Airbnb to verify 7 million listings in attempt to improve user trust ■ ■
Airbnb says it will spend the next year verifying that all 7 million of its listings are accurate and that the homes and rooms being offered for short-term stays meet basic quality standards.
It’s one of several moves the San Francisco-based company is making to improve user trust and make it easier for guests, hosts and others to report problems and obtain refunds when things go awry.
The changes come after a rough week for Airbnb. On Oct. 31, a shooting at an unauthorized Halloween party in an Airbnb rental in Orinda, California, left five people dead.
A Vice story, meanwhile, revealed a scam by Airbnb hosts who put guests up at inferior properties after claiming the ones they initially booked weren’t available. Guests told Vice they had trouble obtaining refunds from the company and were given bad reviews by the hosts.
And Tuesday, voters in Jersey City, New Jersey, approved restrictions on short-term rental companies in a referendum in one of Airbnb’s most important markets.
The vote in Jersey City — just across the Hudson River from lower Manhattan and only a few minutes by train from popular tourist sites — was lopsided in favor of the restrictions, despite an expensive campaign mounted by the company.
Airbnb spent $4.2 million on an effort to sway voters while its opponents, including the hotel industry, spent around $1 million.
In an email sent to employees Wednesday, Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky said the company will take its most significant steps to improve trust since its founding in 2008. “People need to feel like they can trust our community and that they can trust Airbnb when something goes wrong,” he wrote.
Airbnb said it plans to:
Verify all listings on its platform for accuracy of photos, address and other details. They will also be verified for quality standards, including cleanliness, safety and basic amenities. Those that meet Airbnb’s quality expectations will be labeled. Airbnb said every listing will be reviewed by Dec. 15, 2020.
■ Beginning Dec. 15, Airbnb said it will rebook guests to a new listing or refund their money if a property doesn’t meet its accuracy standards.
■ By Dec. 31, Airbnb will launch a 24-hour hotline staffed by a rapid response team in the U.S. so neighbors, guests and others can report a problem. The hotline will roll out globally over the course of next year.
The company has asked Charles Ramsey, the former chief of police for Philadelphia and Washington, and Ronald Davis, the former chief of police for East Palo Alto, California, to act as advisers and help train the response team.
Beginning Dec. 15, Airbnb will be expanding manual checks of “highrisk” reservations flagged by its system to cut down on unauthorized parties. One-night reservations at large homes will get extra scrutiny, for example.
The company is under some pressure to improve its reputation as it eyes an initial public offering next year.
“Most hosts do a great job, but guests need to feel like Airbnb has their back, and we believe this commitment is a necessary step in giving guests peace of mind,” Chesky wrote.
Jersey City’s regulations don’t ban short-term rentals, but are expected to trim the number of homes getting listed on sites like Airbnb.
The rules limit how often landlords can rent properties if they don’t live on site. They forbid shortterm rentals in buildings with more than four units if the owner isn’t present. They also prohibit renters from serving as hosts.