Another airbnb horror story

[Silverspoon]

Recently we had guests who were very disappointed in their airbnb lodgings in Europe. There were no provisions for fire safety and they were basically deserted in a subpar accommodation. But this story in the NYT goes MUCH further than that.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/15/your-money/airbnb-horror-story-points-to-need-for-precautions.html?_r=0
Early in the evening of July 4, Micaela Giles’s mobile phone started sounding alerts, and a series of messages straight out of a horror movie began scrolling down her screen.
Her 19-year-old son told her that his Airbnb host in Madrid had locked him in the fourth-floor apartment where he was supposed to be staying and removed the key. The host was still there, he said, rattling knives around in the kitchen drawer and pressing him to submit to a sexual act. He begged his mother for help.

 

[Generic]

I'm actually surprised that this is the FIRST time such a story has come out... though the incidence of reporting rape is 14% for women raped and much much lower in rape of men.
It's not the first story... http://news.sky.com/story/1395006/airbnb-flat-owner-jailed-for-raping-us-tourists but I wonder what it says about Spain.

 

[Joey Camb]

I'm actually surprised that this is the FIRST time such a story has come out... though the incidence of reporting rape is 14% for women raped and much much lower in rape of men.
It's not the first story... http://news.sky.com/story/1395006/airbnb-flat-owner-jailed-for-raping-us-tourists but I wonder what it says about Spain..

I don't know about spain but Air is a perfect trap if you are a sex pervert - you literally invite the prey into your home and they literally run willingly into the trap.
Mind you the same could effectively be said of any accommodation business - feel air reacted very badly - should have rung the police immediately and sent them round - if it turned out to be nothing that's fine but would you risk it not being? I wouldn't no matter what company policy said!

 

[gillumhouse]

And how many went (and still happen) unreported because they think they will not be believed if it IS reported. So sad.
I was at a Tourism meeting Thursday and found that some CVBs said they did not know what Air was BUT found at the end of this meeting (northern part of the State) that the meeting in the southern part also brought up Air as something our Legislature needs to look at seriously. Funny thing is that some were complaining that Uber is not permitted to operate in this State and that is supposedly why Millennials will not come to WV. (True we do not have many taxi companies, but a taxi will not take you very far out of the city anyway. It is called - rent a car!)

 

[Copperhead]

This is what infuriates me:
When she called Airbnb, its employees would not give her the address and would not call the police. Instead, they gave her a number for the Madrid police and told her to ask the police to call the company for the address. But the number led to a recording in Spanish that kept disconnecting her, she said, and when she repeatedly called back her Airbnb contact, the calls went straight to voice mail.

 

[Generic]

This is what infuriates me:
When she called Airbnb, its employees would not give her the address and would not call the police. Instead, they gave her a number for the Madrid police and told her to ask the police to call the company for the address. But the number led to a recording in Spanish that kept disconnecting her, she said, and when she repeatedly called back her Airbnb contact, the calls went straight to voice mail..

Really, not the fact that AirBnB in seeking to hide from the authorities their system of reservations and avoid taxation, legislation and licencing... let a boy get into the situation of almost being raped.
You see... the system is set up to fail someone. It's trying to hide everything from the authorities.

 

[Copperhead]

This is what infuriates me:
When she called Airbnb, its employees would not give her the address and would not call the police. Instead, they gave her a number for the Madrid police and told her to ask the police to call the company for the address. But the number led to a recording in Spanish that kept disconnecting her, she said, and when she repeatedly called back her Airbnb contact, the calls went straight to voice mail..

Really, not the fact that AirBnB in seeking to hide from the authorities their system of reservations and avoid taxation, legislation and licencing... let a boy get into the situation of almost being raped.
You see... the system is set up to fail someone. It's trying to hide everything from the authorities.
.

Really, not the fact that AirBnB in seeking to hide from the authorities their system of reservations and avoid taxation, legislation and licencing... let a boy get into the situation of almost being raped.
You see... the system is set up to fail someone. It's trying to hide everything from the authorities.

Exactly!
I find it difficult to understand how authorities (in the US) will shut down the little kids lemonade stands and Girl S cout cookie sales but turn a blind eye at unlicensed short term rentals.

 

[Generic]

This is what infuriates me:
When she called Airbnb, its employees would not give her the address and would not call the police. Instead, they gave her a number for the Madrid police and told her to ask the police to call the company for the address. But the number led to a recording in Spanish that kept disconnecting her, she said, and when she repeatedly called back her Airbnb contact, the calls went straight to voice mail..

Really, not the fact that AirBnB in seeking to hide from the authorities their system of reservations and avoid taxation, legislation and licencing... let a boy get into the situation of almost being raped.
You see... the system is set up to fail someone. It's trying to hide everything from the authorities.
.

Really, not the fact that AirBnB in seeking to hide from the authorities their system of reservations and avoid taxation, legislation and licencing... let a boy get into the situation of almost being raped.
You see... the system is set up to fail someone. It's trying to hide everything from the authorities.

Exactly!
I find it difficult to understand how authorities (in the US) will shut down the little kids lemonade stands and Girl S cout cookie sales but turn a blind eye at unlicensed short term rentals.
.

See, that's what I don't understand around here... should have charged them under our equivalent of the RICO statues for trying to hide sales taxes, property taxes and/or income taxes.