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
#2The part in here about the FAQ really burns, now more than ever. Language used regarding renter protection should be as forthright and above-board as that used in payment checkout. Just the facts.
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#3It's horrible but inevitable that something like this would happen.
I can imagine it'd be useful for a third party service that provides identity checks and insurance or escrow for AirBnb customers. Why play with fire (without hazard insurance)?
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#4The part in here about the FAQ really burns, now more than ever. Language used regarding renter protection should be as forthright and above-board as that used in payment checkout. Just the facts.
Will someone steal my grand piano?
Highly unlikely. Grand pianos weigh thousands of pounds and do not fit through doors.
That's just unacceptable. Regardless of whether this ever happened to EJ or not.
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#5Lets see if YC changes this title too...
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#6The part in here about the FAQ really burns, now more than ever. Language used regarding renter protection should be as forthright and above-board as that used in payment checkout. Just the facts.
Will someone steal my grand piano? Highly unlikely. Grand pianos weigh thousands of pounds and do not fit through doors. That's just unacceptable. Regardless of whether this ever happened to EJ or not.
I'm all about startups having a sense of humor and personality. I think that their mistake is not following their answer up with something like this:
"But seriously, you rent at your own risk. Make sure to lockup or move all valuables to a friends place. If there are any problems, contact us 24 hours a day at XXX-XXX-XXXX"
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#7How long before AirBnB offers some form of insurance, much as ebay started offering buyer protection.
Related: how long before your home owner / rental insurance specifically excludes AirBnb type activities?
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#8When 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).
Sure, I sort of get the appeal for the renter but I'm lost as to why a homeowner would want to do this - especially considering the risk/reward here. The upside is a few dollars here and there, the downside is $10k's of damage - like this.
If you've never owned a house, you won't know that it's a labor of love and something you invest more than just your money into. Why you would want to risk someone destroying it, I don't know.
AirBnB needs to offer insurance as part of the deal - just like the car sharing programs seem to have negotiated their own insurance for the duration that the other person is driving your car. Otherwise it just seems an unwise risk to offer accommodation on AirBnB.
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#9Earlier quoted context omitted.
Will someone steal my grand piano? Highly unlikely. Grand pianos weigh thousands of pounds and do not fit through doors. That's just unacceptable. Regardless of whether this ever happened to EJ or not.
I'm all about startups having a sense of humor and personality. I think that their mistake is not following their answer up with something like this: "But seriously, you rent at your own risk. Make sure to lockup or move all valuables to a friends place. If there are any problems, contact us 24 hours a day at XXX-XXX-XXXX"
I agree with you, its perfectly OK to set a tone and personality for the site – but that information to me is critically important to users of Airbnb and why to this day I haven't used Airbnb. It never seemed clear what would happen in this event and now we know. You are on the hook.
FYI In her blog post, EJ points out that Airbnb also lacks a 24 hour customer support phone number.
Re: The Moment Of Truth For Airbnb As User’s Home Is Utterly Trashed
#10Am I the only one that would have presumed that AirBnB would not be financially responsible? They're a forum for helping people find short term tenants. They can't possibly vet everyone who's going through the system.