Airbnb Travel Insurance - 2024 Review

Background

Airbnb recently began making travel insurance available when you check out. Prior to this, you had to obtain travel insurance outside of Airbnb if you wanted trip cancellation coverage or medical coverage for the trip. The Airbnb policy is provided by Generali, a well-known travel insurance provider that also provides travel insurance to other travel companies.

When you book a rental, Airbnb places cancellation restrictions on your booking. Sometimes, those penalties are costly. During uncertain times like during the Covid-19 rules, non-refundable bookings are risky. Trip Cancellation insurance can protect you against a loss of your non-refundable costs.

You can purchase trip cancellation insurance for Airbnb bookings at checkout or through a travel insurance marketplace like TripInsure101. Travel Insurance can cover more than just your Airbnb rental. Add your flights, cruises, and tour expenses on the same plan if they are prepaid and non-refundable.

TripInsure101 travel insurance marketplace offers dozens of plans so you can choose the best coverage for your trip.

Comprehensive Airbnb guest insurance includes Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, Medical Insurance, Medical Evacuation, Baggage protection, and more.

Airbnb Cancellation Policy

Airbnb has different levels of cancellation. The Airbnb host decides which cancellation policy to offer guests:

• Flexible – 100% refund, minus fees, if you cancel one day before check-in
• Moderate – 100% refund, minus fees if you cancel five days before check-in.
• Strict – 50% refund, minus fees, if you cancel one week or more before to check-in, or 100% refund if canceled within 48 hours of booking.
• Long Term – First month and service fees are non-refundable, and you must give 30 days' notice. It only applies to stays 28 nights or more.
• Super Strict 30 Days – 50% refund, minus fees, if you cancel 30 days or more before check-in
• Super Strict 60 Days – 50% refund, minus fees, if you cancel 60 days or more before check-in

Our Airbnb Rental

To see how the new Airbnb travel insurance from Generali fares, we booked a sample trip for a week’s stay in Miami at a luxurious condo overseeing the beach. The price is $225 per night for a total of $1,575 for the week. With taxes, cleaning fees etc., the total cost of the stay will be $2,027.84.

As we are ready to check out, we are offered travel insurance for $126.74 (about 6.25% of the total cost).

The policy is offered by Generali, a respected travel insurer.

While travel insurance may not seem important when traveling inside the US, if you needed to cancel your trip due to illness or injury or another covered reason, travel insurance can refund prepaid, non-refundable costs.

Without trip cancellation insurance, Airbnb can charge stiff penalties if you cancel close to your intended rental date. A travel insurance policy with Trip Cancellation can help you recover these potential financial losses.

For example, if you book a beach house during the summer, the host may enforce a strict cancellation policy. Suppose your family member suddenly became gravely ill a week before the trip, and you had to cancel. The host is not obligated to refund the fees for this tragic circumstance. But if you have a comprehensive travel insurance plan, you would receive a 100% refund, since it's a covered cancellation reason.

Let’s take a look at the Advanced Travel Plan offered by Generali:

The policy offered by Generali is quite good for travel within the US. It will provide a 100% refund of the trip costs if you cancel for a reason listed in the policy and will refund the remaining portion of your trip cost if you must cut your trip short and come home early as well as provide up to 50% additional to cover changing airline tickets to come home immediately.

Medical coverage for injuries or illness during the trip is $50,000 and medical evacuation is $100,000. This would be a little low for travel outside the US but more than enough for travel inside US borders.

However, the Generali policy does not cover any prepaid, non-refundable costs outside of the rental cost. This would mean that airline tickets, excursions or tours would not be covered.

Now that we know what Airbnb’s insurance will cover and the cost, let’s look at what we can find in the marketplace by doing a quote at TripInsure101.

Comparison Quotes

Based on a sample couple, aged 50 and 55 years, we created comparison quotes using TripInsure101’s travel insurance marketplace engine. The trip cost used for the comparison is the Airbnb rental cost of, $2,027 for our 5-day stay in Miami. Our quote returned 25 policy options for us to choose from.

For travel within the US, TripInsure101 recommends a minimum coverage of $10,000 in Medical Insurance, $150,000 in Medical Evacuation, and a Pre-existing Medical Condition Waiver.

The least expensive plan with adequate coverage is the AIG Travel Guard Essential for $95.09. This plan provides $15,000 of medical coverage and $150,000 of medical evacuation coverage in addition to trip cancellation and trip interruption.

