Judge: Airbnb Can Be Held Liable for Shooting Death at Illegal Short-Term Rental

A San Francisco Superior Court judge has overruled Airbnb’s request to dismiss a case brought against it by the parents of a teen who died in August 2021 after being shot at a party held in a Sunnyvale, California, home rented on Airbnb. According to an article from ACCESSWIRE, the case — Elhania v. Airbnb, Inc. — will be the first in the nation to potentially hold Airbnb legally responsible for a victim’s death from a shooting at an Airbnb party, which happen more often than one might assume. In the last 30 days, injuries and deaths from “shootouts” at Airbnb parties were reported in Utah, Alabama, Texas, and Georgia.

Until now, Airbnb has been able to dismiss the case by arguing it can’t be held liable because injuries at parties could not be foreseen and that they’re merely a platform connecting renters with property owners. So what’s making the case stick this time? The fact that Airbnb violated the local city ordinance regulating short-term rentals, which were specifically designed to protect the type of harm the 18-year-old Elias Elhania suffered. Those violations include the fact that the rental was an illegal short-term rental, the owner was not on site throughout the stay, and Airbnb rented the unit to an unaccompanied minor.

ACCESSWIRE reports, “Airbnb, in the oral argument, argued that because it conducts business in many cities, counties, and countries, all of which has [stet] different laws, it is impossible for Airbnb to determine what the law is or comply with it. Airbnb also argued that the local law regulating short-term rentals does not apply to Airbnb, only to the property owners.” The judge disagreed and ruled “that Airbnb can be held legally responsible … if the short-term rental violates a local ordinance that is designed to protect the public's health, safety, or welfare from disorderly conduct.”

As this case moves forward in court against Airbnb and the property owner, it will be one to keep an eye on, particularly as cities and counties across the United States struggle to enforce short-term rental rules to minimize the negative impact of the industry on local communities. Thus far, Airbnb has had little incentive to work with local governments to ensure short-term rental owners doing business through their platform are following local regulations. If they can be held liable for death or injury at short-term rentals from their platform that violate local ordinances aimed at preventing these threats to public safety, it could be a game changer.