AirBnB-New Statement Re Discrimination

I think this commitment regarding discrimination is a great idea. I also think it would go a long way towards improving their reputation if they came up with a commitment regarding strict adherence to all local/regional laws and regulations. Unfortunately I fear that would sharply reduce the available rentals.

The so-called commitment will not make much of a difference except to make feel better the few people who might not use AirBnB if they think it supports racism. Call me a cynic but I think that people who want to discriminate will accept the commitment and decline the renters that they do not want just the same because policies like this don't change people's feelings. It just makes them lie about it. What is AirBnB going to do when they get complaints of discrimination about a landlord who has made the pledge? Is the answer going to be "Oh no, they can't possibly be discriminating. They agreed to the pledge."

I think it is pretty meaningless other than to make the politically correct feel better about the situation. Of course everyone will sign it so to be able to use Airbnb but it will be impossible to enforce or even prove anyone discriminated. People who own a house, condo or apartment and want to rent it out on Airbnb still want to protect their investment or their property and they don't want anyone staying they think might damage it or cause the neighbors to complain. This is why many refuse to rent to a bachelorette party group or a pack of frat boys. Others don't want to rent to people groups with high crime stats or illegal aliens, etc. What they will do is investigate potential renters more closely and take applications from people and choose who they think is best. Who can blame them?

If this is all there is--I see no mention of what would happen if a guest was being discriminated against by a host because they belonged to a "people group with high crime stats"--it seems like a toothless PR move.

"If this is all there is--I see no mention of what would happen if a guest was being discriminated against by a host because they belonged to a "people group with high crime stats"--it seems like a toothless PR move."

Exactly, this is a pretty much worthless policy and if this is the best that the former Attorney General of the United States who was hired to help AirBnB with this issue can come up with, then they wasted their money. I would argue that AirBnB rentals are not public accommodations so it will be interesting to see if anti-discrimination statutes in the US can even be used against AirBnB landlords who discriminate against any group of people covered by these laws, including, "people groups with high crime stats or illegal aliens, etc."

As to "who can blame them?" for the people who "do not want to rent to people groups with high crime stats or illegal aliens"? I can and so can anyone else who finds racism offensive. Racism is what you call it when a person decides that there is a group with high crime statistics or illegal aliens and further concludes that all people who are from that group are criminals or illegal aliens and so should not be allowed to rent or buy houses or whatever. I have had a situation in which I rented an apartment online. The landlord loved me until she saw me so I guess that despite the great job that I was moving to town to take and my class rank (6/216) and my sterling references, when I arrived and she saw that I am a member of a "people group with high crime stats," the apartment was suddenly unavailable. But hey who can blame her?

JHK has it right.
AirBnB is only a listing platform for people who want to rent space.
Private property owners and renters have no obligation to adhere to AirBnB's "commitment statement", which was advised by this company's attorneys to avoid legal action should a client feel discriminated against.
People who rent through AirBnB can always claim that they have "plumbing problems" or some other emergency, if they want to avoid a client whom they feel is suspicious.
Neither HomeAway, TripAdvisor or any other listing platform has been able to force their clients to adhere to such a "commitment statement".

Now that I've read up a bit about the issue and some recent research findings, I don't think this stand alone pledge will amount to a whole lot. This pledge relies purely on social consciousness and good-will which is easily counteracted by the way the Airbnb platform is designed. As much as a person may "want" not to discriminate, low and behold, he/she has all the info to do so. The pledge was one of the easier voluntary compromises that Airbnb was willing to accept, but they reject changing key aspects of the site's design that make it possible for hosts to discriminate in the first place. The intentional design features that include mandatory profiles, photos, use of real names, etc. that can be further searched and rejected (for whatever reason the host deems appropriate) is what arms hosts to discriminate against certain groups of people (as evidenced by the research findings). The researchers contrasted this with other sites that are specifically designed to be more anonymous - they don't use real names and photos but still have authenticated transactions (eBay, for example). The one "positive" feature (per the researchers) that Airbnb has implemented is something called "InstantBook" that allows immediate booking without prescreening (this is a much more neutral design), but only a small share of folks use it. So there's no reason to think that discrimination won't continue as long as people have the info to use at their disposal, especially since these rentals aren't (and won't be regulated) like public accommodations. Now that the genie is out of the bottle, I think Airbnb would have a really hard time rolling these features back because users will demand the ability to prescreen each other (and hence the opportunities for discrimination). I think this is the social media world we're in now and it's hard to turn back.

