Airbnb Cancels Halloween Rentals In Bid To Halt Parties

Airbnb has canceled one-night rentals over Halloween weekend as part of an ongoing effort to crack down on party houses.

The San Francisco-based company is now blocking new one-night reservations, and are offering refunds to any previously booked nights over the holiday weekend, according to ABC News.

In addition, the company will ‘look more closely’ at two and three-night reservations during Halloween – with some guests facing rejection if they try to book an entire house close to their own residence during that period, and have no history of positive reviews on the service.

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.

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. –ABC News

The company’s efforts come nearly a year after five people were killed in a shooting at an Airbnb Halloween party in Orinda, California.

According to the report, guests and hosts who violate the new rules may face legal action – noting that in August the company launched legal proceedings against a guest who held an unauthorized house party in Sacramento, California.