Airbnb urged to require carbon monoxide devices after 3 American tourists die in Mexico rental

Ffamily members of three tourists who died while staying in a Airbnb in Mexico Cityof carbon monoxide poisoning, the short-term rental company urged on Thursday to require detectors at properties it lists to prevent future tragedies.

“Our main goal is to try and get the word out to those considering using short term rentals like Airbnb“, said Jennifer Marshall, whose son, Jordan Marshall, was one of the guests. “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.”

Wrongful death lawsuit underway

Attorney L. Chris Stewart of Atlanta-based Stewart Miller Simmons Trial Attorneys also said a wrongful death lawsuit is slated against Airbnb and others over the incident.

“We request Airbnb to require all their lists to have detectors,” he said. “They created international and national bans on parties, on weapons, on cameras. They could also easily impose carbon monoxide detectors. They know they killed people in their rentals. We know of at least three other cases.”

Stewart said, however, that they are awaiting information from investigators in Mexico to determine “all defendants” before pressing charges.

The three travelers who died on October 30 were Kandace Florence, 28, of Virginia Beach, Virginia; his longtime friend Jordan Marshall, 28, who was also from Virginia Beach but taught at New Orleans; and Courtez Hall, 33, of New Orleans, who also taught in the city. They toured the country for Day of the Dead and were staying at the vacation rental in an upscale Mexico City neighborhood.

According to reports, Florence contacted her boyfriend in the US to tell him she was feeling sick, and he contacted her Airbnb host to go see them. Authorities later found the three dead.

In a statement, Airbnb said it has suspended registration and canceled future reservations pending investigation into the incident.

“This is a terrible tragedy and our thoughts are with families and loved ones as they mourn such an unimaginable loss. Our current priority is to support those affected as authorities investigate what happened. , and we stand ready to meet their demands in any way we can,” the company said.

Airbnb has not yet confirmed the cause of death.

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.

Families want it to be a cautionary tale for fellow travelers

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 this will raise awareness in many people. If we can’t rely on companies to prioritize the safety of their customers, we have to sure to do it for ourselves.”

Freida FlorenceKandace’s mother, said shedding light on Airbnb’s “shortcomings” was a priority.

“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.