Judge sides with Airbnb in lawsuit from US apartment landlord


Airbnb may have just dodged a bullet. A Los Angeles federal judge has ruled against major American landlord Apartment Investment & Management Co (AIMCO) in its lawsuit accusing Airbnb of helping tenants violate their lease agreements through unapproved short-term rentals. The judge determined that Airbnb was protected by the Communications Decency Act, which protects internet services against liability for the content posted by their users. It's the tenants that are responsible for the rule-breaking listings, the court said, not Airbnb for hosting them.

AIMCO sued Airbnb in 2017 after some of its tenants in upscale LA apartments complained about Airbnb tourists making noise, damaging property and putting residents at risk. It hoped to bar Airbnb from listing any of its properties. Airbnb already has terms of service that requires rental hosts to obey lease agreements and local laws, but that clearly hasn't stopped some customers.

Airbnb is unsurprisingly happy with the outcome. The decision lets it "continue to support tenant hosts" who use rentals to "help pay the bills," according to a statement (you can read it in full below). It also used the remark to take a not-so-subtle dig at AIMCO, arguing that "forward-looking landlords" could join its Friendly Buildings Program to make money alongside their tenants.

The verdict won't help the tenants themselves, since they did break their leases. Moreover, it won't address gripes from apartment dwellers concerned that their buildings are becoming makeshift hotels, which tends to drive up rental rates and spur complaints. However, it could prompt greater clarity from landlords. If their agreements do forbid Airbnb-style rentals, they may be more likely to explicitly warn tenants knowing that they can't sue Airbnb for compensation.

"We are pleased with the court's decision that ensures Airbnb can continue to support tenant hosts who use our platform to help pay the bills. The partnerships we have established with landlords have made it clear that home sharing can be a win-win situation for everyone. The Airbnb Friendly Buildings Program allows tenants to leverage their greatest expense to make extra money and can create new economic opportunities for landlords. We are excited to have many such partnerships in place and we continue to see tremendous interest from forward-looking landlords and developers who understand that home sharing is going to be part of the solution, especially for Millennials who are facing historic debt."

Source: Bloomberg

via Engadget RSS Feed "http://ift.tt/2CtHKv8"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Evernote cuts staff as user growth stalls

Image
Note-taking app Evernote has fallen on hard times of late, culminating in its latest spate of job cuts impacting 15 percent of its workforce (54 employees). CEO Chris O' Neil -- an ex-Googler who took the reins in 2015 -- announced the firings at an all-hands meeting earlier today, reports TechCrunch . In a message on the Evernote blog , O' Neill admitted he'd set "incredibly aggressive goals" for the company in 2018. He continued: "Going forward, we are streamlining certain functions, like sales, so we can continue to speed up and scale others, like product development and engineering." The layoffs follow an exec exodus just weeks ago and the company's recent brand refresh (complete with a refined logo and wordmark). But critics are more concerned about its product, especially the free tier, which they claim lacks the perks to...
Read more

The best air conditioner

Image
By Liam McCabe This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter . When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here . After six summers of researching, testing, and recommending window air conditioners, we've learned that quiet and affordable ACs make most people the happiest—and we think the LG LW8016ER will fit the bill in most rooms. This 8,000 Btu unit cools as efficiently and effectively as any model with an equal Btu rating, and runs at a lower volume and deeper pitch than others at this price. Little extra features like a fresh-air vent, two-axis fan blades, and a removable drain plug help set it apart, too. The LG LW8016ER is a top choice for an office or den, and some people will find it quiet enough for a bedroom, too. If our main pic...
Read more

We won't see a 'universal' vape oil cartridge anytime soon

Image
Pre-loaded cartridges of cannabis concentrate are currently among the most popular means of consumption, and for good reason. They're discreet to use and easy to handle, a far cry from the dark days of 2016 when we had to dribble hash oil or load wax into narrow-mouthed vape pens by hand. But, frustratingly, an ever increasing number of oil cartridge manufacturers employ one-off design standards so that their products won't work with those of their competitors, thereby locking customers into proprietary ecosystems. We've already seen this with nicotine vaporizers -- which has a seen a massive rise in "pod systems" in the last few years, each outfitted with a unique canister and battery built to be incompatible with those of their competition. Is it too late for the burgeoning cannabis industry to set a universal standard for their product designs? ...
Read more