Evan Baily
Sep 9, 2018 · 1 min read

There’s a practical problem with this policy that Airbnb should be very concerned about, because it’s likely to have long-term negative effects on their product and business.

By enacting a policy that allows one dissatisfied party to lodge a complaint that results not only in the banning but also in the silencing of the other party, Airbnb incentivizes all participants in their product ecosystem to launch a preemptive strike if something goes even a little bit wrong. Because hey, if I don’t, the other person might, and I’ll never get a chance to tell my side of the story. So I better hit first and hit hard.

Over time, this race to be first to go on record with bad things that happen will likely make both hosts and guests more sensitive to even the smallest bumps in the road, magnify their sense of grievance, inflate their descriptions of any grievances, and increase the volume of complaints Airbnb has to process.

So completely separate and apart from the question of whether laws need to be enacted to give consumers recourse in situations like this, I’d say purely as a matter of building a positive ecosystem, Airbnb needs a review process that allows someone who’s been accused of an infraction to respond.

    Evan Baily

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    Evan Baily is a TV/film producer, entrepreneur, and writer.