Shawn Mackey says that Pamela Fohler’s harassment has caused his marriage to suffer.
“Nightmare”: Homeowner living in a van while deadbeat tenant list house on Airbnb
The homeowner who tried to evict the tenant for listing his house on Airbnb, while owing thousands of dollars in rent, got his day in court. But it didn’t work out as planned.
Airbnb guests are often less than complimentary about their stay in a Tennessee rental. The “superhost” reacted by sending his wife an email with a picture of him and another woman.
Shawn Mackey has filed a lawsuit against Airbnb and Pamela Fohler, a “superhost”.
Mackey claimed that Fohler, Airbnb, and other companies had invaded his privacy and caused him to suffer emotional distress. He also said they “damaged” his marriage.
The marriage of the plaintiff has suffered, it stated. It also added that Mackey experienced “extreme emotional stress,” “public humiliation,” as well as “mental anguish” due to this incident.
A security camera captured an image of Airbnb guest Shawn Mackey with a woman who is not his spouse after 3 am.
According to the lawsuit Mackey booked two nights at Fohler’s “Little Bit More Country” Airbnb in Memphis Tennessee for a stay in September 2022.
Emails included in court documents show that Mackey informed Fohler when arranging his stay, that he was in town visiting a friend. He “may invite him over for dinner”, according to the emails.
Mackey said to Fohler, “Very low-key.” Please let me know of any concerns.
Fohler responded, “That sounds wonderful.” I would love to have you all as guests.
According to the lawsuit, Mackey could have accommodated up to 12 people in his home.
Mackey stated in the lawsuit that it seemed odd to him that Fohler would want a list of all guests, even if the guests were not staying overnight.
She had also a list with rules, including no vaping or smoking, no excessive sound, no guests in the area, parking on the right-hand side of the driveway or in front of garage doors, no food or drinks in the pool, and no skinny-dipping.
The “superhost”, who warned of a $500 fine “at our discretion” if the police were called “for any reason”, and a $250 fee plus cancellation of the stay if there are additional guests, also warned.
Text messages were exchanged between Pamela Fohler and Shawn Mackey during their argument about the Mississippi man staying at her Airbnb.
Screenshots of the lawsuit claimed that “Hello Shawn” would only be able to accommodate 8 guests. This is due to city restrictions and the capacity of our home. Sorry, we didn’t discuss the tripling of guests. Airbnb requires that each guest be listed and counted according to the rules of Airbnb and insurance requirements. Each guest will incur a fee, even if they don’t stay the night. Please also remember the strict rule against parties. Thank you for understanding.”
Fohler re-messaged Mackey about 45 minutes after the first message.
According to the lawsuit, she wrote: “Hello Shawn. I’m asking you either to add the additional guests now or to have them leave right away.” We have also received complaints about disturbances, yelling, and profanity in the parking lot. We need to keep our home in a quiet area.
Fohler then demanded Shawn to leave the property.
Fohler said in his lawsuit, “I’m sorry, but I think you violated the rule of no parties, disturbed my neighbors with your cursing and shouting on the parking lot, and had unauthorized guests.” “I ask you to leave immediately.” “I’m sorry, but I can’t let you stay.”
Mackey insisted that Fohler had made “none” true claims.
He claimed he had left the next morning as per Fohler’s request. However, he said that there was no party. There were no curses, and there were no uninvited visitors.
His lawsuit stated that “[Mackey], having broken no rules, and spoken with the host, believed all issues were resolved as a simple misunderstanding” at the time of his departure.
Mackey immediately requested a $502.46 refund, presumably for nights he had booked but not stayed. He also left a bad review of the hotel.
Fohler “started harassing” him, worried that Mackey’s review could jeopardize Mackey’s “superhost” title.
Screenshot of a lawsuit. The suit alleges that the host sent illicit pictures to the guest’s spouse.
Mackey was accused of sending an image taken by the doorbell camera at his house, which included him and another woman.
“Hello, Shawn. I hope you’re doing well. We’re sorry it took so much time to get you the photos to show your stay in our home. Because I was motivated by my integrity and faith, I committed to posting these photos for you and Airbnb. The photo taken at 3:16 am in particular is noteworthy. “Should I send the photos and video to Teresa or will you?” The text read:
Airbnb allegedly deleted Mackey’s review and threatened to close his account.
He received a bill of $960. This included a guest fine of $160, two $250 fines each for “breaking the rules against local guests”, and “excessive sound”; as well as $300 for “moderation of your review”.
Fohler, after Mackey refused the fee to pay, retaliated against Mackey by sending the illicit picture to his wife under the subject “nice bag.”
Fohler wrote in the body of his message: “I love the bag, where did you get it?”
Mackey says that Fohler harassed him and his marriage suffered. He claims that Airbnb also did not defend his rights in this matter.
