KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Airbnb hosts may have a new tool they can use to prevent unwanted parties after the company announced it was giving away free sensors and subscriptions to software used to measure decibel levels in a home.
They announced on Oct. 13 that hosts could get a free Minut noise sensor and a three-month subscription to the company's monitoring software. They also said they would integrate the software into Airbnb's messaging tool.
Ben Dreit, the Director of Trust and Safety Communications at Airbnb, said the majority of guests in East Tennessee are respectful of the neighborhoods they stay in.
"What we're trying to do here is work with our hosts to find the needles in the haystack — the minority of folks who maybe are not being respectful of properties and neighbors, and maybe trying to throw an unauthorized party," he said.
He said that the devices do not record audio and are only designed to detect the decibel level in an area. According to Dreit, the devices do not record or transmit audio. Instead, they are only meant to notify hosts when the decibel level has been high for a while.
The company also said hosts will need to disclose in their listing page that the devices are on their property. The devices are also not allowed in spaces like bedrooms or sleeping areas.
According to a press release from Airbnb, they also announced that they would prohibit guests "without a history of positive reviews on Airbnb" from making reservations for a single night in listings for entire homes over Halloween weekend. According to Dreit, that includes guests who don't have any reviews on Airbnb.
He also said they rolled out the policy last year, and he said they saw a decrease in parties over Halloween weekend.