DISGRACEFUL

Airbnb Blasted for Horrific Response to California Wildfires

An Airbnb guest said the company refused to rebook her West Los Angeles stay, despite the wildfire that has displaced tens of thousands of people.

Airbnb is getting heat for refusing to cancel a woman’s Los Angeles reservation, despite the raging fire that has displaced tens of thousands of residents. Ana Mostarac shared on X that she contacted Airbnb to rebook her stay to a location farther away from the danger zone, but the company denied her help. “As always, their policies failed to account for context,” Mostarac said. “The fires keep getting worse, and unfortunately, many others are probably stuck explaining bushfires to someone in another country right about now.” She posted a photo of her conversation with an Airbnb representative who said her booking didn’t fall under their disruptive events policy—which allows for cancellations during uncommon severe weather events. A spokesperson for Airbnb told the Daily Beast that Mostarac made her reservation on Tuesday evening, after the wildfires had already begun. The spokesperson added that bookings made during the disruptive event normally don’t qualify for cancellations, but the company did offer her a refund. The wildfire has burned through nearly 3,000 acres in the upscale West L.A. neighborhood of Pacific Palisades, and 30,000 people have been evacuated. “Anticipating a sleepless night! The winds alone are insane,” Mostarac wrote on X. “It’s inhumane.”