Short-Term Let and Airbnb Insurance Claims

How to Make A Short-Term Let Insurance Claim

1. Photograph and document the damage immediately. Wide shots, close-ups, the inventory before and after.
2. Establish the timeline. When the guest checked in, when the damage was discovered, when the property is next booked.
3. Check the platform’s host protection cover. Airbnb’s AirCover, Booking.com’s host insurance, etc. These pay separately to your own insurance and should be claimed first or in parallel.
4. Read your own policy carefully. Many home and landlord policies exclude short-term lets entirely. Where cover applies, it is often via a specific endorsement.
5. Notify your insurer in writing without undue delay.
6. Engage a loss assessor. Short-term-let claims sit at the intersection of platform protection, your own policy, and sometimes the guest’s travel insurance. The loss adjuster for one will not coordinate with the other.
7. Document the loss of bookings during reinstatement. Future cancelled bookings and the rate per night.
8. Prepare the reinstatement schedule.
9. Negotiate settlements with each party.
10. Reconcile so you are not double-recovering.

Remember, short-term let cover is the most-misunderstood section of Irish residential insurance. The first call after a loss is to confirm what is actually covered.

What is considered a short-term let insurance claim?

A short-term let claim relates to damage or loss arising from a property that is let on a short-term basis, typically through a platform such as Airbnb, Booking.com, or directly. The claim may engage your own insurance, the platform’s host-protection cover, the guest’s travel insurance, or a combination.

Common short-term let claim scenarios

• Guest damage to walls, floors, fittings, or contents
• Theft of items by guests
• Water damage from misuse of plumbing
• Fire damage from cooking, candles, or heating misuse
• Excessive cleaning or contamination requiring specialist treatment
• Damage during a party or unauthorised gathering
• Loss of bookings during reinstatement

Does insurance cover short-term lets?

It depends on the policy:

• Standard home insurance. Almost always excludes paying guests.
• Standard landlord policy. Usually requires a long-term tenancy and excludes short-term lets.
• Specialist short-term let cover. A growing market in Ireland, must be in force at the time of loss.
• Platform host protection. Provides specific cover for guest-caused damage and loss, with its own conditions and exclusions.

How N.J. Carroll & Associates Can Help

We are one of Ireland’s most experienced loss-assessing firms, established 1988, regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. We act as the host’s representative throughout, take the stress and worry off your hands, and ensure that you receive your full entitlement across all available cover. We are wholly independent and committed to your interests alone.

Our standard fee is 8% plus VAT of the total settlement, no-win, no-fee. The initial consultation is free.

If your short-term let property has suffered damage or loss, please do not hesitate to contact us today. For related claims, see tenant damage claims, loss of rent claims, and landlord claims. Reach the local team at loss assessors Dublin.

N.J. Carroll & Associates Ltd are regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Our Financial Regulator Certificate number is C41330. Niall Carroll is a member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors and the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. We are also a member of the Irish Claims Consultants Association.

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