Airbnb Liability Insurance: What Airbnb’s New Host Insurance Rules Mean for Property Managers
For years, plenty of hosts treated AirCover as their liability plan. Airbnb’s own terms now say otherwise.
Airbnb’s updated Terms of Service include a new section that requires hosts to buy and maintain their own primary liability insurance. Pair that with an earlier change that lets Airbnb’s coverage act as backup for hosts with six or more listings, and the message to professional managers is hard to miss: the first policy that responds to a guest injury claim should be yours.
Below, we break down what changed, what Airbnb’s host liability insurance still covers, where the gaps are, and the steps worth taking before your next booking.
What Changed: Airbnb’s New Host Insurance Requirements
Airbnb published updated Terms of Service, which applied immediately to new accounts. Existing hosts were given a few months to accept the new terms in order to keep accepting bookings and using their host tools.
Tucked into the host section is a new Section 5.7, “Your Insurance Obligations,” which did not exist in the previous version of the terms. For hosts covered by Airbnb’s main Terms of Service, including those in the U.S., it says you agree to:
- Carry primary liability insurance at your own expense. The policy must cover your liability, and that of any employees or agents working for you, for third-party bodily injury and property damage arising from a guest’s stay.
- Show proof when asked. You must cooperate with Airbnb and its insurance partners to verify your coverage, including providing proof promptly.
- Report a lapse immediately. If required insurance is cancelled or lapses, you’re expected to tell Airbnb right away.
- Cooperate on liability claims. That includes providing information to Airbnb’s insurers and, where the program requires it, notifying your own insurer about the incident.
What “primary” means in practice
Primary insurance is the policy that responds first when a claim comes in. By writing a primary-insurance obligation into its terms, Airbnb is signaling that it expects the host’s own policy to be the first line of defense, not AirCover.
Airbnb’s earlier language simply said hosts were responsible for obtaining appropriate insurance. The new section turns that suggestion into an agreement you’ve signed, complete with verification and reporting duties.
Managing Six or More Listings? Airbnb’s Coverage May Sit Behind Yours
The new terms build on a change that already hit professional managers. Since March 1, 2025, Airbnb’s Host Liability Insurance program summary has carved out hosts with six or more active Airbnb listings at the time of a loss.
For those hosts, the program may require your other insurance to share the cost of a claim, or it may apply only as excess coverage, depending on how your other policy is written. Excess coverage pays only after the underlying policy has paid out up to its limits.
Two details in Airbnb’s summary deserve a close read:
- Disclosure matters. Airbnb notes that failing to disclose other applicable insurance may affect your coverage under its program.
- Your policy language decides the order. Whether Airbnb shares the claim or waits behind your policy depends on the wording of the insurance you carry.
If you run a portfolio, it’s safest to assume your own liability policy will be the one answering the phone when a guest gets hurt.
What Does AirCover’s Host Liability Insurance Cover?
AirCover for Hosts still includes Host Liability Insurance at no cost. It’s a real benefit, but it’s narrower than many hosts assume. Here’s how it’s structured, based on Airbnb’s program summary (last updated June 30, 2026):
| Feature | How Airbnb’s Host Liability Insurance works |
| Limit | $1,000,000 total per Airbnb stay |
| What it covers | Your legal liability for a guest’s or third party’s bodily injury or property damage from an accident during the stay, plus investigation and defense costs when the claim applies |
| When it applies | Only from the guest’s check-in date to checkout; canceled stays and no-shows don’t qualify |
| Which bookings | Only stays booked through Airbnb |
| Who’s insured | You, plus co-hosts, staff and others helping you host; your landlord or HOA for related common areas |
| Whose policy it is | Airbnb’s. In its SEC filings, Airbnb describes the program as commercial general liability policies with Airbnb as the named insured and hosts as additional insureds |
It also doesn’t cover damage to your own property. That falls under Host Damage Protection, which Airbnb is clear is not an insurance policy. We break down that program in our guide to the Airbnb Host Guarantee.
