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People Share 30 Horror Stories After Woman Shares How Her House Was Listed As An Airbnb By A Stranger
Whenever there's money on the internet, there are people who want to steal it. And sadly, Shireen Heidari, MD, has just experienced it firsthand.
One day, the doctor at the Stanford Department of Medicine in California saw her home listed as a rental on Airbnb by some random person. Without her knowledge.
Image credits: ShireenNHeidari
When Heidari contacted the scammer, they even had the nerve to ask if she wanted to rent out the place she owns and lives in. But reporting the issue didn't help at first either — Airbnb proved that its customer service isn't up to par.
Looking for moral support, Heidari described the whole ordeal on Twitter, and apparently, stuff like this happens all the time as many people replied with similar stories of their own.
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When VICE asked its readers to describe their own experiences using Airbnb, it got nearly 1,000 emails with plenty of tales of deception.
Turns out, scammers all over the world have figured out how beat the game on the platform: by engaging in bait and switches; charging guests for fake damages; persuading people to pay outside the Airbnb app; and, when all else fails, engaging in clumsy or threatening demands for five-star reviews to hide the evidence of what they've done. (Or, in some cases, a combination of several of these schemes.)
Yeah nah. If you're only renting to friends and family you can do what you like, but if you're advertising to the public and renting to the public you have to abide by the relevant laws including anti-discrimination ones.
I stay at Airbnb's often, and one thing I always do is message the owner in advance. If no response or one that feels off, I look elsewhere.
The emails VICE received suggest that the people who run Airbnb are fundamentally unable to track what goes on within it, and point to easily exploitable loopholes that scammers have steamed their way through by the truckload.
"We have to take more responsibility for stuff on our platform," Brian Chesky, Airbnb’s CEO and co-founder, said at a conference.
"I think many of us in this industry ... are going from a hands-off model, where the internet's an immune system, to realizing that's not really enough, that we have to take more responsibility for the stuff on our platform," he said. "I think this has been a gradual, maybe too gradual, transition for our industry."
In part, Chesky suggested Airbnb would start asking more specific questions of guests upon checkout—relying on users, in other words, to help clean up the platform.
I would have been a little surprised but relieved, because that would've been a crunchy situation to walk into.
Some one is using pictures of your property to scam Rental Application and Background Check fees. In San Francisco, they usually ask for, between $30 and $100 and desperate people looking for rentals keep the scammers in business. ALWAYS ask to see the property before paying an application fee.
One exceedingly common theme across hundreds of emails that VICE has received was the classic bait and switch: Airbnb users were promised one apartment and arrived to find something entirely different.
Sometimes, the problem was deceptive photos that bore no resemblance to the actual place. Other times, they were persuaded by the host to switch apartments or houses entirely, only to find that the new location was filthy, unfurnished, or in a totally different area. (Surprisingly, a number of stories also talked about the new house possessing a weird number of beds, laid out in bizarre configurations.)
They bought the house before their apartment lease was up. To not have to come out of pocket for both rent and mortgage they rented out their new house. The people renting the house were there for over a month which gave them squatter's rights and stopped paying. Without the income from renting the house they couldn't afford paying rent and mortgage and ended in foreclosure.
The so-called plumbing scam is a very popular bait and switch. Dozens of people told VICE that they'd booked an apartment or a house (in cities both in the U.S. and abroad) and days or hours before the reservation was set to start, the host would abruptly tell them that the unit had developed a sudden and fatal plumbing issue.
"I rented a place near Glass Beach and a few weeks prior to my trip when I reached out to confirm the booking, the lister told me she had a 'septic problem' in the unit and she could see if she could put me up in a larger place nearby," one platform user told VICE in an email. "That never materialized but she refused to cancel my booking, saying the first time that her computer wasn't working and the next time, weeks later, that her father had just passed away. I had to complain to Airbnb that she refused to cancel the booking so they canceled it but I was unable to write a negative review."
