https://ec.europa.eu/info/files/common-position-national-authorities-within-cpc-network-commercial-p...
2. Identification of traders and commercial content
It is understood, from Airbnb’s Hosting Standards5, that certain professional providers are allowed to use Airbnb’s platform to offer their accommodation services. However, when searching for accommodation on Airbnb’s website, the search result shows accommodation provided by both private individuals and professional providers with no distinction between the two. It should be noted that under Articles 6(1)(f) and 7(1) ,(2), (4)(b) of the UCPD6 a commercial practice is misleading if it is likely to deceive consumers on the nature and identity of the trader or if it omits such type of characterisations.
To comply with the UCPD, collaborative economy platforms should therefore prevent third party traders from offering accommodation/properties on the platform without clearly disclosing their professional motives. In particular, with a view to avoid omitting material information, the collaborative economy platform should, as a minimum, enable relevant third party traders to indicate to users that they are traders, and the platform should inform consumers whether and, if so, what criteria it applies to select the suppliers operating through it and whether and, if so, what checks it performs in relation to their reliability"
"With a platform like Airbnb, which enables accommodation sharing, the distinction between professional providers and private host peers may influence the decisions of consumers using the platform to book accommodation. In fact, on the one hand the distinction has implications for the question of whether the transaction is protected by consumer protection rules and, on the other, many consumers using Airbnb are looking for private homes with personal involvement and not necessarily for professional property owners. CPC authorities find that the lack of distinction between private host peers and professional providers on Airbnb’s website is likely to deceive consumers in relation to the nature of the trader, as set out in art 6 (1) (f) and 7(1) and (2), and is likely to cause a transactional decision that would not have been taken otherwise"
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-18-5809_en.htm
"The presentation of Airbnb's pricing, as well as the distinction between private and professional hosts currently does not comply with the requirements of EU law, in particular the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive"
"Airbnb must clearly identify if the offer is made by a private host or a professional, as the consumer protection rules differ"
"The company is expected to finalise its proposals and proceed with the implementation of the changes in all EU/European Economic Area language versions by the end of December 2018. In the case of non-compliance, consumer authorities could decide to resort to enforcement measures"