The least expensive policy that has coverage close to the Generali policy is the Trawick Voyager. This policy provides $250,000 of medical coverage and $1 million of medical evacuation coverage for $111.56, about $11 less than the Generali policy with five times the medical coverage and ten times the medical evacuation coverage.

If we opt for a Cancel For Any Reason policy to provide greater cancellation flexibility, we chose the AIG Travel Guard Plus (CFAR 50%) because it is the least expensive plan with Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) benefits. The policy is $21 more than the Generali policy but provides double the medical coverage and ten times the medical evacuation coverage along with the ability to cancel for any reason not listed in the policy and still receive a 50% cash refund of your non-refundable trip costs.

Next, let’s look at the benefits of each policy in a side-by-side comparison.

Benefit	Generali General Advanced Travel Plan	Trawick Voyager	AIG Travel Guard Plus (CFAR 50%)
Trip Cancellation	100% of trip cost	100% of trip cost	100% of trip cost
Trip Interruption	150% of trip cost	150% of trip cost	150% of trip cost
Medical Insurance	$50,000	$250,000	$100,000
Medical Evacuation	$100,000	$1,000,000	$1,000,000
Baggage Loss/Damage	$1,000	2,500	$2,500
Baggage Delay	$250	$600	$400
Travel Delay (Incl quarantine)	$250/day up to $750 total per person	$150 per day up to $2000 per person (can be increased)	$200 /day up to $1,000 per person
Missed Connection	No	$1000 per person	$1000 per person
Cover Pre-existing Medical Conditions	No	Yes, if purchased on or before final trip payment	Yes, if purchased within 21 days of deposit
Cancel For Work Reason	No	No	No
Interrupt For Any Reason	No	No	No
Cancel For Any Reason	No	No	50% of trip cost
Accidental Death & Dismemberment	$100,000	$25,000 (Optional add-on up to $250,000)	$50,000 (Optional add-on up to $500,000)
Cost of Policy	$126.74 (8.5% of trip cost)	$111.56 (5.5% of trip cost)	$147.74 (7.3% of trip cost)

Cost Comparison

Overall, the Generali policy has good overall coverage for rentals within the US but is a little low on the medical side if renting a property overseas. Also, the Generali policy only covers the rental costs but does not give you the ability to add airline tickets, tours, or other non-refundable trip costs. The policies available from TripInsure101 do allow you cover all these costs.

All three policies provide up to 100% refund of the trip cost if canceling for a listed policy reason and up to 150% of the trip cost if cutting the trip short for a listed reason. The Generali policy does not provide a Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) option so you would need to find a CFAR policy in a marketplace such as TripInsure101 if you wanted to be able to cancel for any reason whatsoever prior to departure. Finally, both TripInsure101 policies provide more medical coverage and medical evacuation coverage over the Generali policy.

In the following sections, we explain why we make certain recommendations and what to look for when shopping for travel insurance for your Airbnb rental.

Trip Cancellation

A significant concern for travelers is Trip Cancellation. If you became ill or had an accidental injury prior to your departure date, you may have to cancel your travel arrangements, resulting in financial losses. While disappointing, Trip Cancellation is doubly painful without cancellation insurance.

The Generali Plan permits cancellation for the following reasons:

• Sickness, injury, or death of yourself, a traveling companion, or members of either of your immediate families, which is diagnosed and treated by a physician at the time your cruise vacation is terminated
• Involvement in a traffic accident, en route to departure, that causes you to miss your cruise
• Your home or accommodation at your destination is made uninhabitable by a natural disaster such as fire, flood, earthquake, hurricane, or volcano
• You are called into active duty by the military to provide aid or relief as a result of a natural disaster
• Subpoena or being called to serve for Jury duty

• Hijacking or quarantine
• Inclement weather
• Involuntary Termination (layoff)
• Terrorism
• Default or bankruptcy of the common carrier or travel supplier
• Mechanical breakdown of a common carrier
• Host being unable to provide accommodations due to illness/injury
• Documented theft of passports or visas.

The policies from TripInsure101 offer a broader list of covered reasons, including cancelling due to contracting COVID.

Can I Cancel If There Is a Hurricane?

