Spain calls for removal of nearly 66,000 Airbnb listings which ‘breach regulations’

The Spanish government has called for nearly 66,000 listings on Airbnb to be removed for breaching regulations around tourist accommodation. 

 

The announcement comes after a Madrid court ruled the online marketplace must "immediately withdraw" 4,984 properties, which had been flagged by the Spanish ministry for social rights and consumer affairs.

 

The listings are in six regions across the country: Madrid, Andalusia, Catalonia, Valencia, the Basque Country and the Balearic Islands. 

 

There will be further court rulings on the 60,000 remaining properties whose listings have been deemed "unlawful" by the ministry, which claimed the properties either did not provide a licence number, provided an incorrect number or did not specify the legal status of the owner to demonstrate whether it was being rented on a professional or private individual basis. 

 

Speaking to the BBC, the Spanish minister for social rights and consumer affairs Pablo Bustinduy said it was "a clear victory for those who fight to protect the right to housing". 

 

Airbnb has responded to the court decision and said it would appeal against decisions linked to the case, stressing no evidence of rule-breaking by hosts had been provided.

 

The rulings around unlicensed tourism properties come as Spain faces a housing crisis alongside a wave of overtourism protests in Madrid, Barcelona and the Balearic Islands last year, with thousands joining a protest in in the Canary Islands last Sunday ahead of the peak summer season. 

 

At an event with the Spanish tourist board and local mayors in London last week, Jet2 chief Steve Heapy called on Spain to continue its clampdown on unlicensed tourist accommodation.

 

He suggested a growth in unlicensed properties had to led to protests as they put pressure on non-tourist areas and local services and made it difficult to predict traveller numbers. 

 

Heapy encouraged destinations to enforce regulations in place, adding: “Airbnb can be controlled – it doesn’t rule the world.”