Airbnb bans guest who falsely accuses him of spying

Airbnb host claims he was made to feel like “peeping Tom” by a guest who claimed he was spying on her using a “hidden cam”.

Robert Serr, 48 is a property developer who claims that the guest was reacting to his one star rating of her. She left his Palm Beach, Florida property in a filthy, disgusting state in December and took five hours for him to clean it.

The guest had published a long review on the property rental app that Serr, from Leeds, West Yorkshire, was spying on her with a concealed camera – which was in fact a carbon monoxide detector.

She stated that Serr had warned her not to host a party on the property, and she visited her personally while she was there.

She claimed Serr told her to leave his property the “same way I found them”, an exchange that she said made her feel uncomfortable.

The guest wrote that he did not feel at ease with the host’s visit, especially after he texted me to confirm that he would not be hosting a party.

“I just disclosed with him that (there will not) be a party on his property but we are celebrating my mother’s birthday.

“Also I saw two smoke detectors within one of the rooms. That is my concern. I believe there may be an audio recording device concealed in one detector.

Airbnb removed Serr from their account on 8 January as they investigated the accusations of the guest.

Serr said: “It is the vilest accusation to make about somebody, that I’m some kind of sick voyeur or peeping Tom. It’s very damaging to my reputation.

“It’s one step below saying I’m essentially a sex offender. If you are going to accuse Airbnb of making such an accusation, then they should accept my claim without any evidence and ban me. It makes you feel disgusting.

Airbnb must change its ways. You’re guilty until proven innocent.”

Serr stated that he had sent a message telling the guest that gatherings at the property were prohibited. She also asked if the property had a back yard, and Serr replied that it was located in a quiet neighborhood.

He claimed, however, that he was called twice by neighbours during his stay to inform him of a “big celebration”.

Serr stated that his cleaners arrived at his home after the guest claimed to have wiped the grease off the kitchen with towels and bedsheets.

He said: “Evidently the one-star rating I left her motivated Airbnb to get in touch.” [with her] I believe that she believed her lies when she said that my carbon monoxide detector was a camcorder.

An Airbnb spokesperson confirmed that an Airbnb spokesperson had suspended the account temporarily while they investigate the security query, but that Serr’s account has been reinstated.

They stated that they were disappointed to hear about the experience and had resolved the matter.

We have reached out to the host in order to reactivate their listing.

Serr, however, is considering quitting the platform following his suspension.

He said: “Am I supposed to be grateful that they’ve now restored my account that never should have been suspended in the first place?

“No. I have seen how easy it can be to shut down your entire business in a matter of minutes with very little recourse.