I went thru every background check imaginable to get into my apt., paying all fees, security, etc etc to move into that building. They turned some of the apts into ABB rentals after a few years. Within 2 years our clean, civil, quiet, secure building was a mess. The exercise facilities, the meeting/computer area had to be closed due to repeated theft. The trash rooms were filled with vomit, broken glass, used condoms and smelled rank when walking past them. It felt strange that I had to undergo such an extreme background check, when ABB was renting to anyone with a credit card.
Hikacked the pictures and we're trying to rent it? Maybe its just MY bad grammer, but what the heck does that mean.
AirBnB is notorious for starting lawsuits against municipalities if they start collecting tourist tax or something similar. They really think, like most American businesses, that they can use the same legal tactics in other countries to bend laws in ways that suits them best.
But a company spokesperson said, "We hold hosts accountable for honoring their reservations, and we strongly support guests with rebookings or reimbursements when things don't go according to plan. For a host to avoid cancellation penalties, we require the submission of supporting documentation. For instance, a host citing a plumbing issue would need to submit to Airbnb an invoice or receipt of services from a legitimate business."
He added that, usually, "If we see a host engaging in problematic behavior, including frequent last-minute cancellations, that host would be subject to suspension or removal from the platform."
Why would AirBnB check if you are scammed? They still get their commission from the scammer and hide behind a wall of silence. It's not in their interest if they proactively check if people are scammers. It costs time, someone has to be paid to do it and in the end they miss out on their percentage of the profits that the scammers make.
That’s just a generic clone scam, I get several emails a day alleging to be from genuine providers I use and ones I’ve never used. They work because a large number of people have accounts and saying they’ll be restricted or some other issue in an email with the right logos gets many to unthinkingly click and then “confirm” all their ID and credit card details.
From experience, these scoundrels represent themselves as professionals, rich, or important people who are caught up in events where they can't meet you and want the money up front. They will up the timetable if they come to know you are desperate.
Referring to bait-and-switches of all kinds, Airbnb told VICE that, "Bait and switch schemes, such as those described where guests are offered worse accommodations, are unacceptable and antithetical to Airbnb's values and the community standards. If a guest is ever asked to do something like this, they should contact us either by phone or through our app so that we can support them. Our Guest Guarantee policy entitles guests to a full refund or rebooking into a new listing of equal or better value. We would then address the issues with the host, which could include suspension or removal from our platform. If such a scheme were to rise to the level of criminal fraud, we would also seek to work with law enforcement to hold that person accountable."
This is unfortunately a very common scam that isn't limited to Airbnb or the US and nearly happened to me. Never ever pay a cent before (in the very least) seeing the property and if possible having the keys in your hands.
Defeat the enemy with their own weapons and report them for illegally renting out their loft and every code violation you can think of. The couple will lose the battle if all neighbors collaborate to have them evicted.
Earlier this month, the company said it will help shelter some of the 2 million Ukrainians who have fled their country after Russia invaded it.
According to a company spokesperson, Airbnb is prepared to offer housing of up to 14 days for up to 100,000 refugees.
Airbnb works with nonprofits on the ground to book and coordinate stays for refugees, who also receive a range of other support in their new lives, the spokesperson explained.
ABNB needs to be fined a large amount for false listings beginning with the day it's listed. You can bet they'll begin verifying all listings real quick when they have to start paying out millions in fines and penalties on a daily basis. Personally, I think they should be put out of business and legislation passed governing any future attempts at creating a replacement.
I Have A Nice Job Covering Downvoted Comments :) _________________Airbnb Should Have Employees Go To Every House And Do A Tour To Make Sure The Place Is Legit.
Plus, People are booking Airbnb stays and experiences in Ukraine that they don’t intend on using just to help the locals and the platform is also temporarily waiving guest and host fees on bookings in the country.
But given the amount of scamming on the platform, who says nobody is using the situation for their own gain? “Were I a Russian scammer, I would be setting up fake Airbnbs in [Kyiv] and Odessa as fast as I could to cash in on those noble intentions,” one person tweeted.
