Summer might just be a little quieter for those living near an Air BnB. One of the primary complaints that people have of holiday rentals is that the houses are "party central", especially the larger homes used for Schoolies Weeks and family reunions. The complaints mainly come in around street parking and excessive noise. But now it appears that Air BnB is cracking down on their own listings by enforcing their Community Standards and putting in place mechanisms to weed out those guests who might attempt to break the rules. A Party is defined as: "A diverse array of signals are used to determine violations of our party ban.
"These include factors like whether there has been an open-invite, excessive noise, excessive trash, excessive visitors, parking that impacts neighbours, and more."
As of 20 August 2020, Airbnb announced a global ban on all parties and events at Airbnb listings, including a cap on occupancy at 16, consistent with our community policies. This party ban applies to all future bookings on Airbnb, and it will remain in effect indefinitely, until further notice.
Air BnB Community Standards prohibit members of the Airbnb Community from creating a nuisance that disturbs the surrounding neighbourhood. Hosts and guests can meet this standard by making sure they clearly align on expectations for gatherings at listings. While we believe most guests are respectful, we’ve created our Parties and Events policy to provide clear guidance on what is expected from everyone. Until further notice, the policy prohibits:
Gatherings of more than 16 people
All disruptive parties and events
Guests who are reported for throwing a disruptive party or violating our rules on gatherings of more than 16 people are subject to suspension or removal from Airbnb’s platform. In some cases, guest reviews left after such parties may be removed. We may also remove listings if we determine that a Host has authorised a party that violates this policy. If we receive reports that a listing is disrupting the surrounding community, we may request that the Host update their rules or suspend the listing.
In addition to strengthening our rules around parties, we’re also working on risk-detection technologies that help stop disruptive parties before they even start.
Large gatherings Until further notice, gatherings of more than 16 people—including both overnight guests and visitors—are not allowed, regardless of Host authorisation.
Parties and events
Until further notice, all disruptive parties and events are prohibited, regardless of size. Guests who hold these types of events may have their account removed, and Hosts who violate this rule and allow guests to throw parties may be subject to account consequences up to and including the removal of their listing.
Reporting a disruption When a property that’s listed on Airbnb is causing a disturbance—whether that’s excessive noise, a disruptive party, a gathering of more than 16 people or unsafe behaviour—members of the local community can report it at Neighbourhood Support, which provides a link to local emergency services. They’ll also have access to the Neighbourhood Support team phone number, where they can report a party that’s still in progress. Once an issue is reported, Airbnb will send a confirmation email explaining what happens next.
Unauthorised party intervention
Reducing the number of unauthorised house parties on Airbnb has long been a priority. We're taking actions to support safe and responsible travel. As part of our global party ban, we may block certain reservations that we determine to be higher risk for unauthorised parties.
Listing content guidelines
In line with this policy, Hosts should not attract disruptive parties and events in their home by advertising their space as party- or event-friendly. Similarly, Hosts should not advertise their space for gatherings larger than 16 people.
Listings that violate these rules through the listing title, description, House Rules, photos, etc. may be suspended until the violating content is removed. Where we've received complaints for a property violating this rule, we may also suspend the listing for up to 30 days and ask the Host to update their listing to include an explicit rule stating that parties and events are not allowed.
In rare cases where it appears that the listing is intended only for the purposes of hosting parties or events (for example, party or event venues), or where a property has created a severe nuisance within a neighbourhood, the listing may be permanently removed from Airbnb.
Rules that apply to different property types Traditional hospitality settings We trust Hosts of traditional hospitality venues (such as boutique hotels) to determine their own rules for events. Traditional hospitality Hosts can allow appropriate events at their own discretion. In cases where we receive complaints about these listings and events or where the types of events are inappropriate, we will follow up with the venues as necessary. Source
