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Airbnb Halloween party crackdown, hosts offered noise detectors

Airbnb offering hosts noise detector devices, not allowing guests without positive reviews to rent single-nights.

SAN DIEGO — Airbnb has a strong message ahead of Halloween weekend: no parties allowed. The company is adding extra measures to prevent large, disruptive gatherings.

"Anyone looking to book will have to attest that they know about Airbnb's no party policy. If they violate these rules, they may be subject to legal action from the company," said Mattie Zazueta, Head of Public Policy Communications at Airbnb.

Airbnb is rolling out new rules to ensure its no party policy is followed on Halloween weekend. This comes after past incidents where large groups have gotten out of hand. Earlier this month, two high school students were shot and killed at a party in Oakland.

Airbnb is offering hosts noise detector devices that notify them when there's a loud noise. During a previous pilot, the device was set to 75 decibels during the day which is about the noise level of a vacuum and 70 decibels at night which is similar to office noise.

Hosts will receive a notification on their phones when the noise level has been high for more than ten minutes. Then it's up to the owner if they want to intervene.

"Anyone who tries to book an entire home listing for a one-night reservation without a positive history of reviews on the platform will be blocked from doing so," Zazueta said.

For a two-night reservation guests without positive reviews or people booking at the last-minute will not be allowed to rent an entire home. 

Jerry Lowe, an Airbnb host and Short Term Rental Alliance of San Diego board member, has mixed feelings about the new policies.

"I think it's good to have some measures in place, but I think having someone have a bad review and not being able to rent, depending on the situation there are a lot of extenuating circumstances," Locke said.

He's encountered parties but says it rare.

"Unfortunately, that does happen, but I'd say usually 98 percent of the time people do adhere to the rules," he said. 

WATCH RELATED: Are hotels now cheaper than Airbnb's? (Oct. 2022).

    


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