SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - Airbnb faces a lawsuit in San Francisco after guests were allegedly recorded in a bedroom, sometimes without clothes.
Several individuals whose full names are not listed on the complaint sued the vacation rental company in San Francisco Superior Court on July 6, claiming negligence, negligent supervision and vicarious liability, among other things.
The suit says Airbnb is "well aware" guests find hidden cameras in rentals.
"Indeed, Airbnb has done nothing to prevent its guests from being recorded," the suit says.
"It does not even provide the minimal step of warning its guests that there is a chance they will be videotaped while staying in an Airbnb rental, including their most private moments, such as having sex or getting undressed."
Users assume renters on the Airbnb network have been sufficiently vetted, the suit says. It says the plaintiffs stayed at the Cielito Lindo Ranch in Comfort, Texas. In the case of two of the renters, a man named Allee told them there was one way in and out of the property and if they heard gun shots, he was probably shooting a rattle snake.
The suit says Allee, who was rated a "superhost" by Airbnb, said they would have the privacy to have coffee on the patio naked. Later that day, one of the plaintiffs noticed a small camera in the bedroom, so they quickly fled the property, they say.
After a complaint to authorities, Allee began sending threatening text messages, the suit says.
The lawsuit details several other instances. Allee faces criminal charges for making more than 2,000 recordings, some of which show his guests having sex.