San Francisco, California-based Airbnb has decided to implement a $50,000 Airbnb Guarantee, protecting the property of hosts from damage by Airbnb guests who book reservations through its website.

Published: 03 Aug 2011

San Francisco, California-based Airbnb has decided to implement a $50,000 Airbnb Guarantee, protecting the property of hosts from damage by Airbnb guests who book reservations through its website.

The company will be going ahead with this initiative, starting August 15th .

Airbnb has taken initiative after it emerged that last month the home of a San Francisco host named EJ was tragically vandalized by a guest. The company connects people who have space to spare with those who are looking for a place to stay.

Referring to the incident, Brian Chesky, CEO, Co-founder, Airbnb wrote on the company’s blog: “The damage was so bad that her life was turned upside down. When we learned of this our hearts sank. We felt paralyzed, and over the last four weeks, we have really screwed things up.”

He added, “There have been a lot of questions swirling around, and I would like to apologise and set the record straight in my own words. In the last few days we have had a crash course in crisis management. I hope this can be a valuable lesson to other businesses about what not to do in a time of crisis, and why you should always uphold your values and trust your instincts.”

“With regards to EJ, we let her down, and for that we are very sorry. We should have responded faster, communicated more sensitively, and taken more decisive action to make sure she felt safe and secure. But we weren’t prepared for the crisis and we dropped the ball. Now we’re dealing with the consequences. In working with the San Francisco Police Department, we are happy to say a suspect is now in custody. Even so, we realise that we have disappointed the community. To EJ, and all the other hosts who have had bad experiences, we know you deserve better from us.”