I really wish people were better writers... I don't understand which party you were in this. There are many missing pieces of info too. I know Twitter caps the # of characters but surely there is a better way to write this. In half of these posts, people don't write clearly enough and it leaves the reader with questions! For example, I hate when people say "I was renting my apartment" when they really mean they were renting OUT their apartment to someone else. So much confusion!
This happened quite a lot even before Airbnb started. There were numerous reports of British holidaymakers booking a villa on the continent - usually Spain or Greece and when they turned up the property didn't even exist. They either had to change their flights to get home or pay for hotels. The Internet makes it so easy to scam people.
Moral of the stories: AirBnB is not a good company. Seems they are in it for their profits only. Book hotels, you may pay a little more, but you have more avenues for assistance.
AirBnb hadn't had the same gentrifying effect in my country as it had in the US, though.
Load More Replies...Airbnb can eat a d**k. Their policies enable scammers, favoring them and greedy hosts over often unwitting guests. Plus, as you know, many Airbnb properties are investment properties that are rented out full time (read: no one actually lives there, which is against Airbnb regulations). This removes housing from the market that should be available to full-time renters and/or buyers. Several cities in the US have passed laws to ban Airbnb and similar services. Airbnb has strayed so far from its original purpose and value that you're better off booking a hotel.
Except that their original purpose was to "take the money and run" like every other tech startup that gives no thought as to the impact of their business model on anyone or anyplace else.
Load More Replies...I used Airbnb once and had a terrible experience, their customer support sucks. Turned out the flat we rented was in the basement, right next to the building's boiler room, it was impossible to sleep there because of the noise. None of that was mentioned in the listing. We left the next morning - we were in a foreign country and lost one day of our short vacation to search for last-minute accommodation. And we were still forced to pay about half of the price of the 5-day stay we had originally booked, there was no compensation for being mislead by the host. Instead the host was compensated for our leaving early, even though they were the one who was dishonest. Never again. Hotels are always the better option.
Air BnB SUCKS. The very first time (and last!) I booked off them, I booked a place a YEAR in advance for a very busy conference week in San Francisco. I knew the hotels overcharge during that week because they know they will fill up. I got the whole week for 3 grand, which split between us meant that we would be paying $150 a night, instead of much more on hotels. (yes, it's still crazy expensive!). A few DAYS before the event, the host cancelled on us, and we were stuck paying $500 a night EACH on hotels. F**K Air BnB.
i booked a place through airBNB approx 3 months before covid properly hit aus (march 2020).... travel bans hit, couldn't go, even if i wanted to. AirBNB refused to refund... but the kicker was, about a week later, they put up a COVID refund statement, with dates and conditions that qualified for a complete refund. My booking met those conditions perfectly. After about 30 emails back and forth, they still would not refund - they just kept saying it didn't qualify... they couldn't state how it didn't qualify. never used them again.... they weren't incompetent - they were blatantly dishonest... evil people.
Why use Airbnb? Hotels have room service, clean your rooms and are cheaper in many cases. Plus, airbnb is just making the housing availability worse as people buy up places that sit empty half the time.
When travelling with family, staying in a house is more comfortable than hotel rooms. Plus, if we're staying for a while I like to have a kitchen available instead of eating out all the time.
Load More Replies...People think it’s easy to rent on Airbnb. What they don’t tell you is that renters can damage your home and Airbnb says “normal wear and tear” and won’t pay you. I had to pay a lot in repairing walls, broken sliding glass doors and dented appliances. Linens and towels would end up permanently stained and need to be replaced quite a bit. It got to be too much of a hassle and I stopped renting it out.
It is definitely a two-way street with AirBnB. I've seen horror stories from both sides.
Load More Replies...I've never heard a good story about AirBnB. These people need to be put out of business.
