Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky has shared how the company is amping up its verification standards for the safety of both hosts and guests on the platform following the deadly shooting in Orinda, California. In addition to its ban on “party houses”, the company believes that it is evident that verification is to be standardised as “Airbnb is founded on trust”.
CEO Brian Chesky continues to share why just a precedent has taken effect by stating “when we started Airbnb in 2008, people said it would never work, strangers will never trust one another. But we believed that people are fundamentally good and that we could design a system for strangers to trust one another. But recent events by bad actors on our platforms took advantage of that trust. We intents to do everything possible to learn from these incidents when they occur”.
Today we’re redoubling our efforts to combat unacceptable and abusive behavior on our platform that can lead to tragic incidents. https://t.co/PHzHbgu1W9
— Airbnb (@Airbnb) November 2, 2019
The co-founder said that the plan includes verifying all seven million listings that are currently on the site by accuracy (Including photos, addresses, and details) and standards such as cleanliness, safety and basic home amenities. This process is expected to be completed by December 15, 2020.
“The world moves at the speed of trust, and the more trust that exists, the more access we can all have”. – Brian Chesky
Following the mass shooting at an Airbnb rental in Orinda, California, last week the company is also launching a 24/7 Neighbor Hotline so anyone, including hosts, guests and neighbours of each property can call in anytime during emergencies, concerns or with enquiries in the U.S.
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It is a matter of building trust for Airbnb.
With Chesky undertaking a year-long project to ensure that every home listed on the platform is accurately advertised, as a stopgap measure, the company will “rebook the guest a new listing of equal or greater value” or completely refund them starting next month should the rental they book not meet the company’s accuracy standards.
The trust of our community continues to be a top priority for us. We’re taking steps in designing trust on our platform, including the Airbnb Guest Guarantee, a 24/7 neighbor hotline & working towards 100% verification of all homes by 12/15/20. Learn more: https://t.co/OCzgkkhMhW https://t.co/m6JY3s1aFE
— Airbnb (@Airbnb) November 6, 2019
Apart from the introduction of new policies by the home-share site, CEO Brian Chesky concludes by stating that “ With these additional protections, we will work together with our community of guests and hosts to reinforce the trusted platform that we have built with our community. The world moves at the speed of trust, and the more trust that exists, the more access we can all have. Airbnb is founded on trust, and our vision depends on us continuing to increase this in our community”.
