The Paris city authorities announced on Thursday a lawsuit against the rental giant Airbnb for failing to remove listings from apartment owners without the required registration numbers.
The Paris city authorities are tightening restrictions on Airbnb due to complaints from hoteliers and city residents that short-term rentals fuel real estate price speculation.
In November of last year, Paris limited the number of days for renting apartments and houses to 120 days per year.
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Since December, owners have been required to display their registration number on listings so that city authorities can verify compliance with this limit.
In March, the government announced that it was working on a bill that would allow for financial penalties against Airbnb for posting listings without a registration number, amounting to €1,000 per day, or €5,000 per day for new listings.
Despite this, Airbnb and the German Wimdu have not removed such listings, emphasized Paris Deputy Mayor for Housing Ian Brossat, adding that the regulations have been violated in “the vast majority of 85 percent of listings.”
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– The fact is that Airbnb does not respect the law,” concluded Brossat, adding that they have sent multiple warnings to the company. “It is incredible how this company manages to violate all regulations,” he added.
The French capital has also sued the smaller German website Wimdu on the same grounds, and a court hearing is scheduled for June 12, Brossat told AFP.
– The noose is tightening, he emphasized.
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Airbnb stated that they are disappointed with the city authorities’ decision to file a lawsuit. “Regulating the rental of furnished apartments to tourists in Paris is complex, confusing, and more suitable for professionals than for individual citizens,” they stated in a press release.
Airbnb has urged Paris to follow other European cities in decisions on how to regulate rentals. Berlin previously had one of the strictest laws for regulating the site in Europe, but last month announced that it would allow residents to rent their primary properties without time limits.
According to Mastercard’s ranking, Paris is the third city in the world by number of visits and is among Airbnb’s leading markets, with about 65,000 homes for rent.
