Short-Term Rental Insurance for Tulsa Airbnb Hosts

If you’ve been around town, you should know it’s no secret that tourism is growing in Tulsa. In fact, back in 2023, more than 10 million visitors passed through our city! Whether you’re looking to supplement your income with rental properties, going away from home for an extended period of time or have some other reason, Airbnb is a great way to take advantage of the growing tourism scene in the city and make an extra buck. But renting out a property, especially your own home if that’s the route you’re taking, is not something you want to take any chances on. You have a lot of responsibility and are accepting a lot of risk, so it’s incredibly important to have short-term rental insurance if you’re going to be an Airbnb host.

A lot of hosts assume that their regular homeowners policy will cover their Airbnb enterprise, but that’s unfortunately not usually the case. Much like your standard auto policy isn’t enough for ridesharing platforms, your standard homeowners insurance isn’t enough when participating in homesharing activities. This is because homesharing is considered a business activity, and is therefore excluded under most standard policies.

So, if you host your property on Airbnb and end up having to file a claim that involves guest injuries, theft or property damage occurring during the rental period, your claims are likely to be denied. Even the coverage provided by Airbnb, called AirCover, has limitations. It’s not a full insurance policy, so while it is a huge benefit the company freely provides that should offer you a ton of peace of mind, you should still supplement it with a separate short-term rental insurance policy.

Short-term rental insurance is a relatively new type of policy that was introduced with the rise of rental companies like Airbnb and Vrbo, designed specifically to protect properties listed on those types of platforms. It focuses on the unique kind of coverage you might need while renting your property out for a short period of time.

• Property Protection — Any damage to your home or belongings caused by your guests, including theft and vandalism, is covered by this kind of policy.
• Liability Coverage — If one of your guests is injured on your property, or if you’re found legally responsible for damages to their property, then liability coverage can protect you.
• Loss of Income — If for some reason your rental property becomes uninhabitable for a period of time due to a covered event, such as fallen trees or water damage from burst pipes, this policy might reimburse you for your lost income.
• Covered Amenities — Sometimes additional amenities that you have as part of your property aren’t covered under your standard policy, especially for guests. With this policy, your pool, hot tub, bikes or other features you leave accessible to guests can be covered as well.
• Other Coverage — Other rare things like bed bug protection, pet liability and squatter coverage might be included in a short-term rental policy. Extra protection is never a bad thing!

There are a few things you should consider in specific regarding your properties here in the Tulsa area. With a lot of historic homes throughout the city, you may want to consider additional coverage for plumbing, electrical or structural issues if you have an older property. Similarly, if your property is in or near one of the flood zones by the Arkansas River, you’ll certainly want to consider adding flood insurance, as flooding isn’t typically covered under standard or short-term rental policies.

Lastly, while city ordinances don’t strictly require proof of insurance in order to rent out your property on Airbnb, there are local regulations that strongly encourage supplementing your own policy and AirCover with a separate short-term rental policy. If you’re interested in securing a policy for yourself, we’d be happy to help you find the right coverage here at Glover Family Independent Insurance. Just give us a call at your earliest convenience!