Most travel insurance policies will allow you to cancel due to:

• Common Carrier Cancellation due to weather
• Roads closed or inaccessible
• Insured’s home/ destination is made uninhabitable or inaccessible due to a hurricane

Some policies go further and provide the option to cancel the trip and receive a refund of the trip cost if the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issues a hurricane warning or watch within 24 – 48 hours prior to trip departure. While the Airbnb policy from Generali does not have the NOAA warning/watch, several policies in our marketplace do. The least expensive plan from our quote that has a NOAA warning is the Seven Corners Round Trip Basic for $116.

This policy provides $100,000 of medical coverage and $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage in addition to a 100% refund of trip costs if you must cancel the trip for a reason listed in the policy (including for a NOAA warning or watch issued for your destination within 24 hours of departure.)

Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR)

Sometimes you need to cancel your Airbnb for a reason the policy does not cover.

Cancel for Any Reason allows you to cancel your trip before the departure date for any reason.

Travelers cancel trips for a multitude of reasons:

• A sick or injured pet
• Your rental unit suddenly received a deluge of bad reviews
• Must attend real estate closing
• Doctor orders pregnant traveler on bed rest
• Car breaks down
• Travel bans, travel advisories, not allowed to enter state/country
• Closed attractions, restaurants, beaches at destination
• Fear of pandemic
• Can't afford to go

Cancel For Any Reason comes with a few rules. You will receive 50% - 75% (depending on policy) of your prepaid, non-refundable trip costs if you:

• Purchase travel insurance within 10-21 days of making the initial trip payment or deposit
• Insure 100% of all prepaid and non-refundable trip costs
• Cancel more than two days before the departure date
• Are medically fit to travel at the time of purchase

Of course, if you have a Cancel For Any Reason and cancel due to covered circumstances, the policy refunds you 100% of the trip costs.

Trip Interruption

A Trip Interruption is a situation during your trip that causes you to miss some or the rest of your vacation. It’s like Trip Cancellation but happens during your travels.

The most common trip interruption is the injury or illness of a traveler. If you had an injury or illness on your vacation but can continue traveling after treatment, trip interruption reimburses the unused portion of the trip, and the cost to rejoin the trip in progress.

Trip interruption also includes a family member who had a sudden grave illness or passed away. If your covered situation requires curtailing the trip and going home early, Trip Interruption also reimburses for the unused portion of the trip, plus the added cost of going home early.

In the Generali insurance policy, Trip Interruption benefits share the same list of covered reasons as Trip Cancellation. Same goes for the Trawick and AIG plans —the broad list of covered reasons for Trip Cancellation also applies to Trip Interruption. The Generali plan and the Trawick and AIG plans offer 150% of trip costs for interruption. Therefore, they cover up to 100% of the unused costs, plus up to an additional 50% to cover transportation costs to return home.

Medical Insurance for Emergency Treatment

One of the biggest concerns that most people have when travelling is Medical Insurance. Anything can happen, including accidental injuries or sudden illness. Many Americans mistakenly believe countries with universal health care will treat them for free. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Instead, Americans receive treatment at private hospitals, not public, and must pay like anyone else. Admission for inpatient care can cost $3,000-$4,000 per day, plus the cost of treatment, x-rays, surgeries, and specialists.

A common question we’re asked is, “Would my primary medical plan in the USA cover me internationally?” Most of the time, it would not. Even when there is international coverage, we find there are large deductibles to be met first. For example, while Medicare does not cover you overseas, some Medicare supplements do, but have lifetime limits or reduced benefits, and pay for emergencies only. They can still require you to pay a 20% coinsurance.

If you have a medical emergency when traveling and don’t have proper medical insurance coverage, you could find yourself with devastatingly large hospital bills.

TripInsure101 urges overseas travelers to take travel medical insurance of at least $100,000 per person. In a medical emergency, $100,000 provides ample health care and helps protect your retirement savings from unexpected financial burdens.

Generali’s policy only provides a $50,000 benefit for Medical Insurance, which is adequate for travel within the US but a bit low for international travel. The Trawick policy provides $250,000 of medical coverage and the AIG policy provides $100,000, so you can receive proper care and treatment without finding yourself in debt.

Emergency Medical Evacuation

Unfortunately, injuries and illnesses don’t always occur while you are near a hospital. An accident can happen on a ship, during a tour or in some other remote location. This is where Emergency Medical Evacuation becomes crucial. This coverage pays to transport you from the place of injury or illness to the closest hospital able to adequately treat your condition. Once you’re stable enough for transport, Medical Evacuation brings you home via commercial flight or, if necessary, private medical jet.

