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The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

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Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#41

Post by rokekr »

danilocampos wrote: post #20

"I spoke to Airbnb about EJ’s situation. They won’t reimburse her for damages, they say, and they do not insure against losses. They are helping police track down the person who did this, but their help ends there." ... Fuck. That. I don't care what the long-term implications are, I don't care about precedent, I don't care about policy, I don't care about cost . If my business does this to someone I make it right . E…

>This is "the guest you sent me destroyed my home and sense of safety."

Not to mention the theft of personal documents and potential theft of identity. The (very real) potential of being bushwhacked by additional fraud years down the line due to this incident is pretty horrifying.

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#42

Post by earino »

arepb wrote: post #35
vladd wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Insurance probably requires a hotel reception-like presence (person on site, cam surveillance, security coverage, signed contracts, in-person ID validation and a way to prove who did what in case something bad happens). I can't imagine any insurance company signing up for insuring "rented your home while being away" guests at rates that would be considered affordable for the rental model, nor a lot of AirBnB audience…

If an insurance company won't write a policy for it, you probably shouldn't be doing it.

I can't wait to use this line.

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#43

Post by ditojim »

vladd wrote: post #32
dotBen wrote: post #8

When someone first told me about AirBnB I immediately dismissed it - just like Fred Wilson did. It fell in the group of ideas which I just find puzzling because the concept is totally alien to something I would want to do/buy/participate in. I don't get why anyone would want to rent out their couch or spare room to a transient stranger - even 'vetted' within a community (and we can see that vetted is very lose here)…

Insurance probably requires a hotel reception-like presence (person on site, cam surveillance, security coverage, signed contracts, in-person ID validation and a way to prove who did what in case something bad happens). I can't imagine any insurance company signing up for insuring "rented your home while being away" guests at rates that would be considered affordable for the rental model, nor a lot of AirBnB audience…

this sound like an opportunity for an insurance company to me. i'm sure they can come up with a rate..

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#44

Post by msluyter »

shakes wrote: post #33
tc wrote: post #21

> I spoke to Airbnb about EJ’s situation. They won’t reimburse her for damages This is bad news. They're going to backtrack on this. The sooner they do it, the better for them politically. I understand the problems of setting a precedent. And there really is no getting around the fact that the hosts do have the final responsibility for screening travelers (and travelers for screening hosts). But rightly or wrongly, t…

I wonder who advised them against reimbursing her... their lawyers? It seems like a no-brainer. I've been fascinated with AirBnB. I'm taking a week-long vacation in August and have been considering listing my NYC apartment to help offset some vacation costs. Their response in this situation totally turned me off from the idea. I'm sure I'm not the only one.

I will ask my lawyer girlfriend this question (IANAL), but based on previous conversations I've had with her, my bet would be that any reimbursement could be construed as an admission of guilt/liability, and could be used as evidence in a civil trial. (Consider the extra costs of a trial alone, plus the possibility of punitive damages for pain & suffering and whatnot if they lose.)

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#45

Post by [deleted] »

tc wrote: post #21

> I spoke to Airbnb about EJ’s situation. They won’t reimburse her for damages This is bad news. They're going to backtrack on this. The sooner they do it, the better for them politically. I understand the problems of setting a precedent. And there really is no getting around the fact that the hosts do have the final responsibility for screening travelers (and travelers for screening hosts). But rightly or wrongly, t…

[deleted]

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#46

Post by breck »

tc wrote: post #21

> I spoke to Airbnb about EJ’s situation. They won’t reimburse her for damages This is bad news. They're going to backtrack on this. The sooner they do it, the better for them politically. I understand the problems of setting a precedent. And there really is no getting around the fact that the hosts do have the final responsibility for screening travelers (and travelers for screening hosts). But rightly or wrongly, t…

At the least, I hope someone starts a fund for this girl. I'd contribute. This is a terrible story.

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#47

Post by oldstrangers »

danilocampos wrote: post #20

"I spoke to Airbnb about EJ’s situation. They won’t reimburse her for damages, they say, and they do not insure against losses. They are helping police track down the person who did this, but their help ends there." ... Fuck. That. I don't care what the long-term implications are, I don't care about precedent, I don't care about policy, I don't care about cost . If my business does this to someone I make it right . E…

"This is a test of human decency. I hope they don't fail it."

Technically, they've already failed it. Now they just have to admit that they failed, and actually fix the problem (financially). If this was my company, a "worst case scenario" money chest and an itemized plan-of-action would've been the first thing I created. Investors are protected (in a number of ways) from the financial risk of investing in Airbnb (or any company); the clients should have a similar expectation of security, considering that they're creating the value for investors.

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#48

Post by [deleted] »

tjr wrote: post #31
mcphilip wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For future reference, title is currently: "The Moment Of Truth For AirBnB As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed " Previous submission's title changed from: "AirBnB: Crimes committed against a host" to "Violated: A traveler’s lost faith, a difficult lesson learned"

It may be significant that the changed title on the other article is actually the title of the article; the older title is not. (Unless someone persuaded the author to change the title on their own site as well as changing here...)

[deleted]

Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed

#49

Post by kwis »

The only blessing in this story is that the miscreants made their damage so plainly obvious that the problems were identified quite quickly.

If they'd been a bit more subtle and a little patient, they could've engaged in massive identity theft and financial fraud without ever making it clear that AirBNB was the attack vector.

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