Every six months or so, my house shows up on AirBnB listings or I get an email from them threatening to block my account. I’ve never done business with them and given what they do to the housing crisis nearly everywhere is disgusting. With that said, here’s how I see them: they’re merely acting as a listing agent for property owners & potential renters, taking a finders fee and establishing guidelines (they neither enforce nor follow) and the transaction is solely between the property owner and the renter. ABnB is playing the role of middleman and interpreting that role as liberally as possible so issues always favor them. It’s not always an option, but hotels, motels & hostels seem to be a better choice both economically & experientially.
That's why regulation of these middlemen platforms need to exist. There is a point when we have to stop blaming AirBnb (they're a private company, ofc they'll do everything for their own interests) and start demanding answers from politicians AND renters that want an entire house for themselves (they're part of the problem too).
Load More Replies...Air BnB ruins neighborhoods and is going to contribute to a housing crash. I live in a lake town. The lake is private but people think that if they buy up here they can advertise use of the lake. I'm not even allowed to let my guests go to the lake without someone who is listed as being in the household is with them. So, housing prices are skyrocketing even beyond other places. There are no long term rentals anymore as everyone jumps on the bandwagon. People come up here and there isn't much to do without the lake. Add to that there are business closed early or completely because the people who use to work in them can no longer afford to live here. When it all comes crashing down and the people who overpaid for these houses that are starting to saturate the mountain, I will not cry. One of our neighbors recently got kicked out of their home for this purpose. We had a nice, quiet, friendly neighbor and now every few weeks we get a bunch of morons who scream all night.
These "Tech Companies" (AirBnB, Uber, Lyft, etc.) are not Tech companies - their business model is about avoiding the regulations within an industry by claiming that they're a "tech company" *and* that they don't have employees, only independent contractors. Nonsense. AirBnB is a hospitality company and should be regulated as such. Uber and Lyft are transportation companies and should be regulated as such. Literally all of their profits come from the money saved by cheating their way out of regulator compliance and not providing employee benefits to their workers. Literally every single cent.
One correction on that, I'm pretty sure Uber and Lyft have yet to make a profit, ever. Not sure about AirBnB.
Load More Replies...I keep getting texts from some guy about selling my home I just built 13 yrs ago. They've left handwritten notes in my mailbox too. I'm guessing they got my number and address through some kind of third party data harvesting. It's really weird and a pain in the butt. Finally I sent him a picture of trump tower and told him that guy needs money to harass him about selling instead. He hasn't texted me since. I hope that was what finally did it. I didn't block bc the two notes in the mail made we want to at least keep track of him. He's never threatening or anything but he doesn't take no for an answer.
Based on my personal experience, AirBnB lowered the bar for renting out a property far too low. Before AirBnB, I'd go on vacations with friends and find a rental house online. It was harder to find rental properties, I'd end up looking at a dozen different sites with only a few properties that that particular company managed, but the quality was always amazing. AirBnB made it easy for anyone to list their property so quality went way down. AirBnBs I've rented had issues like exterior doors that didn't lock, holes in walls, no (or very few) pots & pans, or just generally not well cleaned or maintained.
My husband's family rented a beach house back in 2009 & it was fabulous - we got it thru VRBO, Vacation Rentals By Owner. This was before AirBnB existed. When ABB first became a 'thing', I looked at it for a trip we were planning and it really didn't impress me. Now we strictly look at hotels, or local B&Bs.
Load More Replies...Booked what i thought was a legit place through a hotel website, turns out it was a relisted airbnb and they lied about the address, it was 10 mins drive further away (and i didnt have a car for that trip, was relying on favours from friends and didnt want to put them out that much)
This is why my husband & I will look for a place online but then CALL the hotel directly - and we don't call the 800 number, we find the direct local number for the hotel.
Load More Replies...This is why I pick hotels. I'll be paying more and probably am not getting one with a small kitchen, but I'll never go with airbnb. So far hotels have been safe, clean and have hot water.
