A Canadian woman returned home on Sunday to find a family of strangers swimming in her outdoor pool. Maryse Chausse was shocked to discover the family of five, who claimed they rented the pool through Swimply, a mobile app that allows users to lease private pools by the hour.
The fake listing, which included photos of Ms Chausse's pool and deck, was posted without her knowledge or consent. The description allowed loud music, smoking, and alcohol, but forbade parties. Pets were also permitted, with the condition that renters would clean up after them. The family paid $35 (approximately Rs 2,200) to use the pool, but Ms Chausse was not the one who posted the listing.
Ms Chausse told Noovo Info that there was a car in the parking lot when she got home. "There was a little family swimming in the pool, with three cute little girls," she said.
Swimply removed the listing after Ms Chausse reported it, but couldn't explain how it was posted without her confirmation.
They responded to the incident, saying they had a "robust system" in place to prevent and detect fraudulent activities. "We partner with several best-in-class identity and fraud detection companies to ensure our platform maintains a high standard of safety and can be trusted by our community," the company said in a statement.
However, they acknowledged that "bad actors" sometimes attempt to misuse their platform, and when a fraudulent listing is flagged, they take immediate action.
Ms Chausse believes a former tenant, who moved out in 2022, may be responsible for the fake listing. "Is this the first time she's done this? I can't say. We're not always at home," she said.
She called the police, but they said they couldn't take action since the family hadn't committed a crime.
Maryse Chausse was concerned the situation could have gotten worse. She said the family replaced the ladder she removed after cleaning the pool, and that she could have performed a chemical treatment that morning, potentially putting the family at risk.
In May, a California couple discovered that a stranger rented their backyard pool through Swimply, just a week after they listed their home for sale. The couple only found out about the scam when their pool caretaker spotted an unapproved pool party.
