Airbnb draws up guidelines for Thai landlords

By The Nation

 

Mich Goh

 

Global travel community Airbnb has provided guidelines for managing short-term rental in Thailand to support the growth of the tourism industry, Airbnb Head of Public Policy, Southeast Asia, Mich Goh said on Monday.

 

The guidelines are based on Expedition Strategies’ research in 2018 which found that 88 per cent of Thai people promote property owners to open accommodation for rent, while 89 per cent tend to use the short-term rental service, and 84 per cent believed that short term rental is beneficial in order to attract tourists to travel and spend in their communities.

 

“The owner and related partners should work closely to enable tourists to register online making it smoother and providing a high-level of security,” Goh said. 

 

“Rental terms should be categorised by type of accommodation such as room, house, or commercial accommodation to ensure the fullest use, and the penalties for the guests with unwanted behavior should be fair, though these cases are rare,” she added, 

 

A survey conducted last year showed that Airbnb owners and guests in Thailand have generated revenue for local economies of more than Bt33.8 billion, and 46 per cent of guests said that they spend in the areas near their accommodation.

 

Airbnb recently has launched a new campaign to promote new tourist attractions in Thailand such as Buri Ram.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30378049

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2019-11-04

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AirBNB insist on locating an apartment my GF owns about 25 km away from where the map should show it, so they've lost her. Emails fall on deaf ears, or should that be blind eyes. Idiots.

I thought AirBNB,was illegal in Thailand,or have things changed.

regards Worgeordie

So Newspapers are now in cahoots with AirBnB even when 16 months ago they reported the news saying AirBnB is illegal?   If it brings in money it is never illegal it seems. Hotels should be outraged 

Mai pen rai.

Court decides: AirBnB illegal in Thailand for daily and weekly rental

By webfact, May 16, 2018 in Thailand News

I hope they are not promoting short term rentals of condos as it is illegal and a damn nuisance for condo dwellers. https://blog.onnutcondos.com/bangkok-condominiums-are-not-hotels

Cant wait for the Edge to open in Pattaya....Welcome to Airbnb hell...

As long as people are making money nobody give a flying @@@@ 

1 hour ago, Lacessit said:

AirBNB insist on locating an apartment my GF owns about 25 km away from where the map should show it, so they've lost her. Emails fall on deaf ears, or should that be blind eyes. Idiots.

air BNB always return my emails within the hour usually. Their customer service is mindblowing and a big part of their success. Something is not adding up . maybe try doing it for her

There are too many downsides to Airbnb.

 

It ruined various European cities already and personally I would be enraged if I had bought a condo and now have to share it with visitors. 

Looks like someone high up is getting the big envelope to look the other way since its suppose to be 1 month minimum but airb says 86% is short term

1 hour ago, Lacessit said:

AirBNB insist on locating an apartment my GF owns about 25 km away from where the map should show it, so they've lost her. Emails fall on deaf ears, or should that be blind eyes. Idiots.

Certainly are not idiots maybe your GF set the wrong location or address They reply very quick and get things resolved in my experience a while ago we had a guest damage the ceramic hob in the kitchen the replacement cost 15,900 Baht it was done and dealt with in 10 days

5 minutes ago, madmen said:

air BNB always return my emails within the hour usually. Their customer service is mindblowing and a big part of their success. Something is not adding up . maybe try doing it for her

I have. Are you using them in Oz, or Thailand? That may be the difference. I've found AirBNB to be very competent when it comes to booking overnight stays in Australia.

3 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

Certainly are not idiots maybe your GF set the wrong location or address They reply very quick and get things resolved in my experience a while ago we had a guest damage the ceramic hob in the kitchen the replacement cost 15,900 Baht it was done and dealt with in 10 days

It's a Thai rural village. Every time we have entered the correct address, it relocates us to the nearest capital city.

4 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

I have. Are you using them in Oz, or Thailand? That may be the difference. I've found AirBNB to be very competent when it comes to booking overnight stays in Australia.

Thailand and they have been exceptional. She should be able to manually drag the red pin on the map to her soi or village if auto placement doesn't work

1 minute ago, madmen said:

Thailand and they have been exceptional. She should be able to manually drag the red pin on the map to her soi or village if auto placement doesn't work

Yes, we have done that too and it just shoots back. Perhaps the village name is not in their database.

