An Airbnb guest wants to warn others that using the platform for short term rentals may not be as safe as users would hope.
In a video TikTok viewed over 1.4 million times as of Tuesday morning, Frankie (@avocadosnaliens) shared an experience she had at a rental that left her shaken up.
“This is why Airbnb is DANGEROUS,” the text overlay on the clip read.
What happened?
According to the woman, who is also a photographer, she has never used TikTok to call out a brand or company before.
“It would take them doing something completely immoral in order for me to even bring it up,” she explains in the video.
But her experience renting an Airbnb pushed her over the edge. She issued a scathing review and PSA to warn others, especially women who travel alone.
“The experience I just had with Airbnb is beyond be insane,” she says in the video.
While visiting New York for a funeral, she decided to stay at an Airbnb. Upon arrival, the cleaning woman was still there, which was the first red flag.
“Even though this goes against their policies of having someone in the unit upon entry, I didn’t care about this,” she continues.
Frankie says the woman left ten minutes later.
However, shortly after the cleaning woman departed, the TikToker heard a noise at the front door. Then she heard someone typing in the code to unlock a door.
“So I go out into the hallway of the Airbnb and what do I find?” she asks viewers. “It is a six-foot-five beefy dude.”
The man said he had returned to look for his ID, which he insisted she should go look for. She agreed to look and could not find it, but that did not convince the man to leave.
Frankie says it took ten minutes to get him out of the rental. All the while, she felt incredibly unsafe and uncomfortable.
How did the Airbnb host respond?
The TikToker says she then immediately called the host. Sadly, the woman was not helpful.
The host allegedly admitted to Frankie that she does not change the code to the back door because it has a chain lock.
“Does it look like there’s a chain lock on this door?” the TikToker asks viewers as she shows a photo of the alleged door.
Ultimately, Frankie decided to leave because she felt unsafe.
She says that it took Airbnb support six hours to finally agree to pay for her to stay at a hotel. However, they would not issue her a refund for her stay at the Airbnb. She also alleges that the company could not assure her that moving forward, the host would have to change the code for the door at that Airbnb.
The Daily Dot reached out to Airbnb by email for further information.
Airbnb horror stories
Other customers have taken to TikTok with Airbnb horror stories. Many of them have to do with safety. Others have even had experiences that resulted in serious harm or death.
One guest said her host failed to disclose that they lived on the property and constantly monitored it.
Another woman blasted the company for not holding its rentals up to the same standards as hotels. She said the company’s failure to uphold safety rules and laws resulted in a chimney fire that claimed the lives of her sister and niece.
Viewers chime in
In the comments, many users shared negative sentiments about Airbnb.
“Watch Barbarian, you’ll never stay in an Airbnb again,” one user said, referring to the 2022 horror movie.
“Airbnb support is literally there for the owners,” another user commented.
“One time our host was literally dead so we couldn’t enter and we tried contacting airbnb and they said the only way to get a refund was to talk to the host … Ok lemme talk to his ghost [real quick],” someone else shared.
@avocadosnaliens Take a shot everytime i say airbnb #airbnbnightmare #airbnb #airbnbexperience @airbnb ♬ original sound – Frankie
Others urged Frankie to take action against the listing.
“Please leave a review! I scour Airbnb reviews before I even consider booking,” one person commented.
“Publish the address and code. Then they’ll change it,” a second said.
The Daily Dot reached out to Frankie for comment via Instagram direct message and TikTok comment.
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