Airbnb will prohibit one-night rentals over Halloween weekend as part of its ongoing effort to crack down on party houses.
The action, announced Friday, comes nearly a year after a deadly shooting at an Airbnb in Orinda, California. Five people were killed in the shooting, which happened during an unauthorized Halloween party.
San Francisco-based Airbnb said it will ban one-night rentals of entire homes in the U.S. and Canada on Oct. 30 or Oct. 31. Previously booked one-night rentals will be canceled and Airbnb will offer refunds.
The action to cancel one-night rentals, announced Friday, comes nearly a year after a deadly shooting at an Airbnb in Orinda, California
Airbnb said it will also look more closely at two- and three-night reservations during Halloween. A guest may be denied, for example, if they try to book a whole home close to their own home during that period and they don´t have a history of positive reviews on Airbnb.
Airbnb has taken a series of steps to crack down on parties since last year´s shooting. Last November, it started manually reviewing U.S. and Canadian reservations to weed out suspicious rentals.
The company's efforts have intensified as it prepares for an initial public stock offering, which could come later this year.
Five people were killed in the shooting, which happened during an unauthorized Halloween party
In July, the company banned U.S. and Canadian guests under age 25 with fewer than three positive reviews from booking entire homes close to where they live. That policy was later expanded to the United Kingdom, Spain and France. And in August, Airbnb banned parties worldwide and limited occupancy at its rentals to 16 people.
Airbnb has also warned guests and hosts that it could take legal action against violators. In August, for the first time, it started legal proceedings against a guest who held an unauthorized house party in Sacramento, California.
The October 31, 2019, shooting sent some 100 terrified partygoers running for their lives. Five were arrested in connection to the shooting.
The owner of the property - who thought he had rented it to just 12 people - saw the party unfold over the home's security cameras before calling the police
The owner of the property - who thought he had rented it to just 12 people - saw the party unfold over the home's security cameras before calling the police.
Members of rival gangs from San Francisco and Marin City were among those at the party, authorities said last year in November.
Five people were injured, which is one more than previously reported. Three had gunshot wounds but one had severe injuries from jumping more than 30 feet from a balcony to escape gunfire.
Tiyon Farley, 22, of Antioch; Omar Taylor, 24, of Pittsburg; Raymon Hill Jr., 23, of San Francisco and Oakland; Javlin County, 29, of Sausalito and Richmond; and Oshiana Tompkins, 19, of Vallejo and Hercules, died in the shooting.
