A BC Vrbo rental stay took a weird turn involving a potential breach of privacy.
Vrbo, a service similar to Airbnb, allows people to book short-term rentals. Its name is an acronym for vacation rentals by owner.
Details of this BC Civil Resolution Tribunal Case were made available online, in which the applicants alleged that the rental unit hosts breached their privacy and a verbal agreement about a refund. They claimed a total of $1,026.60 for the refund.
In response, the BC Vrbo rental unit owners denied liability, claiming they entered the house because the applicants breached the short-term agreement by having too many guests.
D’arcy Blunston and Luc Silva were the applicants in the case. Michael Staley and someone referred to as JF were the primary respondents and hosts of the unit.
A three-night stay was booked between September 6 and 9, 2021. The cost for the three nights was $885, plus a $200 cleaning fee, a $130 Vrbo service fee, and $173.60 in tax, for a total of $1,388.60. Blunston paid that in full in July of that year.
Blunston, Silva, and five friends took two cars to the property. Everyone then left for a brewery, except two of the friends, referred to as SC and M. SC went to sleep because she had a migraine. M stayed up, working on a computer.
Bluntson and Silva had a partial audio recording of what happened next. JF and Staley entered the property. JF was upset that M was using the bedroom, claiming that it breached the contract term, which stated there were only two guests. JF said additional guests would cost more. Further, JF claimed that too many cars were blocking the driveway and that everyone except the applicants had to leave. Staley and JF said that the rental could continue if they complied.
Silva and Staley had a conversation at around 9:30 pm. The applicants say there was a verbal agreement stating that if the applicants and friends left, Staley would give Blunston a full refund, minus cleaning and Vrbo fees. All the guests, including the primary renters Blunston and Silva, did leave that evening.
According to the tribunal’s decision, the owners and hosts disagreed with this claim, saying discussions about a potential refund were just exploratory.
The renters also claimed that surveillance devices were around the property, which goes against Vrbo’s terms of service. Unfortunately, they did not have sufficient proof to back up that claim.
The tribunal sided with the renters on one of its claims. The tribunal believed the renters about the discussions regarding a refund, and since the applicants didn’t receive one, the verbal agreement was breached. However, claims of breach of privacy were dismissed.
Ultimately, Staley was ordered to pay Blunston $1,210.73, including $991.20 as a partial refund and the rest in tribunal fees.