Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky discusses whether leisure travel can hold up in a slowing economy on “The Claman Countdown.”
Three families announced a planned lawsuit against Airbnb after their loved ones died of carbon monoxide poisoning while staying in an apartment in Mexico City.
The family of the trio, who are believed to have died of carbon monoxide poisoning, are now urging the short-term rental company to require detectors in the properties it lists to prevent future tragedies.
Kidde smoke and carbon monoxide detector on a light wood surface, Lafayette, California. (Gado/Getty Images/Getty Images)
“Our main goal is to try and get the word out to those who are considering using short-term rentals like Airbnb“, said Jennifer Marshall, whose son, Jordan Marshall, died in the Airbnb rental. “We want to pressure Airbnb to regulate and mandate carbon monoxide detectors in the future. It’s the only way we could think of to honor our children.”
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Attorney L. Chris Stewart of the Atlanta firm Stewart Miller Simmons Trial Attorneys also said wrongful death lawsuit is expected against Airbnb following the incident.
“We are asking Airbnb to require all of their listings to have sensors,” he said. “They’ve created international and national bans on parties, weapons, cameras. They could easily impose carbon monoxide detectors too. They know they’ve killed people in their rentals. We know of at least three more case.”
Stewart said they are awaiting more information from investigators in Mexico to determine “all defendants” before pressing charges.
In this illustrative photo, the Airbnb app is displayed on a smartphone screen. (Thiago Prudencio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images/Getty Images)
On Oct. 30, high school friends Jordan Marshall and Kandace Florence, along with Marshall’s friend from New Orleans, Courtez Hall, were found dead in their Airbnb apartment in an upscale neighborhood while visiting Mexico for “Dia de Muertos,” or Day of the Dead.
According to the reports, Florence contacted her boyfriend in the United States to tell him that she was feeling sick, and he contacted his Airbnb host to go see them. Authorities later found the three dead.
“Our hearts go out to the families and loved ones who mourn such an unimaginable loss. Our current priority is to support those affected as authorities investigate what happened,” the online home rental company said in a statement. his statement.
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Airbnb said it suspended listing and canceled future reservations pending investigation of the incident.
Airbnb said it had not yet confirmed carbon monoxide exposure was responsible for the deaths, but noted that it ran a global program providing free smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to guests. carbon, of which more than 200,000 have been ordered to date.
Airbnb said it was also working with Mexican officials to promote safety practices among hosts and updating its detector program to speed up shipments to the country.
He added that the site allows potential guests to filter their searches for hosts who claim to have detectors and flags any bookings where there are none.
Figurines are seen in front of the Airbnb logo in this illustration taken February 27, 2022. (Reuters/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo/Reuters Photos)
Jennifer Marshall said she hoped the death of her son and his friend would be a cautionary tale for fellow travellers.
“We want people to rethink how they vacation,” Marshall said. “Even if we can’t get any action from Airbnb, which would be disappointing, we hope it will raise awareness for many. If we cannot depend on companies to put the safety of its customers first, we need to make sure we do it for ourselves.”
Freida Florence, Kandace’s mother, said shedding light on Airbnb’s “shortcomings” was a priority.
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“We’re asking people to take precautions,” she said. “They don’t force or require their hosts to guarantee a carbon monoxide detector, and they should. It could really save lives. We don’t want other families going through what we went through. .”
Florence also called on people to urge lawmakers to help resolve the issue.
“Our companies know better and should do better,” she said.
Airbnb did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The news of the dead comes just months after the deaths of three Americans carbon monoxide poisoning at a Sandals resort on the island of Great Exuma in the Bahamas.
Two couples said they felt ill on the night of May 5 and were seen by medical personnel, police said.
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The next day, Michael Phillips, 68, and his wife, Robbie Phillips, 65, of Tennessee, and Vincent Paul Chiarella, 64, of Florida, were found dead in their villas.
Chiarella’s wife, Donnis, 65, was airlifted to the capital, Nassau, for further treatment and was the sole survivor of carbon monoxide poisoning.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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