Airbnb Begins Introducing New Safety Center on the Airbnb Mobile Application
At Airbnb, trust is central to our mission of belonging. With two million guests staying at an Airbnb listing on any given night, the safety of our community — both online and offline — is a key priority.
Airbnb already takes a number of steps to protect our global community of hosts and guests. Still, we know there is more we can do to provide tailored support when users need to speak to Airbnb or local authorities as quickly as possible. Additionally, while we provide resources like our $1 Million Host Guarantee and Host Protection Insurance, we’ve received feedback from our hosts that information on these features should be simplified and centralized.
With that in mind, today we’re beginning to introduce a new safety center on the Airbnb mobile app for hosts and guests that provides a simple way to contact Airbnb support about urgent situations, direct contacts to local law enforcement and emergency services, and a centralized collection of Airbnb safety resources and education.
We intend to gradually rollout the new safety center features to guests and hosts in the US and China, with plans for more regions in the future.
Local Emergency Services
While most Americans may know to dial 911 in the event of an emergency in the U.S., we want to do what we can to make sure they consider this option in the event that they need help with an emergency relating to a reservation. We’re introducing a feature that surfaces this number to hosts and guests with active reservations and allows them to contact emergency services with one touch using our app. We’re also evaluating ways to give this capability to users in other regions where fewer travelers know the emergency contact info for local law enforcement.
The Local Emergency Services function will be available via the Airbnb app on iOS and Android during active reservations.
Airbnb Urgent Support Line
Our global team already provides 24/7 support in 11 different languages to help make things right with rebooking assistance, refunds, reimbursements, our $1 million dollar Host Guarantee, and insurance programs for both Homes and Experiences. The Urgent Support Line will provide a simple means for hosts and guests facing certain time sensitive issues that require access to a team of trained safety specialists.
For example, guests will be able to contact us using this tool if they are unable to check into their listing or need to be re-accommodated in a new listing. Hosts could also use this tool to contact us if they have a guest with a medical issue, need to flag stolen property or severe property damage, and more.
The Airbnb Urgent Support Line will be available via the Airbnb app on iOS and Android during active reservations.
One Centralized Collection of Resources – the Safety Center
To make all our resources easier to find and access, the Airbnb Safety Center will serve as a one-stop safety shop for hosts and guests. Easily accessible within the app, the Safety Center will include the following permanent resources:
- Security checklists, including forums to easily provide emergency contact info and better secure your account
- Safe travel tips for guests
- Safe hosting tips
- Quick and central access to the following resources for hosts:
- Airbnb’s Host Guarantee — property damage protection of up to $1 million USD for every host and every listing
- Host Protection Insurance — free liability insurance of up to $1 million USD to protect against personal injury or property damage claims
- Experience Protection Insurance — damage protection of up to $1 million USD for most Experiences