HomeAway Class Action Alleges Race-Based Housing Discrimination

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A woman from Washington state says HomeAway and VRBO are responsible for a new wave of housing discrimination based on race.

Plaintiff Yvette Hobzek says that HomeAway.com Inc. and its subsidiary VRBO.com Inc. have been maintaining policies and practices that disproportionately impact African American rental applicants, causing them to be rejected as renters while allowing applicants of other races to be accepted.

She argues HomeAway contributes to this disparate impact by requiring prospective renters to state their reasons for seeking accommodations and to reveal identifiable personal information including their full, real names.

HomeAway also encourages property agents to use social media sites to conduct a sort of “background check” on applicants, further encouraging discriminatory activity, she claims.

The plaintiff alleges HomeAway continues to advertise certain properties as available after African American applicants have been told those properties are unavailable, and she says HomeAway fails to address complaints of discrimination lodged against its agents or representatives.

In her HomeAway class action lawsuit, Hobzek, who identifies as African American, says that during this past summer she started making plans for a family trip to New York City.

Using the VRBO website run by HomeAway, she says she found accommodations in Harlem that appeared suitable.

The plaintiff says she submitted a reservation request by identifying herself to the property agent as required by HomeAway, using her first and last name and stating that she was looking for accommodations in New York for four nights in October 2016 for up to eight persons.

The next day, Hobzek says, she saw that the property was still available, so she used the “instant book” option and submitted payment to secure a reservation.

But the property agent responded saying that the property was “unavailable,” she says.

Hobzek allegedly called the defendants and asked them why the property continued to be listed as available on VRBO after she was told it was unavailable.

A HomeAway representative suggested she contact the property agent and try to clear things up with him, she says.

When Hobzek contacted the property agent, she claims he acknowledged that he had received and rejected her request for a reservation. Hobzek alleges the agent told her that he does not rent to “[her] kind.”

Hobzek says she told the agent that he cannot reject her because of her race. She says the agent responded saying he can do whatever he wants.

Meanwhile, she claims VRBO continued to list the property in question as available.

After filing a formal complaint with the defendants, Hobzek says she was told HomeAway encourages property agents to check up on prospective renters using social media sites as a sort of background check. But since she never completed the booking or stayed at the property, HomeAway prevented Hobzek from leaving a customer service review about the alleged incident.

Hobzek says she finally had to resort to booking a hotel room at a higher price and with more limited room options.

Hobzek is proposing to represent a plaintiff Class of “all persons who, in the past, present and future, are unable to secure public accommodations through use of Defendants’ website platform.”

She seeks a damage award including compensatory, statutory and punitive damages, plus court costs, attorneys’ fees and interests. She also seeks unspecified equitable relief.

Hobzek is represented by attorneys Ikechukwu “Ike” Emejuru and Andrew Nyombi of Emejuru & Nyombi LLC.

The HomeAway Housing Discrimination Class Action Lawsuit is Hobzek v. HomeAway.com Inc., et al., Case No. 1:16-cv-01058, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.