In an unprecedented move, the vacation rental technology platform Airbnb has vouched to help their partners with a $250m fund.
This fund is intended to compensate part of the loss-of-revenue suffered by hosts who had booking cancelled due to the Cover-19 outbreak. Airbnb said it would pay 25% of what the host would “normally receive through your cancellation policy.”
In a letter to their hosts, Airbnb Chief Executive Officer Brian Chesky claimed that when they “allowed guests to cancel and receive a refund, we knew it could have significant consequences on your livelihood […] but, we couldn’t have guests and hosts feel pressured to put themselves into unsafe situations and create an additional public health hazard.”
This move contrasts with what other OTAs have been refusing to acknowledge since most countries have limited or banned all flights to and from their airports.