Skift Take
Since the law about short-term rentals was written expressly to deal with the types of units being rented on Airbnb, the decision is perfectly in line with New York law, despite what Airbnb's revisionist statement is arguing.
Nigel Warren, the New York tenant who ended up in trouble with the city after renting his room out on Airbnb, just got some bad news. A judge on the city’s Environmental Control Board (ECB), which arbitrates these matters, has found Warren’s landlord guilty of the violation and fined him $2,400. Although the fine was issued to the landlord, Warren officially accepted responsibility.
Airbnb sent a lawyer to the hearing to argue on Warren’s behalf, the first time the startup has intervened in such a case.
… Airbnb decried the decision and dismissed it as a case of “overzealous law enforcement officials.”
“This decision runs contrary to the stated intention and the plain text of New York law, so obviously we are disappointed,” Airbnb said in a statement.
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