Airbnb has recently updated their Major Disruptive Events policy. According to a release, the Policy applies to reservations for both accommodations and Experiences, and is applicable to reservations that are ongoing or that have a check-in on or after the effective date, except as otherwise notified by Airbnb to users. In addition they say the Major Disruptive Events Policy is not an insurance policy. The new Policy will apply to all reservations taking place on or after June 6, 2024, except as otherwise notified by Airbnb to users. If you have Airbnb investment properties be sure to fully understand the new rules. The Policy can be found by clicking here.
Covered events:
Declared public health emergencies and epidemics. Government-declared epidemics, pandemics, and public health emergencies. This does not include diseases that are endemic (for example, the flu) or commonly associated with an area (for example, malaria in Thailand). COVID-19 is not covered under this Major Disruptive Events Policy.
Government travel restrictions. Mandatory travel restrictions imposed by a governmental agency, such as an evacuation order. This does not include non-binding travel advisories and similar government guidance.
Military actions and other hostilities. Acts of war, hostilities, invasions, civil war, terrorism, explosions, bombings, rebellions, riots, and insurrection.
Large-scale outages of essential utilities. Prolonged outages of essential utilities, such as heat, water, and electricity, impacting the vast majority of homes in a given location.
Natural disasters. Natural disasters and other severe weather events. Weather or natural conditions that are common enough to be foreseeable in a given location—for example, hurricanes occurring during hurricane season in Florida—are covered only when they result in another Event covered by this Policy that prevents completion of the reservation, such as a mandatory evacuation order or large-scale outage of essential utilities.
Examples of events that are not covered:
- Events that impact a guest or their ability to travel, but not the reservation location
- Unexpected injury or illness
- Government obligations like jury duty or court appearances
- Non-binding travel advisories or other government guidance that fall short of a travel ban or prohibition
- Cancellation or rescheduling of an event for which the reservation was made
- Transportation disruptions unrelated to a covered Event, such as airline insolvency, transportation strikes, and road closures due to maintenance
Click here to read the full release at Airbnb.
