Airbnb has apologised to a Hawke’s Bay homeowner after allowing a total stranger to list her home and refusing to accept that the property belonged to her.
The listing went up a week before Labour Weekend and very quickly Michelle Kittow had visitors she wasn’t expecting knocking on her door.
One had driven four-and-a-half hours from Wellington to Waimārama, south of Napier.
“The guy on Sunday went to the campsite. One of the other people were an hour away so I'm assuming they went back home,” Kittow said.
Kittow lists the property with Book a Bach and on Facebook, but a mystery host apparently ripped those pictures for their own bogus Airbnb listing.
It was offering her home for $80 per night - about $200 less than she usually charges – literally, a steal.
Airbnb took down the listing for a few hours then put it back up.
“They said I hadn't given them enough evidence to prove that it is my house,” an incredulous Kittow said.
The global accommodation giant told her it doesn’t get involved in disputes and advised her to write a letter – including all her details – which it undertook to forward to the mystery host.
Kittow refused.
“He'd stolen my house; why would I want him to steal any more of my personal details?”
Airbnb’s head of public policy for Australia and New Zealand Derek Nolan says his team are extremely disappointed.
“While these issues are rare, we take them very seriously. The account associated with this issue has also been removed as investigations continue," Nolan said.
Airbnb has a system that flags high-risk listing and hosting applications and seeks more detailed proof of ownership, but Nolan wouldn't comment on why these security measures failed Kittow.
"We have removed the listing and have refunded any guests who had upcoming bookings, including finding them alternative accommodation.” Nolan added in a statement.
Airbnb holds payment for a booking until after check-in. It strongly discourages guests from paying hosts outside its website. This is one way a scammer might try to exploit guests who’ve booked, by sending chat messages or emails offered cheaper direct deals that don’t exist.
Kittow is glad it’s sorted. The home is something of a local landmark, having won a bronze medal for a team of Wellington architecture students who assembled the one-bedroom home on the National Mall in Washington DC for judging, before bringing it back to Aotearoa 10 years ago.
She now hopes that she and the people who’ve booked it legitimately from her can enjoy the summer in peace.
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