AirBnB needs to curl up and die. It destroys the housing and rental market, it can be hell for neighbour, ti's full of fraud - seriously people, rent a proper hotelroom or cabin
A neighbour of mine once rented out my driveway on JustPark (which was usually empty since I don't drive, only my mother parked there when she visited) - random people were parking on my driveway and just walking away! Fortunately JustPark removed the listing, but who does that??
I'm having a little problem with the timing of this article. Less than a week ago AirBnB was being praised all over for helping Ukraine and now they're getting a new one ripped for apparently condoning scam artists? Not defending , just wondering.
No, AirBnB hasn't directly done anything for the people in Ukraine, as far as I know. You've probably been seeing stories about people in other countries booking AirBnB rentals in Ukraine to help the owners there.
Load More Replies...Why does anyone even rent from here anymore? When it first came out I thought it was a great idea.... then my husband started working for a huge bank and he works fraud and billing disputes and guess who is number one for his calls? Airbnb. He said he will NEVER go through them.
I will never understand why people trust and choose Airbnb. I have read the most scary stories about them.
Reading posts like this makes me wonder why people use services like ABnB and Uber, etc. I have never had a stay at a reputable hotel, or a cab ride (reputable company) that I had a complaint about that wasn't immediately rectified by the company involved. Hotel room dirty or AC not working? Immediate new UPGRADED room. Cab driver inappropriate? Complaint taken and a discounted or free next ride. I am not wealthy by any means, but I do value my peace of mind, safety, and my limited interest in dealing with customer service reps. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
That's why I'll never user airbnb, Uber, Deliveroo or any other of those shitcompanies that just want your money. Even if you've been scammed you'll have a hard time getting it back from those f*****s.
Well, this enforces my decision to never book an Air BnB, ever. Id' rather stay in a real hotel, motel or hostel and pay a bit more than go through these nightmare scenarios. This is good information and I truly appreciate it!
AirBnB can be good, but this is what you need to watch for: If they have been on the platform fir a long time (Superhost) it should be good. If there is a problem, contact AurBnb within 24 hours and open a ticket. They will try to brush you off but don't let them. Move up the management ladder and don't accept "no" for an answer. We had a problem with a place not listed accurately and dirty and we got back everything except for $35.
AirBnB like any other decentralized form of service provider only works if society itself need very little governance to function. Any society that needs strictly defined rules to to even function properly will not be a good place for such a business model.
Moral of the stories: AirBnB is not a good company. Seems they are in it for their profits only. Book hotels, you may pay a little more, but you have more avenues for assistance.
AirBnb hadn't had the same gentrifying effect in my country as it had in the US, though.
Load More Replies...Airbnb can eat a d**k. Their policies enable scammers, favoring them and greedy hosts over often unwitting guests. Plus, as you know, many Airbnb properties are investment properties that are rented out full time (read: no one actually lives there, which is against Airbnb regulations). This removes housing from the market that should be available to full-time renters and/or buyers. Several cities in the US have passed laws to ban Airbnb and similar services. Airbnb has strayed so far from its original purpose and value that you're better off booking a hotel.
Except that their original purpose was to "take the money and run" like every other tech startup that gives no thought as to the impact of their business model on anyone or anyplace else.
Load More Replies...I used Airbnb once and had a terrible experience, their customer support sucks. Turned out the flat we rented was in the basement, right next to the building's boiler room, it was impossible to sleep there because of the noise. None of that was mentioned in the listing. We left the next morning - we were in a foreign country and lost one day of our short vacation to search for last-minute accommodation. And we were still forced to pay about half of the price of the 5-day stay we had originally booked, there was no compensation for being mislead by the host. Instead the host was compensated for our leaving early, even though they were the one who was dishonest. Never again. Hotels are always the better option.