See pages 17-19 in the below study, which I summarized (more or less) above:
http://www.benedelman.org/publications/airbnb-guest-discrimination-2016-09-16.pdf
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-12-10/study-finds-racial-discrimination-by-airbnb-hosts

No, it isn't.
Many people renting out their private property feel that they have the right to scrutinize their clients and protect their investment.
It doesn't have anything to do with "illegal aliens" - if a name looks or sounds foreign, it might be enough to cancel a reservation.
Some owners research social media, looking for photos of their clients. If they don't approve of what these people look like or how they conduct themselves (in photos), they might cancel the reservation.
And none of this is legal, but it's a rare case for a private individual to be sued for discrimination - normally, it's agencies and possibly condo associations.

I sort of like statements of shared philosophy; but that's all that it is.

As for discrimination; how about the flip side? Would you want to give your money to a bigot? and would you want to spend your money in a bigoted culture?

How many, if they owned an AirBnb, would rent to a racist?

I wonder how much AirBnB paid Eric Holder for his work putting this together. It's just a bunch of PR.

I have to say I am surprised at the cynicism expressed in most replies. Of course, AirBnB is a business, and businesses have employees and shareholders and so they care about image and PR. I appreciate what the Belgian guy says, and I find it interesting that his is, by a country mile, the most embracing and optimistic viewpoint expressed. In my view, by the simple act of stating this, the company has improved itself, and some of that will have a positive outcome for humans. Some people do what they commit to do. Some people don't. I'm not naive, however as a white man in America I don't run into much, if any, bias against me, and certainly nothing like JHK shared, nothing like the 'wrong kind' of person can on AirBnB. AirBnB could solve the world hunger problem tomorrow and some people would still rail against it. A step in the right direction, indeed.

Dave,
I think the responses come off as cynical because all Airbnb has done here, in effect, is to shift the risk and legal liability away from itself and onto its users. If you want to change any bad behavior, you have to remove all incentives/ temptations to behave badly....you can't just wish it away or pledge it away. That's not as effective as actually removing the incentive. Imagine if, every time you booked a hotel room or a table at a restaurant, that you'd have to send your request online along with your photo and as well as profile. And sometimes you'd get turned away last minute and you'd wonder why. It would feel weird and almost personal, wouldn't it? Airbnb designed its product (intentionally, not by accident) in a way that people have information with which to discriminate and they are reluctant to make any changes to those features.

Dave, AirBnb isn't well loved. Its been blamed across the world for the high cost of living and homelessness of the masses. So this just represents another opportunity to spear them. Of course its interesting, some of those so concerned with social injustice have no issue with spending their money in countries with extreme legislated social injustice. Personally, as pointed out, I appreciate any effort to identify a community by its values; enforceable or not, the AirBnb Discrimination Statement does that. So its a good thing.

I could be wrong, but it never occurred to me that the photos and descriptions were incorporated to provide a means to discriminate. I always assumed it was more to build a virtual community as a way of marketing. If they didn't have the photos and the data these same folks probably have Facebook or LinkedIn; so it really doesn't matter. I confess to being naïve as I see the world is a good place with few bad people as opposed to a bad world with a few good people.

Speaking of marketing...
How do you know if those photos are actually of the person you are renting from? Does AirBnB actually verify those photos, and does the company assure that they actually own the property? No, they do not.

Sometimes, you might actually meet the owner, but many times, there will be a "friend" (ie, property manager dealing with multiple apartments or possibly the gardienne) who greets you.

It must be said that AirBnB is not the only agency which does (or does not) allow its clients to discriminate (or not) regarding who stays on their property. They all do.

I guess I would feel better if all rental requests had to go through a federal agency that could ensure fairness and true identity. A branch of the US Justice Department would be appropriate for the US rentals.

How do you know if those photos are actually of the person you are renting from?

That would show up in the reviews - the reviews are a "check" on the system. Reviews often allude to meeting the host (or not)..and it's reasonable to assume that the renter would identify the host from the photo and posted name. I bet Airbnb has quite sophisticated algorithms for mining all their data and identifying major aberrations in the reviews.

Does AirBnB actually verify those photos, and does the company assure that they actually own the property?

Airbnb verifies photos of the property and/or performs audits to ensure that hosts are fairly representing their place, at least for some sample of the properties. Hosts and renters have to register with Airbnb, most addresses can be cross-checked with public records (I believe..although I'm not sure how it works in other countries)..there are other ways to prove you live somewhere (utility docs, etc.)

