Wayne County does not impose direct liability on platforms like Airbnb or Vrbo, but Michigan PA 2024-12 and city ordinances place compliance burdens on hosts, including transient lodging tax remittance and rental licensing duties enforced at the municipal level.
Michigan PA 2024-12 establishes a registration framework that channels enforcement through hosts rather than platforms, though some Wayne County cities have explored requiring platforms to confirm registration before listings go live. Detroit collects accommodations excise tax directly from operators, and the Wayne County 5% lodging tax also applies to qualifying short-term stays. Platforms voluntarily collect and remit Michigan use tax in many cases, but hosts remain ultimately responsible for compliance. Civil liability for guest injuries continues to follow Michigan premises liability law, with hosts carrying primary responsibility absent contractual indemnification from the booking platform.
Failure to remit lodging taxes, register the property, or carry adequate insurance can produce back-tax assessments, civil penalties, registration loss, and personal liability exposure for guest injuries during hosted stays.
Wayne County, MI
Michigan charges 6 percent state use tax on lodging. Wayne County imposes a convention and tourism excise tax up to 5 percent on Detroit-area hotels and STRs...
Wayne County, MI
Michigan and Wayne County do not mandate specific STR insurance, but standard homeowners policies exclude commercial use. Hosts typically need at least 1 mil...
See how Wayne County's host platform liability rules stack up against other locations.
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