Airbnb announced Friday that it has suspended or removed 17 San Diego County listings as part of a crackdown on "party houses" that have either received complaints or violated the company's policies regarding parties and events.
The actions targeted listings in Escondido and La Mesa, as well as a variety of San Diego neighborhoods, including Clairemont Mesa, Linda Vista, Mission Bay Park, North Park, Pacific Beach, Peninsula, Southeastern San Diego and Uptown.
Airbnb said in a statement that the hosts were notified over the past week.
The company said the action follows a recent policy change banning parties at all bookings until further notice, in addition to capping listings at 16 people.
"In this current environment, it's more important than ever before to prevent large parties and gatherings, and we support the efforts of local officials to put a stop to this irresponsible behavior," said Airbnb director of Public Policy in San Diego, John Choi. "We hope that sharing out these steps today can raise further awareness of our 24/7 neighbor hotline so that we can strengthen the enforcement of our ban on party houses throughout San Diego County."
The company said many of the listing suspensions resulted from concerns raised by county residents through the company's neighbor hotline.
The announcement also comes less than a month after the San Diego City Attorney's Office brought legal action against a Bankers Hill short-term Airbnb rental that allegedly was the site of large, raucous parties in violation of the county's public health order.
Airbnb reiterated, "The vast majority of hosts in San Diego County contribute positively to their neighborhoods and economy, and they also take important steps to prevent unauthorized parties -- like establishing clear house rules, quiet hours and communicating in advance with their guests. Our actions today address the small minority of hosts who have previously received warnings about hosting responsibly or have otherwise violated our policies."