Air BnB SUCKS. The very first time (and last!) I booked off them, I booked a place a YEAR in advance for a very busy conference week in San Francisco. I knew the hotels overcharge during that week because they know they will fill up. I got the whole week for 3 grand, which split between us meant that we would be paying $150 a night, instead of much more on hotels. (yes, it's still crazy expensive!). A few DAYS before the event, the host cancelled on us, and we were stuck paying $500 a night EACH on hotels. F**K Air BnB.
i booked a place through airBNB approx 3 months before covid properly hit aus (march 2020).... travel bans hit, couldn't go, even if i wanted to. AirBNB refused to refund... but the kicker was, about a week later, they put up a COVID refund statement, with dates and conditions that qualified for a complete refund. My booking met those conditions perfectly. After about 30 emails back and forth, they still would not refund - they just kept saying it didn't qualify... they couldn't state how it didn't qualify. never used them again.... they weren't incompetent - they were blatantly dishonest... evil people.
Why use Airbnb? Hotels have room service, clean your rooms and are cheaper in many cases. Plus, airbnb is just making the housing availability worse as people buy up places that sit empty half the time.
When travelling with family, staying in a house is more comfortable than hotel rooms. Plus, if we're staying for a while I like to have a kitchen available instead of eating out all the time.
Load More Replies...People think it’s easy to rent on Airbnb. What they don’t tell you is that renters can damage your home and Airbnb says “normal wear and tear” and won’t pay you. I had to pay a lot in repairing walls, broken sliding glass doors and dented appliances. Linens and towels would end up permanently stained and need to be replaced quite a bit. It got to be too much of a hassle and I stopped renting it out.
It is definitely a two-way street with AirBnB. I've seen horror stories from both sides.
Load More Replies...I've never heard a good story about AirBnB. These people need to be put out of business.
Every six months or so, my house shows up on AirBnB listings or I get an email from them threatening to block my account. I’ve never done business with them and given what they do to the housing crisis nearly everywhere is disgusting. With that said, here’s how I see them: they’re merely acting as a listing agent for property owners & potential renters, taking a finders fee and establishing guidelines (they neither enforce nor follow) and the transaction is solely between the property owner and the renter. ABnB is playing the role of middleman and interpreting that role as liberally as possible so issues always favor them. It’s not always an option, but hotels, motels & hostels seem to be a better choice both economically & experientially.
That's why regulation of these middlemen platforms need to exist. There is a point when we have to stop blaming AirBnb (they're a private company, ofc they'll do everything for their own interests) and start demanding answers from politicians AND renters that want an entire house for themselves (they're part of the problem too).
Load More Replies...Air BnB ruins neighborhoods and is going to contribute to a housing crash. I live in a lake town. The lake is private but people think that if they buy up here they can advertise use of the lake. I'm not even allowed to let my guests go to the lake without someone who is listed as being in the household is with them. So, housing prices are skyrocketing even beyond other places. There are no long term rentals anymore as everyone jumps on the bandwagon. People come up here and there isn't much to do without the lake. Add to that there are business closed early or completely because the people who use to work in them can no longer afford to live here. When it all comes crashing down and the people who overpaid for these houses that are starting to saturate the mountain, I will not cry. One of our neighbors recently got kicked out of their home for this purpose. We had a nice, quiet, friendly neighbor and now every few weeks we get a bunch of morons who scream all night.
These "Tech Companies" (AirBnB, Uber, Lyft, etc.) are not Tech companies - their business model is about avoiding the regulations within an industry by claiming that they're a "tech company" *and* that they don't have employees, only independent contractors. Nonsense. AirBnB is a hospitality company and should be regulated as such. Uber and Lyft are transportation companies and should be regulated as such. Literally all of their profits come from the money saved by cheating their way out of regulator compliance and not providing employee benefits to their workers. Literally every single cent.
One correction on that, I'm pretty sure Uber and Lyft have yet to make a profit, ever. Not sure about AirBnB.
Load More Replies...I keep getting texts from some guy about selling my home I just built 13 yrs ago. They've left handwritten notes in my mailbox too. I'm guessing they got my number and address through some kind of third party data harvesting. It's really weird and a pain in the butt. Finally I sent him a picture of trump tower and told him that guy needs money to harass him about selling instead. He hasn't texted me since. I hope that was what finally did it. I didn't block bc the two notes in the mail made we want to at least keep track of him. He's never threatening or anything but he doesn't take no for an answer.
