He takes revenge on his Airbnb landlord by blowing up his bills

Unhappy with his host’s business practices, the Airbnb tenant decided to take the law into his own hands. In this Korean case reported by The Independent, the dispute started from a supposed deception. A Chinese couple wanted to rent a villa in Seoul for 3 weeks and belatedly find out that even though the advert mentions the Korean capital, the accommodation is actually in the suburbs. When the two tourists wish to cancel the rental paid in full in advance, the owner opposes them with an end of inadmissibility.

Future tenants do not continue the negotiation any further, understanding that they will not recover their money and simply ask the owner if his accommodation is equipped with video surveillance. Once he answers them in the negative, they tell themselves that they can carry out their revenge. The method is very simple: even if they stayed in the accommodation which served as their rear base for a short time during their stay, they applied themselves to exploding the consumption of water, gas and electricity, by lighting as many devices as possible.

A provision of the Civil Code

Result: a bill of more than 1500 dollars (more than 1400 euros) with in particular 120 m3 of water or nearly 800 dollars of gas. Huge bills for which the owner could not be reimbursed by Airbnb, according to SBS, the Korean media that covered the case. A scenario that would not be covered by the insurance of the platform, unlike the damage caused by the tenants. And as the tourists went back home, the case stopped there.

And in France, what would happen in this case? One can imagine dissatisfied Airbnb customers for multiple reasons wishing to do themselves justice in this way. “It is up to the owner-lessor, victim of damage, to first ensure that the rental contract sanctions any abnormal or malicious behavior, underlines the lawyer specialized in real estate law Me Xavier Demeuzoy. In the absence of this mention in the lease or in the general conditions of the Airbnb platform, the owner can always base his action on the ground of tort liability provided for by article 1240 of the civil code, which obliges the author of a failure to repair the damage he has caused.

One thing is certain: even by avoiding extreme cases like this, energy overconsumption is beginning to worry some rental companies. From a strictly legal point of view, it seems difficult to bill the tenant for electricity or water or gas. However, other provisions emphasize that such consumption could be deducted from the security deposit. A legal vagueness giving rise to numerous discussions on rental forums. Billing is rarely welcomed by renters who might choose to opt for a classic “all-inclusive” stay. But with rising energy prices, homeowners’ desire for safety nets may well become more widespread.