PEACHTREE CORNERS, Ga. — A metro Atlanta man found himself in the hospital after he suffered a brutal attack while vacationing in the Dominican Republic.
Austin Deaver and his fiancée Madlyn Wright were soaking up the island sun in Punta Cana as they celebrated their 3-year anniversary.
“It was great for literally the first four days,” explained Madlyn Wright.
Wright said the couple stayed at a villa with a private beach from March 22-27 which they booked on Airbnb.
“We were there because staying in a resort is a little more expensive. So, I was like cost saving wise, let's do an Airbnb option and part of the reason we wanted to stay there is because not only do you have a whole villa to yourself but your also getting an opportunity to beach chairs, private access to beach, gate," Wright said.
"So, in our heads we were like, 'OK this is a secure opportunity to save a little money but still have that peace of mind that nothing is going to happen to us,'" explained Wright.
She mentioned the first few days were great, but it was Sunday, March 26, when their vacation turned into a nightmare. Wright said the couple was sitting in a couple of beach chairs when they were approached by four men who they said were staying in a villa as well.
She said the men told them they were sitting in their chairs.
“They say you need to get out of our chairs,” said Wright.“It was a bit of a miscommunication, but we eventually get up because we’re sick of them yelling at us.”
Deaver said the next thing he knows, he was being attacked.
“We were just enjoying our vacation one second sitting in a beach chair then like five seconds later I’m on the beach getting my head pounded in by four random people I don’t’ even know,” Deaver said.
The couple said the property manager saw the whole thing and helped get the men off Deaver along with security on the property. However, Wright said she and her fiancé were responsible for calling authorities and getting medical attention for Deaver.
She said they did call the cops, but because they were leaving the next day, they couldn’t stay for a hearing and were told charges couldn’t be pressed if they couldn’t stay for the process.
As for Deaver, the two went to a local hospital, but because of insurance issues, he was bandaged up and they went back to their villa. When the couple returned to metro Atlanta on Monday, Wright said the two went to a hospital in Kennesaw where Deaver got a CT scan and discovered he had a concussion.
“It’s just crazy. It feels like a bad dream that won’t stop,” said Deaver.
The couple reached out to 11Alive to see if there was any legal responsibility on Airbnb or the host of the private villa. While Wright and Deaver said they did reach out to the Airbnb security team, they didn’t feel like they were doing enough to help them or guide them. They also wanted to know if they could get their medical expenses reimbursed.
11Alive’s Cody Alcorn reached out to an Airbnb injury lawyer to get some perspective on the issue at hand.
“The problem is when you go outside the country and if you suffer an injury at an Airbnb. You're left at the mercy of that insurance company,” explained Prosper Shaked. “And with that, if you're overseas and you get injured in an Airbnb, you're going to have to deal with the insurance carrier. They’re not going to give you an insurance adjuster or claims handler from America. It's going to be their representative from that country.”
Shaked said the laws they apply in a different country won’t be the same as here.
“Those laws are very different than what we have here in the United States. And they're not very favorable to a plaintiff who's injured. And they may not help you get all your medical bills paid like you need to or help you get your wages paid if you have lost wages to the same extent that you would in the United States,” said Shaked.
He said anyone who does plan to travel outside the U.S. and plan to stay in an Airnbnb should be prepared and do research.
“Don’t reply on Airbnb as some sort of safety blanket or as if it's some sort of travel insurance. It doesn’t’ work that way. Make sure you have proper travel insurance for your medical expenses. You can’t just rely on Airbnb's insurance too, to provide coverage," Shaked said.
"There's a lot of things that could go wrong and you don't want to be left with medical bills to pay and be out of work for a few months if something bad happens and no way to pay you back,” added Shaked.
Deaver and Wright agree, and hope others will think twice about buying travel insurance and learn from their mistake.
“He (Deaver) didn’t have travel insurance so that was definitely one thing you should consider in hindsight,” said Wright.
Her fiancé agreed.
Airbnb explains Host liability insurance on its website, giving insight on what is and isn't covered. 11Alive did reach out to Airbnb and they provided a statement about the incident.
"We're very concerned to hear of this attack. Our dedicated Safety team began investigating when Austin and Madlyn informed us of what happened earlier this week, and we will continue working to support them. All Airbnb bookings come with AirCover, which includes a 24 hour safety line. More info here."