How has Airbnb answered to its security backlash?
The world’s largest home-sharing platform has received plenty of criticism due to some concerns over safety and an apparent unwillingness to deal with it. However, its business model continues to thrive. Airbnb revealed some of its newest safety policies to improve its practices as it plans to go public this year. Let’s review some of that.
In early December, the WSJ provided Airbnb with a series of questions about previous safety issues and concerns. Just a little later, the company announced a $150 million investment on safety initiatives and a direct line with city officials in every town the company is based so they could get in touch with the company whenever there were issues. In this report, the WSJ discussed hundreds of police records where Airbnb hosts and renters faced problems that could’ve been prevented with better collaboration.
Some employees have suggested improved background checks for guests, requiring official IDs or Social Security numbers to improve safety, but the company so far has only accepted to remove individuals with serious criminal conviction records from the platform. As can be seen with this, Airbnb is struggling to find a balance between protecting users’ privacy and protecting their safety, which is a common issue among digital platforms.
However, the company does not think that relying on government IDs is an efficient system. Instead, they’re moving towards a verified ID system.
The company has received plenty of criticism over its safety policies from its clients, local and federal authorities, and housing competitors. Some of this criticism is purely political. Airbnb business model has displaced hotels and other accommodations, and their competition hides behind these criticisms and appeal to authorities to take Airbnb down in their cities and even countries. This is what happened to Uber in Colombia.
However, there have been reports of remote surveillance, theft, destruction of property, and even sexual assault, although serious crimes are incredibly rare. The most common security issue is that many properties do not have smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, fire extinguishers, and first aid kits.
Even as most customers are satisfied with Airbnb, certain shocking events led to public cries for better practices. For example, last year, a shooting at a Halloween Party in California ended with five people killed. The property was an Airbnb.
The company vowed to launch a 24/7 rapid response hotline for neighbors and authorities and improve its study of high-risk reservations.
Airbnb’s security backlash proves that we are in an age of deep accountability. The competition will always try to use safety issues to try to get further regulations on these businesses to hinder their business models. Organizational leadership must always be proactive and attentive to customers’ claims. This decade is the decade of customer-oriented services, whatever your industry is.
The company didn’t answer quickly enough for some, and that may affect its IPO in 2020. Still, the substantial investment it’s making in safety, and further collaboration with local authorities may help the company to regain trust from users.