A Florida mother has filed a negligence lawsuit against Airbnb and three individuals after her young child was found floating in a backyard swimming pool at a short-term rental home in Ocala.

The complaint, filed January 30, 2026, in Marion County, stems from a near-drowning incident that allegedly occurred on August 17, 2025, at an Airbnb-listed property.

Plaintiff Dominique Sheffield of Gainesville filed the suit as the natural parent and guardian of S.G., a minor. The defendants include Airbnb, Inc.; Sara Sprague; and Patrick and Catherine Kester. All are alleged to have owned, controlled, managed, or operated the property at the time of the incident.

According to the filing, Sheffield and her children were lawful business invitees at the rental. The home featured a backyard swimming pool that was directly accessible from inside the residence through a sliding door that allegedly lacked a functioning child-resistant lock, audible alarm, or other safety device to prevent unsupervised access.

The lawsuit alleges that S.G. gained access to the pool area through the unsecured door and was later discovered floating in the water while a 3-year-old sibling sat nearby.

The complaint describes pediatric drowning as a well-known and foreseeable risk in residential pools, particularly at short-term rentals, and alleges that industry-standard safety measures such as child-resistant locks, door alarms, and secondary barriers were not present or maintained at the property.

As a result of the incident, the lawsuit alleges S.G. suffered bodily injury, including drowning, water aspiration, pulmonary injury, abnormal blood levels, and related harms. The filing states the child endured pain and suffering, mental anguish, and loss of enjoyment of life, and required medical treatment, transport, imaging, and related care. Future medical monitoring is also alleged.

The lawsuit asserts that Airbnb and the individual defendants each owed a non-delegable duty to maintain the property in a reasonably safe condition and to warn of dangerous conditions they knew or should have known about. The complaint alleges breaches including failure to inspect for foreseeable drowning hazards, failure to install or maintain codecompliant pool safety barriers, and listing the property to families with young children without ensuring safety measures were in place.

The plaintiff seeks damages in excess of $50,001 against each defendant, plus interest and costs, and has demanded a jury trial. The amount is listed for jurisdictional purposes only, with damages to be determined by a jury.

No responses from Airbnb or the individual defendants were included in the filing.