Based on my personal experience, AirBnB lowered the bar for renting out a property far too low. Before AirBnB, I'd go on vacations with friends and find a rental house online. It was harder to find rental properties, I'd end up looking at a dozen different sites with only a few properties that that particular company managed, but the quality was always amazing. AirBnB made it easy for anyone to list their property so quality went way down. AirBnBs I've rented had issues like exterior doors that didn't lock, holes in walls, no (or very few) pots & pans, or just generally not well cleaned or maintained.
My husband's family rented a beach house back in 2009 & it was fabulous - we got it thru VRBO, Vacation Rentals By Owner. This was before AirBnB existed. When ABB first became a 'thing', I looked at it for a trip we were planning and it really didn't impress me. Now we strictly look at hotels, or local B&Bs.
Load More Replies...Booked what i thought was a legit place through a hotel website, turns out it was a relisted airbnb and they lied about the address, it was 10 mins drive further away (and i didnt have a car for that trip, was relying on favours from friends and didnt want to put them out that much)
This is why my husband & I will look for a place online but then CALL the hotel directly - and we don't call the 800 number, we find the direct local number for the hotel.
Load More Replies...This is why I pick hotels. I'll be paying more and probably am not getting one with a small kitchen, but I'll never go with airbnb. So far hotels have been safe, clean and have hot water.
AirBnB needs to curl up and die. It destroys the housing and rental market, it can be hell for neighbour, ti's full of fraud - seriously people, rent a proper hotelroom or cabin
A neighbour of mine once rented out my driveway on JustPark (which was usually empty since I don't drive, only my mother parked there when she visited) - random people were parking on my driveway and just walking away! Fortunately JustPark removed the listing, but who does that??
I'm having a little problem with the timing of this article. Less than a week ago AirBnB was being praised all over for helping Ukraine and now they're getting a new one ripped for apparently condoning scam artists? Not defending , just wondering.
No, AirBnB hasn't directly done anything for the people in Ukraine, as far as I know. You've probably been seeing stories about people in other countries booking AirBnB rentals in Ukraine to help the owners there.
Load More Replies...Why does anyone even rent from here anymore? When it first came out I thought it was a great idea.... then my husband started working for a huge bank and he works fraud and billing disputes and guess who is number one for his calls? Airbnb. He said he will NEVER go through them.
I will never understand why people trust and choose Airbnb. I have read the most scary stories about them.
Reading posts like this makes me wonder why people use services like ABnB and Uber, etc. I have never had a stay at a reputable hotel, or a cab ride (reputable company) that I had a complaint about that wasn't immediately rectified by the company involved. Hotel room dirty or AC not working? Immediate new UPGRADED room. Cab driver inappropriate? Complaint taken and a discounted or free next ride. I am not wealthy by any means, but I do value my peace of mind, safety, and my limited interest in dealing with customer service reps. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
That's why I'll never user airbnb, Uber, Deliveroo or any other of those shitcompanies that just want your money. Even if you've been scammed you'll have a hard time getting it back from those f*****s.
Well, this enforces my decision to never book an Air BnB, ever. Id' rather stay in a real hotel, motel or hostel and pay a bit more than go through these nightmare scenarios. This is good information and I truly appreciate it!
AirBnB can be good, but this is what you need to watch for: If they have been on the platform fir a long time (Superhost) it should be good. If there is a problem, contact AurBnb within 24 hours and open a ticket. They will try to brush you off but don't let them. Move up the management ladder and don't accept "no" for an answer. We had a problem with a place not listed accurately and dirty and we got back everything except for $35.
AirBnB like any other decentralized form of service provider only works if society itself need very little governance to function. Any society that needs strictly defined rules to to even function properly will not be a good place for such a business model.