Posted by James E.
USA
11/01/16 06:59 AM
5250 posts
I guess I would feel better if all rental requests had to go through a federal agency that could ensure fairness and true identity. A branch of the US Justice Department would be appropriate for the US rentals.

================
Good lord i hope this is sarcasm.

We don't need MORE government, we need less intrusion in our lives.

You people need to really be careful what you wish for. Big government is a recipe for disaster but is difficult for most to see and comprehend

Good lord i hope this is sarcasm.

Absolutely

A quick look on AirBnB for Paris this morning shows shows 31 "Entire home/Apt" available at base prices between $107-$179, this is before AirBnB fee, and taxes, and uses the following filters:
2 Guests, 1 BR, 1 Full bath, 1 bed minimum, Superhost, Instant Book, Elevator and Wifi, in the following areas: 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 8th, and Montparnasse. Several of these will accommodate more than 2 guests.

Looking through reviews for these units shows a truly diverse mix of ethnicity as having rented and hosted. I know that here in the states at least you can have a AirBnB rep come to your rental and take pics and certify pics as authentic. One can rely on this, or not.

There's a room available in a private home (for example) in central Paris for one guest, $37, I.D. Verified host, with smoke detector, fire extinguisher, first aid kit (!), and lockable bedroom door. Many credible, imho, positive reviews. That has got to be a compelling value for a single traveler.

When I reserve a hotel room I am given no information about personnel working at said hotel, who I will be interacting with during my stay. I go on trust that it is a safe place to stay where I won't be robbed. I've read through an awful lot of threads about hotel security, maids stealing, safes in rooms being a good or bad idea and on and on. Personally, I'd prefer to deal with just one or two people when possible, instead of many.

With the new online advertising enforcement in Paris, which I thought was beginning in mid September, I am wondering why there are so many available-or is this still not up and running?

I do think James is being sarcastic, Vick.

And I do think that people are generally good, and with some diligence one can make a pretty good choice of a compatible host, however, in the end, AirBnB and other platforms like it are not for everyone. A step in the right direction.

AirBnB's business model is built around mostly younger people, who want to fly in to a city for a couple of days then go home or fly somewhere else. AirBnB is banking on the fact that most of their clients are not interested in their hosts, but just want inexpensive, convenient accommodation.

For people who have not stayed in a lot of foreign hotels, "scare stories" do not reflect the norm. It is in the hotel's best interest to keep tabs on who enters the guest's room, for how long and why - and they are monitored for efficiency. Every front desk I've seen - even in budget hotels - have someone watching security cameras on a computer screen 24/7. If employees steal, they don't go to jail, they are deported.

Frankly, I'd rather stay in a hotel where fire and safety codes are respected, rather than in an unregulated apartment.

There was never a date specified regarding the on-line internet listings and registration numbers. Since a great many owners live outside of France, and multiple apartments are owned by foreign corporations, this will probably take much longer than anyone would like.
Some owners have applied for registration numbers, but they must be investigated before receiving them.
If an owner is legitimate, the registration number must be prominently listed in the ad.

Thanks chexbres, it is understandable why it's a slow moving process. I was referring to what you said a while back regarding the timing of enforcement:

"Beginning in mid-September 2016, the IPO addresses of vacation rentals which have not received a registration number from the city will not be accessible via the internet."

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/france/apartments-while-in-france#1036151

Perhaps this plan has been put a little bit on the back burner, when Minister Macron left his position, possibly to run for President. He was the one who insisted on digitizing all the pertinent rental information. It's quite possible that City employees had to be trained in the formalities, paperwork printed, etc. Nothing much gets done in September, - because people are still finishing up work left behind when they went on vacation. Usually nothing starts really rolling until after the New Year.

The law was passed on July 8 2016. The law has been widely publicized in Paris and is being enforced, but it is up to the owners to apply for the registration numbers. Some individuals have applied, but their dossiers must be verified. As I mentioned, it is difficult to reach most of the owners who hold the majority of vacation rentals.

The Mayor's Task Force is still actively visiting apartments to verify if they are being rented illegally. Once this has been completed, the dossier is finalized and the owner is notified that he risks substantial fines for each day he continues to rent. Financial pressure is better than trying to round up everyone who isn't complying with the law.

If someone had a trip planned before New Year's, he might squeak by.
But I would be wary of planning a reservation in 2017.