Airbnb forcing to pay for damages without explanation

[Jack2765]

Hi I'm enquiring some help. I was recently staying with a host in an apartment building which had a gym. I went to the gym stepped on the eliptical it collapsed, I fell and the eliptical's arm went through a window. 

Airbnb is asking me to pay for the damages for the window, weirdly not to the eliptical. 

Their justification is the following: 

Hi We do under your concerns and questions raised, however we did the investigation and after careful review we reach out to the final decision. Regards Jeremy A.

I asked them to check for the video footage of the building where you can clearly see I came in the gym and 5 minutes later walked out . At least explain how I could possibly have destroyed an elliptical in such a short time . 

But that's all I got. 

Is there a way to ask for at least a proper justification?

Thank you 

Added note: I just noticed the person in charge of the case, and the person in charge of the appeal seem to have the same first name and last name first letter: Jeremy A. If it's the same person how is it an appeal?

[Levi165]

Unfortunately, I've been on the end of both sides of this. Although it's common to feel that the outcome is "unjust" when it's against you, I think the undeniable truth is that Airbnb is extremely inconsistent, does a very poor job of dealing with things "in the moment," and will always prioritize Airbnb over everything, even Hosts' business and Guests' safety.

I had guests who broke rules and made desperate claims that were clearly frivolous, and in my last stay, I had a Host who had two broken bathrooms (out of 3) and who had private security harass us at 2am for hours when we reported the issues (including filming through bedroom windows), in what was so bad that the listing is suspended and the City of Seattle is investigating and Airbnb said "whoops, here's $300 of your $5,000 stay back." In both cases, I thought that I would be at least a little protected by documenting it well and communicating strongly in the moment (i.e. "the guest seems to be suggesting that they will request a refund, here's evidence" or "the Host is making us feel uncomfortable right now and we are seeking help from the Safety team." In both cases, it really didn't matter.

You will get ripped off by guests again. You might have one or two rulings that feel more fair, but make no bones about it -- the only way to not get screwed by Airbnb is by not using Airbnb. You're almost certainly better off renting long term as a landlord and relying on established housing laws, and getting a hotel from a real proprietor as a guest. There's a reason that Airbnb is seeing such a huge decline (and this is from a SuperHost who made about $900/night at 90% occupancy at the peak). 

[Jack2765]

Thank you very much for your thoughtful response. I'm indeed just resigned. I just fought them a little bit more about the fact that the appeal process was just the same person who initially assessed the case reapproving it. After three back and forth email asking them if it was indeed the same person, they kept avoiding the question but at least they didn't deny it.

I hope things will get better for your business! Thanks again