Addressing an ongoing problem with unauthorized parties at Airbnb listings that has been aggravated by the pandemic and public health risks, the rental behemoth issued a ban Thursday on parties at properties worldwide.
“This party ban applies to all future bookings on Airbnb and it will remain in effect indefinitely until further notice,” Airbnb said in its announcement.
The new policy also includes an occupancy cap of 16 guests.
The company noted that 73% of Airbnb listings worldwide already banned parties in their house rules.
Previously, hosts were allowed to authorize smaller parties such as birthday parties and baby showers, Airbnb said.
But in 2019, the company put stricter limits on parties, banning “party houses” that were consistently causing neighborhood disturbances.
With the pandemic and the rise of social distancing to protect public health, Airbnb introduced new policies requiring guests to follow all local Covid-19 health mandates and removed filters such as “event-friendly” from searches.
But as local rules across the globe have changed in a patchwork fashion, with restrictions on restaurants, bars and clubs fluctuating, “some have chosen to take bar and club behavior to homes, sometimes rented through our platform,” Airbnb said.
“We think such conduct is incredibly irresponsible — we do not want that type of business, and anyone engaged in or allowing that behavior does not belong on our platform,” the company said in its announcement banning parties altogether.
Bans from the Airbnb community and possible legal action could result for hosts or guests who break the new rules.
On Wednesday, the company announced that it had submitted confidential paperwork with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering.
