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How airbnb lost me as a customer

news.ycombinator.com

31–40 of 70 posts

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#31

> and a copy of a utility bill What a dumbass requirement. As if somebody with access to a printer would not be able to produce one.

I have seen people photoshop utility bills, proof of insurance, etc. Requirements like this are hilarious.

except that if you are caught, it is a federal offense at least in the US to forge things such as utility bills etc. It is more of a deterrent than anything else against outright fraud.

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#32

> and a copy of a utility bill What a dumbass requirement. As if somebody with access to a printer would not be able to produce one.

I have seen people photoshop utility bills, proof of insurance, etc. Requirements like this are hilarious.

The probably don't really care. It's just some CYA forced on them by their insurance company.

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#33

> and a copy of a utility bill What a dumbass requirement. As if somebody with access to a printer would not be able to produce one.

I have never understood this either. These procedures must be a relic from a time when most people did not have access to laser printers.

Similarly when I went to renew my drivers license, they required proof of my social security number. My old license (with a picture of me, holograms, etc.) wasn't acceptable, but a health insurance card that could have been printed by anyone with access to a laminating machine was perfectly fine.

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#35
post #13

(1) You refer to your "apartment", which by convention refers to a domicile that you are leasing. While other HN readers will contest this point, I'd be willing to put money on the fact that you violated your lease by renting out your apartment on Airbnb at all. (2) HN is not a forum for complaints about YC companies, and while I didn't flag this post, you shouldn't overreact if it is killed. Nobody is trying to cens…

Your comments always make me smile Thomas, you seem like the real life embodiment of the "Lawful Neutral" alignment, always following the letter of each rule. My lease allows subletting, but there may be a provision which I'm not following, I can double check. If this post gets killed, that's fine. I was hesitant to write it, but I thought it might be valuable to share. There's a fine line between useful critique or…

>Your comments always make me smile Thomas, you seem like the real life embodiment of the "Lawful Neutral" alignment

I've been trying to think of a good label for him for a long time, and I think that hits it on the nose.

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#36
post #10

It's amazing what some companies ask you to send via email. The inherent trust people put in email systems is honestly scary. envex seems not worried if someone has their eye color or height. I can promise you every bit of information someone can obtain on you IS useful. Dear AirBnB, Sending utility bills and drivers licenses over email is NOT appropriate!!! This makes me want to pentest AirBnB and find their vulnera…

Is it just me, or does that sound like a thinly veiled threat?

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#37
post #13

(1) You refer to your "apartment", which by convention refers to a domicile that you are leasing. While other HN readers will contest this point, I'd be willing to put money on the fact that you violated your lease by renting out your apartment on Airbnb at all. (2) HN is not a forum for complaints about YC companies, and while I didn't flag this post, you shouldn't overreact if it is killed. Nobody is trying to cens…

Your comments always make me smile Thomas, you seem like the real life embodiment of the "Lawful Neutral" alignment, always following the letter of each rule. My lease allows subletting, but there may be a provision which I'm not following, I can double check. If this post gets killed, that's fine. I was hesitant to write it, but I thought it might be valuable to share. There's a fine line between useful critique or…

You might want to check the zoning laws for your area too, that's another potential legal problem for this kind of thing.

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#38
This would be why the ycombinator startup churner is bad. It is entirely focused on having people with no technical skills create companies that rely very heavily on a solid technical foundation. My 8 year old knows not to send sensitive information over unencrypted channels, and that email is completely insecure. Why are people who don't know this making sites like airbnb?

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#39
post #13

(1) You refer to your "apartment", which by convention refers to a domicile that you are leasing. While other HN readers will contest this point, I'd be willing to put money on the fact that you violated your lease by renting out your apartment on Airbnb at all. (2) HN is not a forum for complaints about YC companies, and while I didn't flag this post, you shouldn't overreact if it is killed. Nobody is trying to cens…

> (2) HN is not a forum for complaints about YC companies

The user in question looks like he/she has been here for a while, so isn't just someone signing in to bitch about a company. People also regularly use HN to complain about Google, since they are generally not that great at customer service, so it's hardly a precedent.

Ultimately, you are correct that it's not the purpose of this site, but as long as it's an occasional thing, done with respect and tact, and aims to improve the service, I don't think it's such a bad thing. I'm not sure this post is the best example of all those qualities, but AirBnB is also big enough to handle it, too, no? It's not like he's picking on someone just starting out.

Re: How airbnb lost me as a customer

#40
post #10

It's amazing what some companies ask you to send via email. The inherent trust people put in email systems is honestly scary. envex seems not worried if someone has their eye color or height. I can promise you every bit of information someone can obtain on you IS useful. Dear AirBnB, Sending utility bills and drivers licenses over email is NOT appropriate!!! This makes me want to pentest AirBnB and find their vulnera…

> It's amazing what some companies ask you to send via email.

My state allows people to cast ballots via email.

During the hearing, some retired National Guard General testified that "security has gotten really good". I assume he's on the payroll of the vendor, but I didn't bother to check (this time).

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