What Airbnb’s liability coverage excludes
The exclusion list is long, and Airbnb notes it isn’t exhaustive. Several items line up with real-world short-term rental claims:
- Assault and battery, and sexual assault allegations
- Communicable disease transmission
- Fungi or bacteria, such as mold exposure inside the building
- Pollution, with limited exceptions for carbon monoxide and smoke injuries inside the unit and for hostile fires
- Invasion of privacy and wrongful-entry claims, plus recordings from undisclosed or interior cameras
- Autos and watercraft, with narrow exceptions
- Punitive damages, fines and penalties where not insurable by law
- Injuries to your own employees, which belong to workers’ compensation
One more detail for U.S. hosts: Airbnb notes the program is sometimes underwritten by a non-admitted insurer. In those cases it may not be subject to your state’s insurance regulations or protected by the state guaranty fund. For a refresher on how liability coverage works in general, see what liability insurance actually covers in your vacation rentals.
What These Changes Mean for Property Managers
Airbnb hasn’t taken AirCover away. What it has done is make clear, in writing, that the host’s own policy is expected to carry the first layer of liability risk. For a manager running dozens of homes for multiple owners, that’s a portfolio-wide responsibility, not a box to tick.
Here’s a practical checklist to work through now:
- Audit every property’s liability coverage. Many homeowner’s policies limit or exclude commercial rental activity, so a policy that looks fine on paper may not respond to a guest injury.
- Ask your agent how your policy interacts with Airbnb’s. Specifically, ask whether it responds as primary for guest stays and how its “other insurance” wording treats Airbnb’s program.
- Organize proof of insurance by property. Airbnb can now ask you to verify coverage, so keep current certificates or declarations pages where your team can pull them quickly.
- Put renewals on a calendar. A lapse is something you’ve agreed to report to Airbnb immediately, so avoid gaps in the first place.
- Disclose your other coverage when a claim happens. For managers with six or more listings, nondisclosure can affect what Airbnb’s program will pay.
- Close the off-platform gap. Airbnb’s liability insurance doesn’t follow Vrbo or direct bookings, so make sure those stays are protected too.
- Revisit owner agreements. Confirm who is responsible for carrying liability coverage on each home, and that the answer matches what’s actually in force.
- Lower the odds of a claim. Screen guests, publish clear house rules, and keep any exterior cameras disclosed in the listing. Claims tied to undisclosed or interior cameras are excluded from Airbnb’s liability coverage.
High-risk amenities deserve their own look. Our guide to pool, hot tub and outdoor amenity liability walks through what insurers expect to see.
How Safely Helps Property Managers Fill the Gap
Safely was built for professional managers who need liability protection that belongs to them, not to a booking platform.
The Safely Protection Policy, provided by our affiliated agency On Demand Insurance Agency, LLC, is commercial short-term rental insurance designed around how vacation rentals actually operate:
- Proactive Liability Protection. Up to $1,000,000 in primary host liability coverage. When a guest is injured, we respond right away in an effort to avoid large and time consuming personal injury lawsuits.
- Coverage that runs with every stay. The policy is put in force for each guest’s stay through Safely’s property management system integrations, so protection is consistent across your portfolio.
- Screening that prevents claims. Guest screening helps you spot risky bookings before anyone checks in.
The right coverage starts before the claim
Airbnb has put its expectations in writing. If you’re not sure your current policies would respond first to a guest injury at every property you manage, that’s worth settling now, not after an incident makes it urgent.
Our team works with property managers running single homes and large portfolios alike. Get a quote to see how Safely’s coverage fits your portfolio.
Insurance is provided through On Demand Insurance Agency, LLC, an excess and surplus lines producer, and is not available in all states. Coverage is subject to policy terms, conditions and exclusions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Airbnb have liability insurance for hosts?
Yes. AirCover for Hosts includes Host Liability Insurance with a $1,000,000 limit per stay. It’s Airbnb’s policy, though, and it only applies to stays booked through Airbnb, during the stay itself.
Does Airbnb require hosts to have their own insurance?
Yes. Under Section 5.7 of Airbnb’s updated Terms of Service, hosts agree to carry primary liability insurance at their own expense. They also agree to provide proof when asked and to tell Airbnb immediately if that coverage lapses.
When did the new insurance requirement take effect?
The updated terms took effect February 5, 2026 for new accounts. Existing hosts had to accept them starting April 20, 2026 to keep using the platform.
Is AirCover worth relying on as a property manager?
It’s worth having, but not worth relying on alone. Its exclusions are broad, it only covers Airbnb bookings, and for managers with six or more listings it may apply only after your own policy pays.
Does Airbnb’s liability insurance cover Vrbo or direct bookings?
No. Coverage applies only to stays arranged through Airbnb’s platform. Bookings from other channels need their own short-term rental liability insurance.
