misleading insurance information and practice

[Lou-Raye0]

AirBnB misleads the public and hosts with its information on its host protection plan. While it has a policy with Zurich, my experience is that it does not involve the insurance company at all. It uses a third party adminstrator and makes liablity decisions itself. There is no due process. I had a serious fall and made a claim for medical expenses. The denial I received started with "no one has had this problem before" and had no mention of an appeal process. When I asked what their process was, the administrator said they would refer the matter back to their client, whom they identified as AirBnB when I asked. After 6 weeks and 2 emails from me, I received another denial - without telling me the process and without giving me a chance to make a case for myself. This denial was based on a reason other than what I had given in my original claim. They hadn't even bothered to be accurate on what the claim was. At this point I asked who made liability decisions and and was told it was AirBnB.

I have written the attorney genral of California where AirBnB is headquartered. I am writing the CEO and COO of Zurich UK about this misrepresentation of their company. I am also considering approaching a class action attorney. Having an insurance policy with no intention of using it is fraudulent according to the Insurance Commission of California.

Have you had a similar experience? Would you let me know about it? Will you write the attorney general of California?

[Alice-and-Jeff0]

@Lou-Raye0 - Sorry you fell while at an Airbnb (assuming this as this is not exactly what you said).  Hopefully you are on the mend.  

The Host Protection Insurance states right up front that it uses a third-party administrator. https://www.airbnb.com/host-protection-insurance

The policy protects HOSTS from claims made against them for bodily injury.  If you were injured on a property, you need to make a claim with the HOST, not Airbnb.  The host can then get Airbnb involved as the protection is put in place for them, not you. You can get your attorney to reach out to their homeowner's policy for compensation. You can use the Resolution Center to start the process.  https://www.airbnb.com/resolutions

You'll want to look at the Terms of Service you agreed to with regards to using Airbnb - specifically section 19 as it pertains to  Dispute Resolution and Arbitration Agreement. 

https://www.airbnb.com/terms#sec17

Hopefully you get things sorted out appropriately. 

[Lou-Raye0]

AirBnB took my claim. I have a claim number for it. I was assigned a representative in Broadspire. I was taken through the “process” of two denials. Never was anything said about making a claim with the host. I have the string of emails that record this. If the host would have had the same experience, I would not want it for her. Using a third party administator is fine so long as the insurance company that AirBnB promotes on their website is not excluded and a process that follows standard guidelines for the insurance industry is used.