Insurance

[ouiparis]

Here's a question for veteran apartment renters. Which company do you recommend for rental insurance? Thanks!

[GitteK]

Not knowing much about the US market and what covers are customary in your country, I'll still give a few comments:

It is always a good idea to ask your regular insurance supplier first. Because if you have a Multitrip Annual Travelinsurance, it could be included already - or bought as an add-on.

In my experience (this is my turf) - you get the best and most efficient service in an emergency claims situation, if you have all your covers placed with your regular company, which you trust and know. Otherwise you risk ending up being the "ping-pong-ball" between different suppliers.

Also you could check the creditcard with which you pay for your travel costs. There may be a travel insurance attached to the creditcard, and perhaps there could be a liability cover for vacation rental.

More often that not we see that customers simply "over-insure" themselves when they are going abroad, e.g. they have their Annual cover + their creditcard cover + have even bought a singletrip cover with the travelagency.

Why waste your money on "double"- or "triple"covers, when you only get "single"compensation anyway, so to speak.

If you wish, you can send me the terms and conditions of whatever insurances you have already, and I'll be more than happy to help you dechiper them.

I'll send you my email adress in a private message.

Here's a website "InsureMyTrip" - with a comparison table of different US suppliers of travel covers:
www.insuremytrip.com/myquotecalc-package-5158-0-0-351762.html

[denise]

???This may be a silly question but why would you want insurance when you rent an apartment? The apartment should be insured by the owner for floods, earthquakes planes hitting it etc and your normal travel insurance will insure YOU for accidents, theft ect. Some renters also pay a security deposit in case of damage to the fixtures and fittings. You don't insure a hotel room when you effectively "rent" a room in a hotel so what is the difference? Or am I being naive?
Denise
love from England

[GitteK]

Denise
Your regular private liability cover (e.g. in your home insurance or your travel insurance) does normally not cover property belonging to someone else, if you had been given this property "in custody" - which is the case, when you rent an apartment or a hotel room.

So basically you are "at your own risk" for damages caused to the rented property, for which you can be held responsible.

Of course you could never be held responsible for an accidental fire e.g. caused by rotten electrical appliances, BUT if you forget to turn off the coffee machine or forget to blow out a candle - and then there is a fire, you could in the end be held responsible for the damage.

Also the owners insurance company may get back at you with a recourse claim, demanding that you indemnify them for the loss they had due to the claim. Legislation can be different in different countries as to insurance companies's right to recourse against private persons.

The owner may or may not have a full insurance cover, e.g. for accidental water leaks - but if you are really unlucky (or clumpsy) you may cause damage e.g. to the furniture or the carpets (spilling redwine), which is not covered by the owners insurance. You may also forget to close a water tap - and with a washcloth in the sink.......you can image the results !

And yes, most often you pay a security deposit - but I am not sure that the owner would (or must) waive you the amount of damage surpassing the security deposit ?

Summa summarum:
1) NEVER accept to borrow or rent ANYTHING, unless you are 100 pct. sure that you are covered, if bad luck is coming your way.
2) NEVER trust the owner to have full insurance cover. For all you know, the owner may have an excess amount on her policy for, say, 1000 euros !
3) Another benefit: if you have an insurance covering liability for rented vacation home - they will compensate you for the lost security deposit kept by the owner.
4) Note that this cover will often have an excess amount - but normally that's a trifle. AND you can leave all the dogfighting and arguing with the apartment owner to your insurer !! That's the big time deal about liability insurance !!

Oooppppssssss............ listen to me babbling away as if I were some boring insurance nerd.......
(perish the thought ! ;D)

[holger]

Denise,

Some of the agencies like Lodgis require you to have the equivalent of what we call renter's insurance. That is certainly, not true of others, or perhaps it is included and thus hidden in the rental price.

But there is also trip cancellation insurance which covers a variety of possible events including the need to cancel a prepaid rental which would not allow reimbursement at all or after a certain date.

Gitte, kindly listed a great web site with lots of good comparative information.

Finally, most hotels allow cancellation a lot later than apartment rentals and even after that date, you are only likely to lose a one night deposit.

[Anne]

Gitte - What is it that you call "excess amount" ?
Is it what we call "franchise" in French ? Like, if I am responsible for damages worth 1000 euros and my insurance franchise is 50 euros, then the insurance will only reimburse me 950 euros . Is that it ?

[GitteK]

May 25, 2008 12:34:22 GMT -5 Anne said:

Gitte - What is it that you call "excess amount" ?
Is it what we call "franchise" in French ? Like, if I am responsible for damages worth 1000 euros and my insurance franchise is 50 euros, then the insurance will only reimburse me 950 euros . Is that it ?

Oui, the "excess" can also be called "deductible" - which translates to "franchise" = the amount of each and every claim, which you have to pay for yourself.

[Laidback]

I know that Joan Grace has experience with travel insurance but it may just be health related.

