Airbnb: tenants condemned to repay the income

A couple of tenants will doubtlessly think twice before subletting accommodation on the Airbnb tourist accommodation site.

The newspaper Le Parisien has recently reported that the two tenants, residents of the French capital, were recently sentenced by the Paris Court of Appeal to reimburse to their owner the entirety of the income received, a sum of 27,295 euros (approximately 42,308 Canadian dollars).

According to the French newspaper, the apartment located opposite the Notre-Dame Cathedral was rented by the couple for 1200 euros per month. However, the owner Thomas Lautner, son of director Georges Lautner, realized that the housing was subleased without authorization on Airbnb at a cost of 4000 euros per month.

Airbnb did not dispute the judgment. The court ordered the tenants to repay the rents collected and demanded their eviction, as they had not obtained the landlord's written agreement to sublet the dwelling.

In Quebec, a tenant may sublet a dwelling or assign the lease (article 1870 of the Civil Code), but he must inform the landlord and give him the contact details of the person to whom he wishes to sublet or assign the lease. He must also obtain consent from the owner (article 1871), who may refuse with serious reason within 15 days of receipt of the notice. An owner may prohibit the subletting of the dwelling for tourism or commercial purposes by indicating that it is rented "for residential purposes only" in section B of the lease.