by Rachel Sharp at The Daily Mail
Airbnb has a secretive team to keep disaster stays out of the press and gives staff blank checks to help rape victims and pay to clean up dismembered human remains, according to a report.
The short-term property rental company, which went public in December, has spent an estimated $50 million every year on payouts to hosts and guests when things go wrong, according to Bloomberg Businessweek which interviewed several former members of the secretive safety team.
The team – known as the ‘black box’ inside the firm – is made up of around 100 agents across cities including Dublin, Montreal and Singapore, several of whom have backgrounds in the military or emergency services.
Team members have the power to spend any amount tackling the worst crises at their rentals including sexual assaults, murders and deaths – providing support to guests and hosts and also working to keep the incidents out of the public eye, Bloomberg reported.
In one incident, a rape victim received a $7 million payout in exchange for agreeing not to ‘imply responsibility or liability’ on Airbnb or the host after a ‘career criminal’ used a duplicate key to enter a New York City rental and attacked her at knifepoint, according to the report.
The revelation of the team’s existence – and its power to keep the worst incidents out of the press – raises questions about the scale of shocking incidents taking place at Airbnb properties and the company’s ability to ensure safety for its guests and hosts…
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