If they were serious about stopping air bnb they would simply ban them. 

51 minutes ago, madmen said:

Looks like someone high up is getting the big envelope to look the other way since its suppose to be 1 month minimum but airb says 86% is short term

Maybe the people are talking about have their own condos on Airbnb and doing very nicely 

42 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Yes, we have done that too and it just shoots back. Perhaps the village name is not in their database.

If I remember rightly it does ask you if this is the correct location was a long time ago since I last did it try going onto google maps and get the correct  location and input from there have you got internet where you live yet?

48 minutes ago, BobBKK said:

If they were serious about stopping air bnb they would simply ban them. 

Not just Airbnb you would have to ban all the OTA's TripAdvisor Agoda Booking Home and Away Vrbo just to mention a few 

In this current tourism climate, I doubt the Government is turning a blind eye.

 

They are encouraging AirBnB behind the scenes.

 

...and Thai's and Chinese love Airbnb rentals, which will spur the condo sales.

 

So there are few upset farang collateral damage? No big deal.

1 hour ago, ChipButty said:

As long as people are making money nobody give a flying @@@@ 

Not nobody.  The condo owners suffer with lack of peace and quiet.  Then you have 12-15 indians jumping/splashing in the pool without using the shower next to the pool first. 

And talking so loudly constantly, they rarely shut up. I have noticed Indian men never speak in a quiet tone, even on a baht bus when their friends are right next to them, they are basically yelling

The other problem at my condo is the Indians and some Chinese are stuffing 4-5-6 people in a small one bedroom made for 2.  We had one where 2 guys were sleeping on the balcony.  Unfortunately AirBnB is a scam here, paying off security to let them in, then the room key and magnetic door/elevator card is left in an unlocked mailbox so those making the money are never present to check and see how many people are occupying a room.   Thai owners who live somewhere else are making money and couldn't care less about disturbances or rule breaking as they do not live at the comlex.  Just hope next year they all find another condo complex they like better or has cheaper rates

8 minutes ago, DLock said:

So there are few upset farang collateral damage? No big deal.

Collateral damage - nicely put 555

3 minutes ago, Skallywag said:

Not nobody.  The condo owners suffer with lack of peace and quiet.  Then you have 12-15 indians jumping/splashing in the pool without using the shower next to the pool first. 

And talking so loudly constantly, they rarely shut up. I have noticed Indian men never speak in a quiet tone, even on a baht bus when their friends are right next to them, they are basically yelling

The other problem at my condo is the Indians and some Chinese are stuffing 4-5-6 people in a small one bedroom made for 2.  We had one where 2 guys were sleeping on the balcony.  Unfortunately AirBnB is a scam here, paying off security to let them in, then the room key and magnetic door/elevator card is left in an unlocked mailbox so those making the money are never present to check and see how many people are occupying a room.   Thai owners who live somewhere else are making money and couldn't care less about disturbances or rule breaking as they do not live at the comlex.  Just hope next year they all find another condo complex they like better or has cheaper rates

Airbnb is not the problem it's the host who are not vetting the bookings the big problem is allowing self check in and when I get an inquiry for 4 people I ask them is that 2 couples or 4 singles, 4 single guys I decline the booking I dont do self check in and we always recommend a local taxi company to pick them up at the airport when the driver has found them he calls us and tells us how many

17 minutes ago, Skallywag said:

Thai owners who live somewhere else are making money and couldn't care less about disturbances or rule breaking

Have you contacted Airbnb about this? I imagine they wouldn’t be happy about an owner who does nothing to vet bookings. Airbnb have an excellent review system, and if a booking for a single person turns into 6 people in a room, the owner would give that person such a bad review that nobody would ever accept a booking from that person in future.

I own a condo in Jomtien which has Airbnb rentals (not my condo), and I’ve never had any problems with unpleasant neighbours. Also own an apartment in Australia, in a block with zero short term renters, and have had the kind of noisy neighbours there that I’ve never had in my Jomtien condo. Problem with delinquent long term renters is that there’s absolutely nothing you can do to get rid of them, at least you don’t have to put up with the rare unruly short term renter for very long.