[denise]

???Hmm....Well I've read my comprehensive travel insurance policy, which comes with my platinum bank account. It SEEMs to cover liability to other peoples property with no exclusions but I will check on Tuesday with the bank. ( I am only concerned about liability for damaging the apartment )
I have emailed the owners of the two apartments I have booked for details of their insurance and if I need any extra.
I looked at the website that gitte suggested and googled "holiday apartment insurance" but I could only find policies for people who rent out, not people who are the renters.
As I have comprehensive insurance with my bank account (which I pay for in my charges!) does anyone know a company who just offers insurance for apartment rental liability?
I must say though, in all the self catering accommodation I have ever used and in a straw poll amongst people I have met today, nobody has ever insured their accommodation separately.
Are the British under insured?
Denise
love from England

[Jody]

I just read my Vacation in Paris Rental agreement and insurance is included in the price.

Accidental Damage Waiver
In order to help make your stay as worry free as possible and also to protect the apartment owner's property, all guests are required to purchase a damage waiver. The cost is $29 for apartments that have a non-discounted nightly rate of less than $250 per night and $49 for all others. This is a single charge for any length of stay and covers all accidental damage up to a maximum of $1450.00 per reservation for all guests staying in the apartment. There is a $100 deductible.

The Accidental Damage Waiver does not cover:

Damage due to intentional acts, gross negligence, or willful misconduct.
Lost apartment door keys- the guest is responsible for the keys
Damage caused by pets (pets are prohibited in rental properties
unless specifically stated).
Damage done if the number of guests exceeds the number of people
specified on the reservation.
Loss or damage to a guest's personal property or other property
brought onto the premises.
Damage deemed as an act of God.
Loss of use.
Normal wear & tear.
Damage that is not reported to our US office within
48 hours of departing the apartment.
In order to avoid possible liability, please note any damage to the property upon your arrival and report it immediately to our office in the US either by email or telephone.

[ouiparis]

Thanks to all, especially Gitte for her insider insurance expertise.

[GitteK]

Demarais, that sounds like an OK cover you have been offered, and it will of course cover all the minor damages (redwine-on-sofa) - only 1450 USD is not that big a sum, IMO.

But my point was, that there is no reason to buy it, if you already have the cover in your regular insurances - or if it is contained in a singletrip cover, if such is your choice.

Denise, you can send me your banks terms and conditions, if you want me to look them over.

As I said, normally liability insurances will not cover "other-peoples-stuff", if you had that stuff in your custody at the time you did the damage to it. But in DK travelinsurances are extended to cover damages to vacation rentals, and I suspect it may be the case in UK also.

I work professionally with the bankinsurance concept and creditcard covers too - and I am soooo amused ;D by the image of you posing that kind of question to your bankadvisor ! ;D Trust me, it will cause "mild-to-medium" panic in ANY bank branch, because if they are anything like the bankadvisors in Scandinavia, their feelings for general insurance are not exactly "glowing passion" - LOL !

My e-mail is: [e-mail]

[gracejoan]

We can each only talk about insurance for for our country of residence.

For US citizens the site that most of us use is:
www.InsureMyTrip.com
You can select the coverages that you want, and can then compare them. The P/D and P/L part may be covered by your existing policies. and is minor.

The cost of airfare and cost of lodging is obviously nothing, compared to the cost of medical evacuation, for US citizens.

It really has nothing to do with age for the need of this coverage. Serious things happen to people of any age. You will find that your personal health insurance coverage probably does not cover you while abroad. When taking the medical, do take one with the exclusion of "pre-existing conditions"..most offer and just makes things simpler to buy the ones with it.

If you have read the nightmares for those who have had a problem without coverage, it is just not worth it to travel without it. Most have read of the young gal who had the pneumothorax problem. Dr. Philippe Willems (ParisPerfect) helped them etc.

I would never travel without the medical evacuation insurance. Medical evacuation can cost you $100,000. We all want to be "home" when we have a serious medical problem. It is easy to purchase..usually do so within the first couple weeks of your first trip expenditure for the pres-existing waiver. It is not expensive and can give you comfort that only the coverage can give you..if you should need it..you will most certainly be glad you have it!! To me, it is just an additional cost for any trip.

You don't have to make a big deal about your needs, It is very simple, really.

[GitteK]

gracejoan, I agree that one should never travel abroad without securing that one is sufficiently covered for costs for hospitalization and repatriation. I can supply you with as many nightmare stories as you could wish for, about people whose economy got shattered to pieces, because they had to pay for emergency surgery and hospital stay out their own pocket.

I do not agree, however, that insurances are all that nationally different. I have been in a major travelinsurance project and checked various Australian, American and British companies, sniffing for new and exiting features. And although there are some differences, the "bone structure" and core content is more or less the same - because the customer's need for peace of mind is more or less the same, worldwide.

[gracejoan]

Gitte,

My reply re different countries was intended to only mean that I, as a US citizen, could only speak to what is available and probably legal for us. Other country residents could probably only do the same.

As to the needs of coverage by residents of various countries..I would imagine they would want the same coverage and those policiies would be available to them. Each country resident, obviously, would seek coverage from sources within their country.

I have no idea about the insurance needs of residents of other countries, or for other country residents to know what coverages US citizens may need. Our concerns should only be for our own pesonal needs. That seems to be enough to take care of!!

[Anne]

FYI, for anyone planning to rent a house with les Gîtes de France (the BEST, most reliable, best value organization to rent a house from anywhere in French countryside or seaside) : they have their own cancellation insurance on offer (which you can waive if you pay with a gold creditcard), but they offer no damages insurance and specify that you must have your own insurance covering damages to rental homes .

www.gites-de-france.com/gites/uk/rural_gites