EU is forcing Airbnb to comply with European rules
Airbnb does not follow the European rules and they have until the end of August to change that. That strong language was spoken by a committee of the European Union. The middleman for room rental would have to deal with new regulations if the adjustments do not meet the EU requirement. So far, Airbnb has got away with it, but “popularity can not be an excuse for not complying with the European rules”, says a committee member.
What should Airbnb change? Firstly, it must be clearly indicated for tenants what an apartment, room or house costs. And not only at checkout, but when you’re looking. There is indeed nothing as annoying as thinking that you have found a nice place for a nice price, to find out afterwards that all kinds of cleaning and / or service costs are added. That must therefore be finished. From September you will immediately see the price of an overnight stay on the page with the search results, and that is so clear. The difference between professional and private landlords must also be made clearer to people who book.
Fair rules for consumers
But there is more that is unclear, says the committee that Airbnb has in sight. The policy for cancellation, claims and the possible return of money can and must be clearer. EU-European Commissioner Věra Jourová (Justice and Consumers) says about this Bloomberg that “consumers need to be able to understand what they are paying for and how much that will be.” They are also entitled to fair rules of the game. if the stay does not continue for any reason. “
Some of the problems the EU has with Airbnb are in the fine print. The Committee, for example, denounces the fact that Airbnb deprives consumers of their basic right to sue a host if they suffer injury or other damage and they have problems with the fact that Airbnb has the exclusive right to decide which conditions still apply when a contract is terminated. Airbnb has said to take the criticism to heart and where necessary to clarify matters, but whether they will meet all the requirements is still the question. The consumer arm of the EU does not have all the options that the antitrust branch has, for example, so millions of penalties will not occur. We see at the end of the summer how much effect the tick has had on the fingers.