Release of landlord data: Berlin forces Airbnb to cooperate


Publication of landlord data
Berlin forces Airbnb to cooperate

Because living space is scarce in Berlin, the city is increasingly taking action against operators of illegal holiday homes. Landlords who circumvent the strict rules are likely to have a harder time in the future. A court obliges the Airbnb platform to surrender the landlord’s data if the authorities suspect it.

After a court ruling, the apartment broker Airbnb has to surrender the data of private landlords to the authorities if there is an initial suspicion of misappropriation. The Berlin Administrative Court dismissed the Irish company’s action, as has now been announced. Because of the fundamental importance of the case, the appeal to the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg was admitted.

Airbnb operates an internet platform on which holiday apartments are offered for rent. In December 2019, the Berlin District Office Tempelhof-Schöneberg obliged the Dublin-based company to provide the names and addresses of numerous providers and the exact location of their quarters. The landlords had been listed on online lists. According to the court, the district office suspected that the ban on misappropriation of apartments was being violated because the advertisements had no or incorrect registration numbers or the business data of commercial landlords could not be recognized.

According to the court, a registration number was introduced by law precisely because of the increasing anonymous offer of holiday apartments on the Internet. As a rule, it applies to landlords who offer their apartment as a holiday home for a short time. The number should be proof of a legal offer on the Internet. Anyone who wants to rent out their apartment to holiday guests in Berlin has needed a permit since 2014. The law has been tightened further, and the regulations are to become even stricter due to the limited living space.

Airbnb had argued that the district office’s decision was unlawful and that the information requested was unconstitutional. It is also requested to violate Irish data protection law. However, the court ruled that there were no constitutional objections to the decision. It is true that the fundamental right to informational self-determination is interfered with, but this is proportionate, sufficiently determined and standardized.

The applicant could not rely on Irish data protection law. The so-called country of origin principle cannot be applied here. According to a survey by the German Press Agency from the beginning of April, Berlin districts have imposed fines in the millions against providers of unauthorized holiday homes since 2018. In seven districts alone, the total was 3.4 million euros.

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