, why isn't there an Alexa-like concierge device in every AirBnB that answers guest questions by now? Why aren't there smart locks on every home…

Nobody can get code pushed past their linting rules ;)

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#287

Post by r00fus »

iamaelephant wrote: post #227
saturdaysaint wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Funny, having young kids is what has sent me back to hotels (at least for the time being), simply because they are mostly designed with accessibility and some level of child-proofing. Also, the long corridors, lobbies and elevators in hotels are great outlets for toddlers to burn energy and curiosity. Cooping the kids up in a grown-up oriented space with fragile table decorations they can't touch can be exhausting.

> Also, the long corridors, lobbies and elevators in hotels are great outlets for toddlers to burn energy and curiosity. Please, PLEASE don't do this. You don't know what time people are trying to get some sleep in their rooms. Not everyone keeps your schedule.

Toddlers are usually fine - 14-17 year olds (or worse college+) shouting and running - yeah, that's infuriating.

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#288

Post by apacheCamel »

throwaway35784 wrote: post #271
apacheCamel wrote: post #261

I am not sure why, but reading this article just made me feel pretty ill. How does someone (multiple someones?) have the moral ability to do these kinds of things? I seriously can't believe the whole stack, from AirBNB to the scammer, just let these kinds of things go. At the end, where the author states she will continue to use AirBNB because it is cheaper kind of rubs me the wrong way. For a company to allow such s…

I am not shocked. Ate you shocked that fb profits from mayhem? No because we know the character of the founder. Airbnb also has no moral character thus it's users also know they can profit from morally corrupt practices. Just as you said, the whole stack is corrupt. There will be more of this to come. They profit by knowingly breaking the law. They are criminals. It is appalling that this can happen in a country buil…

I guess I can still be shocked because I still want and believe people can do the "good thing", whatever that good thing is. I can be pessimistic about a lot of things, but sometimes I just want things to be better. I don't know, I want to help fix things but I feel pretty helpless sometimes.

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#289

Post by Loughla »

duxup wrote: post #257
tempsy wrote: post #228

I find it pretty crazy that AirBnB's tech never really evolved on the host or guest side at all. The experience is still basically like a pretty Craigslist with payment processing. I sometimes wonder what an engineer there even does other than maintain a CRUD app. For example, why isn't there an Alexa-like concierge device in every AirBnB that answers guest questions by now? Why aren't there smart locks on every home…

I think it is because evolving further in those areas inevitably could expose AirBnB to information they are happy to be ignorant of / responsible for. A lot of tech companies, including AirBnB operate by passing risk / responsibility off onto everyone else (the host, the customer) and thus saving AirBnB a great deal of time / money.

>A lot of tech companies, including AirBnB operate by passing risk / responsibility off onto everyone else (the host, the customer) and thus saving AirBnB a great deal of time / money.

That's what I've never understood. When uber got big, their argument was "we're not a cab company, so we don't have to work under the same regulations". Yes you are. You use an app instead of a radio dispatch. That's the difference between you and a 1980's cab company.

The entire middle of the country is getting wise to "we're not x" just means "we certainly are x but we're avoiding the liability because technology" and they're getting sick of it.

Re: I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb

#290

Post by chachachoney »

jandrese wrote: post #212
mattrp wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would second this experience. We travel with our five kids and its sometimes impossible to find a hotel that can accommodate us. That said, I did experience a switcheroo in Chicago similar to the article. However that’s where the similarities end. The place was in the same neighborhood, it was comparable to the listing but the only catch was we were told not say Airbnb to anyone in the building but to say guests of…

I've definitely had that "If anybody asks you are guests of Tiffany" from the bearded guy doing the checkin. Apparently the building management was hostile to AirBNB, but the funny thing is that we saw the occupants of two other apartments on the same floor that were clearly people on vacation just like us. I had a strong suspicion that most of the building was bought up by foreign investors and turned into AirBNB re…

>> I mean yeah, it feels sketchy as hell

Usually does when you are participating in fraud.

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