UK hosts please stop advertising your place for 'co-vid' retreats and putting others at risk

[Helen3]

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/06/minister-condemns-airbnb-hosts-offering-covid-19-...

So ashamed to see some UK hosts are taking advantage of the recent pandemic and advertising their place 'as Co-vid retreats' contrary to recent legislation in the UK that bans all STRs except for those housing key workers, those attending a funeral (and other essential visits).

Don't you care that you are helping spread the risk of the virus in your community, or do you live somewhere else and don't care that you are putting others in another community at risk.

Airbnb you put a block on hosts with shared homes from advertising their listing. Why don't you do the same for those with whole listing in the UK, unless they are signed up to host through your key worker scheme.

[Dimitar27]

Hahaha...one of our Covid-positives was found drowned in a lake nearby. He broke the quarantine and went fishing. The police asked Ministry of health where to put him - in the accidents statistic or in the Covid-19 one.

[Robin4]

@Dimitar27  Sounds a bit fishy to me!

Hope all is good in beautiful Sofia, Dimitar....had a lovely few days there a few years ago, a couple of nice meals at a Turkish (I think)  restaurant...... Dyanam Steak House! Nice weather, we were able to eat in the garden and were lucky enough to get great food.....me being a 'steak' man from way back. Just a bit expensive by Bulgarian standards but the food coupled with the opulent surroundings made for a really nice experience .

For those who haven't been there have a look at the ceiling detail, it just transfixes you as soon as you walk in!!!!

Try to stay safe from this virus thing Dimitar, all the best.

Cheers......Rob

[Dimitar27]

Most of the restaurants are good. I mean...there is a big difference between now and 10 years ago. Some of them are luxury and expensive, of course. Like everywhere in the world.

This story with the fisherman is probably a joke with our local police. Beside the virus, everything is almost normal. There is no panic or mass depression. Parks and recreational public areas are closed. The big concern is about the holydays - Palm Sunday and Easter. Many people are going to church and the authorities are afraid, that many can be infected. It's not easy to convince some people to stay home. They believe, that no virus can be spread inside the church, because the church is dedicated to God, and he will protect them.

[Helen3]

Thanks @Huma0 

There is of course also an exemption for key workers not covered in the above list, let me see if I can find it.

[Huma0]

@Helen3

I believe key workers are covered under the Critical Workers mentioned. If you click on that link, it gives a breakdown of what they mean by that, which includes health and social care.

It's actually quite a long list. See here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-educational-provision/gu...

[Huma0]

Airbnb is now blocking whole listings, in addition to private room listings, in the UK. However, according to this article there were still private room listings available to book when the BBC researched it:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-52229021

[Helen350]

I might have misled you on that @Huma0  when I posted it on your collected journalism thread..... I went back & edited my rubric to make it clear it was IB that was newly turned off, & that people can still send an enquiry to entire house listings. 

[Sam397]

@Helen3 I am not disagreeing with you or trying to start anything but I have a few comments about your thread.

First off I dont think its fair to say host who havent shut down are taking advantage of the pandemic. I think its more likely they are staying open because they are trying to survive. I have seen so many people on this forum look down on or criticize host for either wanting to be paid for guest cancelling or continue to operate. I imagine the majority of them people who are  criticizing are people who are not depending on the income they get from hosting to pay bills or provide for their family. So let me ask you and all the other host that are criticizing a question,  If it meant your children would not eat or have a roof over their head would you still feel the way you do? Because I have to be honest with you there should be very few things a parent shouldnt be willing to do in order to provide for their children And renting something out when the chances of something bad happening are slim is not one of them.

I dont know if these people are staying open in order to provide for their family any more than you know they are doing it because they are greedy all I am saying to criticize them when you dont know why they are doing it is whats shameful.

And my second issue with what you said is why is it acceptable to rent to a nurse who is down here because of the virus but not okay to rent to someone who came down for their job or someone who needs a place to stay because they are going nuts being cooped up in a house with a bunch of people for the last 3 weeks. The chances of spreading the virus are a lot higher to host someone on the front lines than it would be someone who has spent 3 weeks in a house.  

[Helen3]

You say you don't want to 'start anything' by commenting @Sam397 but then sadly go onto insult me and call me shameful.

