A couple is suing two Travis County homeowners and the vacation rental platform Vrbo after a hidden camera was discovered inside a rented vacation property in Comfort, Texas, in August 2020.
The plaintiffs, identified as John and Jane Doe, allege that the camera was placed in the bedroom to capture illicit footage without their knowledge or consent. The homeowners did not disclose the presence of the cameras, and charges were filed against one homeowner for improper photography.
“These were cameras directed in the bedroom to capture elicit footage, and that’s what it did,” said personal injury attorney Kristina Baehr of Just Well Law in Austin, Texas.
Lawyer Kristina Baehr said her clients didn’t find out about the cameras until months after their visit when local police contacted them. She said it triggered past trauma for one of her clients.
“Their first reaction was just shock, but then also, it triggers all of these traumatic feelings that you have to go and address. And so, she is in an active therapy to recover from this incident,” Baehr said. Baehr founded personal injury law firm Just Well Law after she herself was injured.
The lawsuit claims a systematic failure by Vrbo to prevent such incidents and alleges negligence, fraud, misrepresentation, and private nuisance against both the homeowners and Vrbo.
Vrbo maintains a strict policy against surveillance devices that violate guest privacy and security but is being sued for alleged enforcement failures. The plaintiffs seek more than $250,000 in damages and express a fear of travel and rental homes as a result of the incident.
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