How do I insure against the death of a guest, by for example, a house tree falling on the guest.

[Andrew231]

Apparently, Host Protection Insurance only covers injury not death to the guest on the property

[Robin4]

@Andrew231......If you can manage to work your way through all the fine print I don't think your guest would even be covered for injury, let alone death! Andrew, do not put any faith in the Host Protection Scheme.....it is a marketing tool, nothing else!

There may have been instances where a host has been able to get some form of compensation through the HPS, but we on this forum are not aware of it!

I am particularly critical of it because it gives hosts the conception that they can host with confidence that if something goes wrong they will be covered.....and this is just not the case!!

Buried along way down it will say that the HPS does not replace general insurance and should be used as a last option. But they know full well that general insurers will not cover short term rental agreements and will therefore say, it's the general insurers fault, not theirs.

Andrew, we are lucky in Australia because we have Insurance options that will cover short term rentals. I use a company called 'Sharecover' and they will issue a policy on the spot for guests using a hosts property. There is still a minefield of problems to go through before you can actually claim because you must make sure you have all relevant approvals to be doing what you are doing!

As another Aussie host pointed out these companies will gladly take your premium but if you lodge a claim they will want to sight local government acceptance to short term hosting or they will say you are conducting an illegal operation and reject your claim.

Andrew, Insurance is a massive stumbling block to short term renting and I personally have seen the consequences when people do not have adequate insurance in place.....

But first and foremost, forget all about the Host Protection Scheme....it is a myth!!!!

Cheers....Rob

[Helen3]

@Robin4 Difference between host protection and BNB's liability insurance

@Andrew231 f you want something in addition to what BNB offers add it to your home insurance 

[Robin4]

@Helen3.....of course Helen but, it is not that simple. Over the past 2 years I have seen countless thousands of posts relating to claims under the host protection scheme. The common theme is that there is no coverage!!!

If potential hosts are aware that it is their reponsibility to make sure they have adequate protection in place....then great.

But when they are told, 'don't worry, we are there to protect you' that's different!

Let me tell you a story I told here about a year ago....

Loui and Katrina came out here from Greece in 1956! They arrived here with nothing but a dream to make a better life! Loui worked as a cleaner and Katrina as a nurses aide and before long they had a deposit for a block of land. They cleaned the block up and put it back on the market and made something of a profit. They repeated this again and again and before you knew where you were Loui and Katrina were millionaires....and this was in the days when a million dollars was a big deal!!!

They bought a house in a nice up-market area and this was where I got involved...I airconditioned their house for them. We became friends...and even more than that, we became best friends. Loui and Katrina had two sons and we watched the sons grow into young men. With the older generation retiring the sons felt the need to spread their wings so they bought the Marion Super centre, a huge fitness facility in one of Adelaide's better suburbs...I am sure local hosts will know exactly where I mean!!!

In their headlong desire to make a buck or two they started business before they had the proper insurances in place and a fitness patron injured themselves severely on a piece of fitness aparatus that failed!

The resultant legal proceedings meant that Loui and Katrina who had gone as guarantors for this project were called on to foot the costs of the ultimate judgement and liquidators were called in to dispose of Loui and Katrinas assets, including their beloved house!

I last saw Loui in a hospital bed two days before he died from a heart attack brought on from months of stress over this impending doom that had setted over the family.....Three months later Katrina died, and we are totally sure, she died of a broken heart. 

Even as I write this I still have tears over what has happened to two wonderful people!

This is what happens when the, 'she'll be right jack' metallity steps in where insurance is concerned.

Do not take anything for granted...this might just be the day that will change your life forever!!!

Cheers.....Rob