As a parent and someone who works for our NHS,  I know only too well the terrible impact of this disease made possible in large part by  individuals and governments  whose behaviour is contributing to the spread of the virus. As a parent my main priority in this pandemic is to keep my children safe. 

There are millions of families who almost overnight have lost their income not just STR hosts. Thankfully we have an amazing welfare system in this country (compared to many) no family would not be able to feed their children. We already have a system in place where the vulnerable have free access to food.

STR hosts are luckier than most, we have options to take out mortgage breaks to reduce our outgoings and options to generate income from our properties by letting them out to key workers or changing to long term lets which aren't as risky as you make out as our tenancy laws are not like yours. There are millions of families here who don't have that option.

Perhaps if you came and spent some time in our over-burdened health services or indeed one of your own in somewhere like New York

you would have a different view. Health services around the world are literally having to make life or death choices around who gets treated because there aren't enough staff, bed or equipment to treat people.

Key workers are in the main local, they are not travelling to an area with the risk of them spreading the virus through every community they travel through and within their end destination. Health staff are also more likely to be vigilant about keeping themselves safe. Quite frankly if someone is going nuts being cooped up then suck it up. Being cooped up indoors won't kill you or others. The virus will.

We have 'stay put' orders in this country because social isolating  together with good hygiene and testing ( as demonstrated by other countries like China), is the only proven way of slowing down this disease,  reducing the devastating deaths that are happening around the world and giving our communities a chance to kick start the economy and for things to get back to some sense of normalcy.  If we don't we risk not being able to recover. 

I can see you are continuing to let your two listings so clearly we are not going to agree on this issue.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/apr/09/new-york-coronavirus-burials-hart-island?CMP=share_b...

[Sam397]

@Helen3 almost everything you said was true including what you said about me insulting you by saying you was shameful, I wasnt trying to say you were a shameful person I was just saying that  saying a person is wrong in doing something when you dont  know why they are doing it was shameful. But hey everybody is entitled to their own opinion and if you think its okay for a person to do that I am ok with us saying we have a different opinion on this subject.

And you said all that, but never answered my question. Why its okay to rent to first responders only? How come its safe to host a nurse or a fireman but not a businessman.?

And as far as me still renting my 2 listings, its actually 4 and 3 are currently occupied. The one listing has a guy staying in it that's in town to convert a local manufacturing company to where they can produce respirators. Another one has an elderly couple that's down here so the husband can receive cancer treatments at what is considered to be one of the best cancer treatment centers in the world.. And the third one has some vets that's down here volunteering to help at a animal hospital. None of them three would be considered to be essential and all according to you shouldn't be allowed to travel or be allowed to stay at a BnB. And that's my whole point, there are  people other than those considered to be essential that has legitimate reasons to be travelling and should have a right to travel and a place available to stay. And the government, AirBnB or you can say a specific group of people should or shouldn't  be allowed to travel, it needs to be looked at on a individual basis. I am not saying its okay for anyone who wants to travel to travel right now, I am just saying that it shouldn't be left up to people that are not willing  to make a decision based on the facts of that particular situation.  And asking AirBnB to play god by making it to where people cant book is not the answer. 

Again like I said this is not meant as an insult even though its going to sound like one but I dont know what you do for the NHS but I sure hope that the powers to be in that organization are not as closed minded and opinionated as you are. Things are not always black and white you know.

[Helen3]

I replied initially to be polite . Sadly it's clear you are just here to insult me so now as well as calling me shameful according to you I am 'closed minded and opinionated'. @Sam397  You can make your point without having to be nasty.

I did answer your point re key workers. Read my post again.

And please don't respond further you are adding no value to this thread.

[Huma0]

@Sam397 

The problem is, Airbnb aren't taking it case by case. Probably, it would be too time consuming for them to do so and customer services doesn't have the resources for that. I imagine if they were to take it case by case, they would require documentation of some kind to be able to reach a decision on each.

I just got off the phone to Airbnb CS. I had a potential local, long-term guest contact me some weeks ago, before the lock down. She found herself temporarily without a home because she was buying a place but the sale still hadn't gone through. That's pretty typical of the type of booking I get from locals. Since social distancing started here, I have always said I would be willing to take in one long-term, local guest (not tourists), providing they were working from home and following Government guidance/respecting the lock down restrictions.

