Short-term rental insurance in California, the honest version.

Most Airbnb hosts in California are carrying the wrong insurance and don't know it until a claim gets denied. Your standard homeowner or condo policy almost certainly excludes short-term rental activity, and Airbnb's AirCover was never designed to be your primary coverage. Here's what actually protects you.

Last updated July 2026. Educational only — not insurance advice. Confirm coverage with a licensed California broker.

1. Why homeowner policies fall short

Standard California homeowner (HO-3) and condo (HO-6) policies are written for owner-occupied residences with occasional guests. Renting to paying strangers, even a few nights a year, moves the property into "business use" territory that most carriers specifically exclude.

The exclusion usually shows up under "business pursuits" or "rental of the residence." A denied claim after a guest-caused fire is not the moment to discover this.

2. What AirCover actually pays

Airbnb's AirCover for Hosts includes up to $3M in host damage protection and up to $1M in host liability, applied per reservation. It is real coverage, and it does pay, but three things matter:

• It's secondary — Airbnb expects you to have your own policy first, and coordinates around it.
• It only applies to Airbnb bookings. Direct bookings and Vrbo stays are not covered.
• Certain categories (jewelry, cash, collectibles, some pet damage) are excluded or capped.

3. STR-specific carriers to know

The four carriers most California STR hosts end up with:

• Proper Insurance — commercial-grade STR policy, replaces your HO-3, high premiums but broadest coverage.
• Slice / Steadily / Safely — on-demand or STR-focused policies designed to sit alongside a homeowner policy.
• CBIZ / Foremost / Farmers "landlord" endorsements — cheaper, but many carve out short-term rental unless explicitly endorsed.
• Surplus lines carriers — for high-value LA properties above $2M replacement, often the only real option.

4. Liability coverage minimums

For LA short-term rentals, we recommend a minimum of $1M per occurrence in general liability, ideally layered with a personal umbrella of $1-2M on top. If the property has a pool, hot tub, rooftop deck, or is in a high-fire-severity zone, $2M primary is the more defensible floor.

5. How claims actually play out

Two patterns worth knowing:

• Property damage from a guest. AirCover typically covers most of it if you document promptly with photos, itemized receipts, and communicate through the Airbnb Resolution Center within 14 days. Your primary policy is the backstop for anything AirCover rejects or excludes.
• Guest injury on the property. This is where real liability limits matter. AirCover's $1M can be exhausted quickly on a serious injury; your primary policy plus an umbrella is what actually protects your net worth.

6. How Staybly handles coverage

We don't sell insurance, but we do build the operational side of what makes coverage defensible: documented pre- and post-stay inspections with photos, on-file guest ID verification for direct bookings, a written house-rules acknowledgment, and preserved messaging logs for every stay. When a claim happens, the file is ready.

During onboarding we also review your existing policy with you and flag whether it will hold up under STR use, so you can have a real conversation with your broker before the first guest checks in.