Airbnb is canceling all of its inauguration-week reservations in the Washington, D.C., area over concerns that travelers might be there to disrupt the week’s activities.
The rental service announced on Wednesday that it would be blocking any new reservations from taking place during that week in the area to do its part to avoid a repeat of the Jan. 6 siege of the Capitol.
“Today, in response to various local, state and federal officials asking people not to travel to Washington, D.C., we are announcing that Airbnb will cancel reservations in the Washington, D.C. metro area during the Inauguration week,” the company said. “Guests whose reservations are canceled will be refunded in full. We also will reimburse hosts, at Airbnb’s expense, the money they would have earned from these cancelled reservations.”
The company did not specify the exact dates that the reservations would be unavailable.
On Tuesday, the company said it would be reviewing its reservations in the district to screen for those associated with hate groups as part of a new seven-step Capitol Safety Plan. Airbnb did not say, at the time, that it would be canceling all reservations for the coming week.
“Dating back to the tragic events around Charlottesville in 2017, Airbnb has applied Trust and Safety defenses in order to combat violent and discriminatory hate groups,” the company said. “To that end, on an ongoing basis, Airbnb has removed people from the platform associated with violent hate groups in advance of specific events, including taking action ahead of the horrific attack on Congress, by cancelling reservations and removing accounts associated with hate group members, including Proud Boys.”
On Monday, Washington Councilwoman Janeese Lewis George tweeted, “Avoid renting out rooms on January 17-20. There’s no way to guarantee that your guests are not coming to incite violence.”
She added, “Please protect your neighbors and the District from more attacks.”