I didn't hear from her for a while, then she suddenly contacted me saying she urgently needs somewhere to stay, like today. The purchase of her home had been further delayed due to the current situation and she could not stay with her elderly mother. She needs a home for around six weeks. As far as I can see, she fits into the government exceptions for people staying in an Airbnb that I posted earlier. Now, I don't know how desperate this lady's situation is, but she sounded really stuck. Under normal situations, a person could crash on a friend or family member's sofa, but not right now.

So, I called Airbnb and explained the situation. The rep understood and tried to unblock the dates on my calendar, but was not able to do so. There is simply no way for anyone to book my rooms via Airbnb, UNLESS they qualify for the open homes scheme. I don't know if that scheme is relevant though to a non-key worker who happens to be temporarily homeless out of simple bad luck?

[Ekaterina109]

Finally some sense from Sam397. What if there's a burst sewer and workers need to come from distance for a few days to fix it? What if a woman is seperating from their partner and needs temporary accomodation - what if the partner has now turned abusive because they are stuck in the same house together. The situations for needing private temporary accomodation at this time are endless. Particularly now that the letting market has seized up (people aren't allowed to view properties and landlords wont take on tenants due to them not requiring to pay rent and the non-eviction laws). How can anyone get infected by driving in a car to a private property with private entrance and being locked down there instead? There is more risk to the public if a person is made homeless because they have no place to live, or if they go and stay at a friends/family member's house and give them the virus. There's so much fear going on at the moment people are not thinking logically. More lives are being destroyed by the 'cure' than the disease.

[Helen3]

@Ekaterina109  thanks for the comment.

As you know key workers such as those working on sewers would be covered under exemptions under the legislation.

https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/read-this/some-tradesmen-can-still-work-despite-coronavirus-lockdown...

There are refuge's for those feeling domestic violence (not enough I agree)  but some and these are being expanded. It is absolutely disgusting that year on year there have been huge cuts in funding for places of safety.

Letting agents are still continuing to operate by doing virtual lettings and there has been a surge in longer term rentals coming onto the market.

People travelling to STRs visit petrol stations and places to eat along the way, shop when they are staying somewhere and are out and about in the community with the potential to spread the virus as they go. Why do you think the government put the lock down in place and is so upset by STRS and second homers breaking the law? These resorts and tourist areas don't have the health resources or infrastructure to support larger scale outbreaks.

Holiday makers are flocking to our beaches and tourist hot spots resulting in the terribly scenes seen during the hot spell, where people crowded onto our beaches and other beauty spots.

https://theferret.scot/airbnbs-edinburgh-glasgow-coronavirus-lockdown/

https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2020/4/short-lets-exposed-by-bbc-news-as-flouting-...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-52229021

https://www.expressandstar.com/news/uk-news/2020/04/06/airbnb-hosts-found-offering-isolation-retreat...

https://www.kentonline.co.uk/maidstone/news/revealed-the-airbnbs-flouting-virus-advice-225292/

You state that more lives are being destroyed by the cure 'i.e' the lockdown than the virus. Tell that to the 65,872 who have suffered having the virus and the nearly 8000 people who have sadly died and their friends and family or the millions of health and care workers putting their lives on the line every day to care for us.. No-one has ever died or had their lives put at risk by having to stay home.

Now more than ever we need to pull together as a community. We cannot be putting our personal profit before the health and safety of others.

[Helen427]

@Helen3  with no disrespect to those who know people who have lost their lives and those who work with them at the coalface, there's been a complete lack transparency and consideration of including pre-existing conditions as cause of death in reported deaths.

Claiming COVID 19 as cause of death with a blanket approach is not acting in anyone's best interests.

Or is it true older people are dying because of exposure to mustard gas which was as a treatment for illnesses as young ones catching up with them?

Some academic are known to spin spin for their own glory.

Pharmaceutical companies are always on the look out to create new drugs. We here in NZ have some long term ESR " Drs" currently working on a single pill for children  for immunisation,  they would probably be better carrying out their roles in country's where viruses are rampant from lack of public health resources been used wisely