Spanish court rejects Airbnb appeal, blocks 66,000 listings

A Spanish court upheld an order for Airbnb to block nearly 66,000 rental listings due to violations of local regulations. The government said that these short-term rentals exacerbate Spain’s housing shortage amidst record tourism. Airbnb contends that owners who are not on the platform are responsible for listing information and attributes the housing crisis to an insufficient supply of listings.

A Spanish court on Thursday rejected an appeal by Airbnb and upheld an order to block nearly 66,000 rental listings that the government said violated local regulations. The government has said the platform’s short-term rentals in city centres and tourism hotspots are contributing to Spain’s housing crunch, while the country welcomes record numbers of tourists. Last month, Spain’s government ordered Airbnb to block 65,935 listings in the country after the Consumer Rights Ministry flagged them for violations. It stated that Airbnb had to remove 5,800 of them immediately.

The ministry has stated that the listings it flagged did not include their license number or specify whether the owner was an individual or a company. It noted that others listed numbers that did not match those held by the authorities. In a statement, Airbnb said the ministry’s actions contravened Spanish regulations that hold owners of short-term rentals, not the platform, responsible for listing such information. It also stated that the Madrid court's decision was not made on the merits of the ministry’s order, adding that it will take longer to decide. The company asserted that Spain’s housing crisis stems from a lack of supply to meet demand and stated that any other explanation is a distraction. Last month, Consumer Rights Minister Pablo Bustinduy told the Associated Press that the tourism sector could not jeopardise the constitutional rights of the Spanish people, including their right to housing and well-being.

Carlos Cuerpo, the economy minister, said in a separate interview that the government had to tackle the unwanted side effects of mass tourism. He advocated for building more housing while regulating short-term holiday rentals.

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Spanish Court Rejects Airbnb Appeal, Blocks 66,000 Listings

News Source : Economic Times