Two weeks later Russian Invasion Ukraine, Gregory Offner is seeking help from his home in Philadelphia. He scrolled through Twitter and saw people posting receipts for Airbnbs they booked in Ukraine, to receive money directly into a Ukrainian bank account. The offer was inspired. He chose an apartment in Kharkiv, a city in the northeast was particularly affected and booked four nights for a total of $214. He left a note explaining that he wasn’t actually coming to stay — here it is Humanitarian aid.
The host responded the next day. “Thank you so much for your support, it means so much to us now,” he wrote, adding that he will be donating the money to Ukrainian Army. But Offner’s payment never came. The next day, Airbnb canceled and refunded the booking. “I received an email saying that someone hosting or using an Airbnb account in Ukraine ‘can no longer receive money’ from Airbnb,” Offner said. “Like, what does that even mean?”
That means — although the platform never informed Offner directly — that Airbnb suspects the host is not legitimate. “We have identified a small number of hosts who are not supporting this effort in the spirit it was intended,” said Ben Breit, global leader of trusted communications at Airbnb. After donation bookings started coming in, some homeowners created “ghost lists” for apartments that didn’t exist in Ukraine. In some cases, they may not live in Ukraine. That violates Airbnb’s policy on fake list, even if those listings are for fundraising purposes. After Offner booked, his Airbnb host directed him to several such listings in Kiev that he said could use some help from philanthropists like Offner. All listings were created this month.
By now, everyone has booked more than 434,000 nights in cities like Kyiv, Odessa, and Lviv to show solidarity with Ukrainians. According to Airbnb, these bookings have accumulated more than US$15 million. (The company, which typically accounts for about 20% of each booking, is already free in Ukraine.) But in its rush to get Ukrainians from abroad, some “guests” have had their bookings canceled without needing. many explanations, leaving them confused and uncomfortable about using Airbnb for such donations.
In mid-March, Airbnb stopped allowing entirely new hosts to create listings in Ukraine, an effort to reduce scams that also prevent real Ukrainians from receiving money through the platform. The company also said it is “closely evaluating” all listing activities in Ukraine and has put measures in place to detect fraud. Besides donating directly to Ukraine’s Airbnb organizations, Breit points out that people can also donate to Airbnb.org, which has committed to providing free, short-term housing to 100,000 refugees flee Ukraine.
The enforcement effort and accompanying lack of transparency have caused confusion. Kevin Coyne booked seven different Airbnbs in Ukraine earlier this month when he heard about the donation effort. For each person, he sends the same personal note; Most of the presenters wrote back to express their gratitude. By the end of the week, Airbnb had canceled three of his bookings. The company only wrote that the organizers “can no longer receive funds.” Connor Martin booked a five-night stay in Kyiv; the company refunded him on the last day he booked. He said he was upset by Airbnb’s bad message as to why his gesture of goodwill was rejected. “Their horrible walk,” he said.
Sybil Knox booked two Airbnbs in Ukraine – a loft in central Kyiv and a modern bedroom with a Jacuzzi – both of which have been canceled by the company. She didn’t receive any explanation as to why, and said neither host seemed to have any red flags: Both had been “identified” by Airbnbs, and they were engaged. the platform in 2013 and 2019. One of the apartments she booked had 125 reviews, with a rating of 4.92 stars; the other has 33 reviews and 4.67 reviews. When WIRED explained Airbnb’s policy for hosts creating new listings in the midst of the crisis, Knox had mixed feelings. She said the bad guys can certainly take advantage of people of goodwill during a crisis and she wanted to know that her money would go to a real Ukrainian citizen. On the other hand, “people in dire straits come up with creative ways to make more money for their cause,” she says. “This campaign is limited to people who are already an Airbnb provider. Others could not get on board. “
Both guests and hosts who canceled their bookings said that Airbnb’s policies on donating stays are still unclear. After Airbnb refunded Offner, the host messaged him on WhatsApp complaining that his account had been banned without explanation. “I have tried to contact the Airbnb support team and they have not been able to give any concrete answer,” he wrote. “As a result of this blocking, all bookings have been stopped and you can no longer receive donations through the Airbnb system.” Since the money never reached him, he asked Offner to send the payment directly using WayForPay, a Ukrainian type of PayPal.