Medical flights can cost up to $25,000 per hour, and regular health insurance typically would not cover this cost. In addition, the US State Department does not offer any medical treatment or evacuation assistance for US citizens. For international travel, TripInsure101 advises that travelers carry at least $250,000 in Medical Evacuation. For domestic travel, we recommend $150,000 in Medical Evacuation.  These amounts provide enough coverage to bring you safely home from almost anywhere in the world. Note: When travelling to Asia, Africa or beyond, we recommend at least $500,000 of Medical Evacuation coverage.

Generali’s plan includes Medical Evacuation, up to $100,000 per person. By contrast, both the Trawick Voyager and AIG Travel Guard Plus provide $1 million per person for Medical Evacuation while costing about the same or less than Generali.

Pre-existing Medical Conditions

A significant concern, especially for senior travelers, can be pre-existing medical conditions. A Pre-Existing Medical Condition is one in which you’ve received medical treatment, testing, medication changes, added new medications, or received a recommendation for a treatment or test that hasn’t happened yet. Most travel insurance policies exclude pre-existing conditions unless you purchase the policy within the required time period from your initial trip deposit date (called the Time Sensitive Period). Otherwise, the insurer will look backward 60, 90, or 180 days (depending on the policy) from the date you purchased the insurance to see if there are any pre-existing medical conditions they won’t cover. This is called the Look Back Period. Any medical conditions older than this Look Back Period, unchanged or stabilized with no medication dosage changes are covered, as are any new conditions that arise after you purchase the policy.

If you must cancel, interrupt, or seek medical treatment for a medical condition while traveling, travel insurance policies typically exclude claims related to Pre-existing Medical Conditions. However, if you purchase the policy within a few days of your Initial Trip Payment or Deposit date, many policies add a Waiver to the policy that covers Pre-existing Conditions. As a result, there is no Look Back Period, and Pre-existing Conditions are covered.

Sadly, the Generali policy does not cover any Pre-existing conditions. The AIG policy will cover pre-existing conditions if the policy is purchased within 21 days of the initial trip payment or deposit date while the Trawick Voyager will cover these conditions as long as the policy is purchased on or before the FINAL trip payment date.

Sharing an Airbnb

Some Airbnb guests share the rental with another couple or family members who each pay for their own share.

Your traveling companions might need the flexibility to cancel and receive a refund for their share of the rental if one of them were too sick or injured to travel.

In this situation, modify the rental agreement to include all names in the party as financially responsible. If one of them must cancel for a covered reason, a copy of the rental agreement showing their names provides documentation for a claim.

If your traveling companions live in another state and pay for a portion of the rental, they would buy their own travel insurance plan issued for their state.

Damage to Property Unit

Most travel insurance plans (including the Generali plan) do not cover damage to the rental property.

However, TripInsure101 offers the Trawick First Class plan, which includes $5,000 of Accommodation Property Damage. It reimburses you for direct physical damage to the real or personal property damaged within the unit.

Conclusion

We were pleased to see that Airbnb is now offering travel insurance when you book your rental. The Generali plan, offers good value when renting an Airbnb within the US, but the medical coverage is a little low for rentals internationally. However, it does not cover any pre-existing medical conditions nor any non-refundable costs outside of the Airbnb rental cost. Also, a Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) benefit is not available. Overall, we rate it an 7 out of 10.

Travelers planning an Airbnb rental either domestically or internationally would be wise to shop for travel insurance at a marketplace like TripInsure101 There, you can review dozens of options, easily compare prices, and select the best policy to fit your needs. Policies can include not only the rental amount but your other non-refundable trip costs like airlines, tour or excursions and transportation.

Remember, TripInsure101 recommends having at least $100,000 in travel medical coverage and $250,000 emergency medical evacuation when traveling outside the US ($500,000 if travelling to Asia or Africa). And, if you purchase the policy within the 14-21 days of initial trip payment, please consider a travel insurance policy with the Pre-existing Condition Waiver included to ensure the most coverage for your money.

If you are planning an Airbnb stay soon, be sure to pack insurance before you travel. You never know when you may need it.

Have questions? Chat with us online, send us an email at agent@tripinsure101.com or alternatively call us at +1(650) 397-6592. We would love to hear from you.

Safe Travels!