Couple get revenge on Airbnb host by leaving taps running and gas on for 25 days
A couple decided to get revenge on an Airbnb host in the most brutal way by leaving the taps running and gas on for 25 days straight.
The pair were staying at an Airbnb in South Korea when they got into an altercation with the property owner, resulting in them deciding to enact their own version of justice on him.
All the utilities were left deliberately left on for nearly an entire month, and let's just say it cost the host a small fortune.
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The unnamed couple had clearly not checked the exact area the villa was located in and were in for quite a shock upon finding out is was located in an outer suburb of the capital, and not in the city centre as they expected.
They had rocked up to the Seoul residence but immediately had second thoughts about their Airbnb location and requested that they cancel their lengthy stay.
However, as they had already paid upfront and in full, the host - Mr Lee - was unable to grant them a refund for the booking and allegedly refused to give them any money back.
And that's when it all went sour.
The duo decided to take matters into their own hands and punish Mr Lee for the inconvenience when they were unable to cancel their booking after claiming they had COVID-19, SBS reported.
The host reported that the couple, who had travelled from China, contacted him and asked if there were any surveillance cameras in the property.
After confirming to the guests that there weren't any, the travellers allegedly hatched their revenge plan of turning on as many lights, taps, gas outlets and electrical appliances as they could.
And the worst thing? The couple didn't even stay at the villa.
Instead, they bopped about South Korea and only returned to the residence a handful of occasions for no more than five minutes each time.
An unassuming Mr Lee only noticed there was an issue upon the guests' departure after his gas company alerted him about a surge in usage.
Alongside this, he was also informed that the water consumption during the 25-day booking was five times higher than usual as well.
In total, the couple wasted 120 tonnes of water and left a water and electricity bill of $116, along with a gas bill of around $730, according to NetEase News.
Yikes.
After figuring out that had happened, Mr Lee was unable to reach the couple who had already returned to China by then - meaning he was left with no choice but to cover the steep utilities bills himself.
The host attempted to get in touch with Airbnb’s customer service team, but has since claimed the company has taken no responsibility, arguing that the issue is between them and the couple.
Airbnb customer services reportedly said it was 'unable to make an exception and help with compensation', according to the SBS report.
Tyla has reached out to Airbnb for comment.
Rhiannon Ingle