Short answer, yes…
If you’re one of the many people taking advantage of Short Term Rental platforms like Airbnb, Stayz & Booking .com then you need to make sure you are covered with specified short-term rental insurance.
Whether you are renting out one room or a whole house, you are considered a landlord and need to protect your property with a reliable and adequate policy.
There are numerous insurance companies that have specified Short Term Rental insurance policies.
What about my existing cover?
Traditional insurance policies will not cover you for any damage, theft or liability issues that could occur while your property is being used for business activities (i.e. revenue-generating).
It’s really important to tell your existing building and contents insurer you are operating it as a Short Term Rental and check if they cover this.
Even if you only rent out your property for a few days, anything that occurs during a paying guest’s stay is not covered. This could be potentially extremely costly in the case of a personal liability claim.
Doesn’t Airbnb have insurance?
Airbnb has ‘insurance’…it’s called AirCover for Hosts and AirCover Guests.
For Hosts, it includes $1M USD Host liability insurance, $1M USD Experiences liability insurance and $1M USD Host damage protection, with new coverage for pet damage, deep cleaning and more.
For guests, it acts as an insurance that Airbnb will cover the cost of booking, if the property has been misrepresented by a Host &/or issue with checking in.
Airbnb acts as a mediator for these claims, whereby you need to present the evidence of a claim, they then assess it + award compensation based on their findings and policies.
Why would I need my own Short Term Rental Insurance?
The main difference between Short Term Rental Insurance and Airbnb’s AirCover, is that Insurance will generally replace old for new (e.g. fridge is damaged…insurance will replace with the current equivalently priced new fridge). Whereas AirCover will take into account the age of the item and then award compensation based on this.
In the event that Airbnb made the decision that under the particular circumstance, they would not cover you… you could be left facing a law suit with liability.
At this moment in time (2022), Stayz and Booking .com do not provide any insurance for guests or hosts. Additionally, if you take a direct booking ‘off-platform’ you would need your own insurance in place.
As you can see, the possibility that you are left exposed with no insurance, with potentially a life-changing circumstance for you + the guest, is not worth the risk.
- SleepOver Brisbane is the premier, boutique short-term accommodation + property management company.
- We are Brisbane’s Airbnb Community Leader + an Airbnb Pro Host.
- Ask us about short-term rental property management for your investment.