I’ve also rented Airbnbs for many years in Croatia and Montenegro, and for some reason in those countries there’s none of the controversy about Airbnb that there is in Thailand, maybe because owners there have been letting their apartments short term long before the internet even existed, let alone Airbnb.

2 hours ago, madmen said:

air BNB always return my emails within the hour usually. Their customer service is mindblowing and a big part of their success. Something is not adding up . maybe try doing it for her

I found their customer service non existent and the hosts could be anyone as they are not vetted. They could be violent rapists for all Airbnb know, or care. Never using them again.

1 hour ago, ChipButty said:

If I remember rightly it does ask you if this is the correct location was a long time ago since I last did it try going onto google maps and get the correct  location and input from there have you got internet where you live yet?

How do you think I would be communicating with you now if I didn't have internet? Carrier pigeon?

I used Airbnb for the first time this year on a trip back to the uk, found an ideal double bedroom ( full use of the house was also included ) in between my daughters house and the care home my father is now staying in, walking distance. Half the price of any local hotels, paid by Paypal in two transactions,  I felt very lucky to have come across it.

 

Left Swampy just before midnight, arriving FRA 6.00 am I opened my phone to a bunch of emails from Airbnb about my cancelled stay in the uk. !!
Gobsmacked, I learnt that the host had cancelled my reservation while i was airborne !!

Airbnb had already refunded my Paypal payments, created a list of alternative local venues for me to check out and bombarded me with emails offering assistance if required and apologies for the hosts behaviour.

 

They were excellent, very responsive, later gave me £75 voucher valid for a year, can’t fault their quick response and sympathetic emails.

 

( the host gave me the excuse of having flu !!, i passed her messages on to Airbnb and her listing has disappeared from the app )

25 minutes ago, CygnusX1 said:

Have you contacted Airbnb about this? I imagine they wouldn’t be happy about an owner who does nothing to vet bookings. Airbnb have an excellent review system, and if a booking for a single person turns into 6 people in a room, the owner would give that person such a bad review that nobody would ever accept a booking from that person in future.

I own a condo in Jomtien which has Airbnb rentals (not my condo), and I’ve never had any problems with unpleasant neighbours. Also own an apartment in Australia, in a block with zero short term renters, and have had the kind of noisy neighbours there that I’ve never had in my Jomtien condo. Problem with delinquent long term renters is that there’s absolutely nothing you can do to get rid of them, at least you don’t have to put up with the rare unruly short term renter for very long.

I’ve also rented Airbnbs for many years in Croatia and Montenegro, and for some reason in those countries there’s none of the controversy about Airbnb that there is in Thailand, maybe because owners there have been letting their apartments short term long before the internet even existed, let alone Airbnb.

There are arguments for and against AirBNB. As a lodger, I have found their services quite enjoyable, except for one racist fat slug of a woman in Mildura who obviously took exception to my cute Thai GF. We stayed with two gay guys in Shepparton who were delightful,  gave us the run of half their house.

As a landlord, my experience has been different. I've also heard some horror stories of parties which probably destroyed the faith of the owner in AirBNB.

2 hours ago, madmen said:

air BNB always return my emails within the hour usually. Their customer service is mindblowing and a big part of their success. Something is not adding up . maybe try doing it for her

I totally disagree. Their alleged customer service is non-existent (not just Thailand). They just will not give a clear answer on anything, including whether it might just be their responsibility (as website owners) to check that those advertising on it are legal. They don't want to know - not least because abnb is planning an IPO within months........

The condo where I am staying has the requisite notices warning backpackers etc, but management won't actually DO anything - I've shown them four ads on abnb that are quite clearly 'our' condo. They won't go against owners, many of whom are outside BKK and even outside TH; get plod in and they will do the same - eff all.

Bottom line is it's not just a matter of law - it's people being noisy and uncivilised, taking up pool space or gym, arriving middle of night etc. We didn't sign up to live in a backpackers' paradise.

8 minutes ago, isaanistical said:

including whether it might just be their responsibility (as website owners) to check that those advertising on it are legal.

What nonsense. They use a standard template that is 100% legal. Nobody forcing the public to break laws.

The authorities could care less, like helmets and taxis not using meters or Air Bnb hosts clicking on nightly instead of monthly !!