May 16, 2024 - Meagan Palmer
These days, travelers have more options available than ever when it comes to booking accommodations when they travel. Airbnb has been around for over a decade and throughout the years has added optional travel insurance offerings. You know, that check box at the end of the booking asking if you want to add traveling insurance? The question many travelers ask is “is Airbnb travel insurance worth it?”.
Yonder experts found that Airbnb’s travel insurance doesn’t meet the same standards as other retail travel insurance policies.
Jumping Ahead
What does Airbnb travel insurance cover?Most properties on Airbnb will include some sort of cancellation policy where you can get a full, partial, or no refund. If you choose to cancel at the last minute, you could lose your entire reservation expenses. Airbnb offers its own travel insurance policy for an additional charge, but what does it actually cover? Check out the benefits it includes below.
It’s true that Airbnb travel insurance includes trip cancellation coverage. The downside is that it only protects the prepaid costs associated with the reservation itself. So if you have other trip costs like nonrefundable flights or prepaid tour or ticket costs, you’d have to pay for a separate travel insurance policy to protect these expenses.
“Rather than forking out more money from your travel budget to insure your other trip costs, purchase a single travel insurance plan from a third party to protect your entire trip,” says Terry Boynton, co-founder and president of Yonder Travel Insurance.
If something causes you to cut your trip short, trip Interruption coverage could apply under the Airbnb travel insurance. Keep reading on why we think you might want to purchase travel insurance with trip cancellation insurance elsewhere.
Airbnb does offer medical insurance for medical emergencies with their travel insurance. If you get physically injured or become suddenly ill while staying in an Airbnb, your travel insurance policy will likely cover the medical expenses incurred during your vacation.
If your travel is delayed Airbnb’s policy would provide some reimbursement of any additional accommodation or meal expenses. In addition, if your personal items are lost, stolen, or damaged during your trip, the policy could cover the costs to repair or replace those items.
Coverage would apply as long as you are taking the appropriate precautions –locking your door while you are away, for example. If you rent a room in a shared house or a bed and breakfast, keep your belongings locked in your room to ensure your travel insurance applies. Leaving items in common spaces may not be covered.
In addition, Airbnb travel insurance could cover additional costs for clothing and personal items if your checked bags don’t make it to your destination.
What does Airbnb travel insurance cover NOT cover?Airbnb’s travel insurance policy covers similar categories as other retail insurance but lacks benefits for specific events. Depending on your needs, you might find better coverage at a more economical price with alternative travel insurance options. Here are the areas Yonder’s travel insurance experts didn’t find included with the Airbnb-offered travel insurance.
Airbnb’s travel insurance policy does not include the option to upgrade to Cancel for Any Reason coverage. If you aren’t familiar with this benefit often available with other retail policies, check out our comprehensive guide to Cancel for Any Reason coverage. This benefit allows you to receive a 50% – 75% reimbursement of your trip costs even if you nix your trip for a reason not listed as a covered cancellation reason in the policy.
When renting an Airbnb in a different area, you might also be renting a car. If that’s the case, some travel insurance policies provide coverage if any damage happened to the vehicle. However, Airbnb’s policy does not offer this optional insurance upgrade.
To learn more about adding this benefit to a travel insurance policy, check out our article on rental car damage benefits.
Interestingly enough, Airbnb’s travel insurance policy doesn’t cover if you accidentally damage any of the rental’s property. Some other retail policies include this “Vacation Rental Damage” benefit, which pays the replacement costs for the damaged items. Ask one of our friendly humans about this benefit if interested!
As stated before, if you purchase insurance through Airbnb, it will only protect those reservation costs. This may be enough for you if you don’t have any out-of-pocket expenses related to your trip.
For those with flights and/or tours or tickets you purchased in advance, consider insuring everything (including your Airbnb reservation) under a single travel insurance policy from a third party like Yonder Travel Insurance.
Is Airbnb Travel Insurance Worth it?We always think travel insurance is wise, even for domestic trips. After a thorough comparison, we believe there are better travel insurance options than Airbnb’s policy.
Here are some of the top discrepancies in Airbnb’s offered travel insurance:
When it comes to price, you might find a better deal using a comparison site like Yonder.
“Airbnb travel insurance premiums averaged 6-7% of the total Airbnb cost,” says Boynton. “In contrast, average premiums for similar trip costs on Yonder were 3-5% of the total trip cost.”
The consensus: Is Airbnb Travel Insurance Worth it? If your Airbnb costs are low and you’re traveling nearby, you might consider booking insurance through Airbnb’s platform. It’s best to compare the prices though! However, if have specific needs or are looking to insure your other trip costs, we’d recommend saving some money and instead booking a single separate policy insuring all your trip investments via a comparison site like Yonder. This is the best way to get the most bang for your buck, in our opinion.
Other FAQsYes, general retail travel insurance (like those found on Yonder’s site) can protect any nonrefundable trip costs. So if your Airbnb reservation is subject to some sort of cancellation policy, you could insure these costs in case you suddenly have to cancel your trip.
For example, here are some common trip cancellation reasons travel insurance could reimburse your Airbnb costs:
Aircover, which is included for free with each guest booking, isn’t considered “insurance”. Think of it as more of an assistance service. Aircover offers some protection against last-minute issues with your rental, but doesn’t include other benefits that usually come with third-party travel insurance.
One of the biggest perks of AirCover is if the actual property doesn’t look anything like the pictures. From what we know, Airbnb is pretty on top of it when it comes to customer service, so take pictures and get in touch with them and your host as soon as possible.
We’ve written a press release article on all the details, but essentially, we found that credit card coverage falls short when it comes to travel insurance. Not all credit cards include this type of insurance and if they do, they’re seriously lacking vital benefits to protect you and your trip costs.
If you’re looking to buy travel insurance for your Airbnb getaway, we have you covered. You can get a free instant quote to help you get started. Our team of friendly humans would be happy to help you purchase travel insurance and answer your questions, making sure you have the right policy in hand for your trip.
As a seasoned professional with over five years of experience in the travel insurance industry, Meagan has honed her expertise in marketing and operations working for Yonder Travel Insurance. Throughout her career, she's shown dedication assisting customers at every stage of their travel insurance journey, from the initial quote process to navigating the claims process. Her expert understanding of travel insurance equips her to provide unbiased and valuable insights, which help travelers find the best coverage and maximize its benefits.
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