A family abandoned their Airbnb after making a stark discovery that left them scared for their safety. Kriss Hardman shared his terrifying experience on TikTok that included a suspicious camera in his Australian Airbnb.
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Family Seeks Help From Social Media After Finding Camera In Airbnb
Kriss and his wife, Kate Hardman, checked into a four-bedroom home, according to the New York Post. It only took less than one day to find a security camera out and in plain sight.
“So we got to our Airbnb last night,” Kriss began the video saying. “It’s a nice place, there’s one thing I’m not sure about maybe you can help me out.”
He then showed the white camera sitting on a table. “Is that allowed in Airbnbs?” He asked his audience. “Is that standard practice? Cause I don’t reckon it should be allowed.”
The couple then made a follow-up video concerning the camera situation. “So we decided to leave the accommodation,” said Kriss. “It really spooked us, and the safety of the family, three little kids is what meant the most.”
His wife then spoke up. “And Airbnb fully supported this,” revealed Kate. “They said that we could move and that they would find accommodation equivalent to where we were staying.”
Kate then described the type of house they were residing in, which was central to Perth CBD. Kriss also mentioned how Airbnb offered to pay for their accommodation.
“They soon realized that being school holidays there wasn’t much accommodation going,” said Kriss. He revealed that the closest accommodation was about $6,000 more than what they paid.
Reimbursement After Company Ghosts Family
Airbnb suddenly ghosted the couple after learning this. “Once they found that out, they went quiet,” Kriss revealed. “We haven’t heard a great deal from them this afternoon. The promise of ‘we’ll pay the difference’ has kind of fallen away.”
The family ended up booking a hotel room that they paid for, thinking that Airbnb would keep its promise about covering the cost. Now, the family isn’t sure where they’ll be staying for the rest of their time in Perth.
In one final update video, the family thanked everyone for making the video go viral. This meant that Airbnb was alerted by everyone, and the situation escalated quickly afterward.
The viral videos managed to get the family a coupon that covered the cost of the property. Airbnb decided to reimburse everything, and even the hotel room and the three Ubers they had to take.
Still, Kriss was disappointed that it took “the power of social media” just to get Airbnb’s attention. “We’re lucky that we’ve got some followers that are really happy to help us out,” he said.
“Thanks again, guys. But someone that maybe doesn’t have that following, I dread to think the situation they could have still been left in now.”