Contents
This article reflects the state of our research and is not legal or tax advice. What applies to your property depends on the zone, the municipality, the house rules and your contract; only the competent authority gives binding information.
Key facts
- Household contents policies often exclude paid letting to changing guests as commercial use.
- AirCover offers damage protection up to USD 3 million and liability cover up to USD 1 million — it does not replace a policy of your own.
- Wear is not damage but a line in the calculation. You notice that when a claim arises, not before.
- Five questions before the first guest: contents, notification duty, personal liability, building insurance, additional cover.
The gap most people are unaware of
Two statements which together make a problem. First: household contents policies as a rule exclude commercial use. Second: anyone letting a flat systematically to changing guests is operating in commercial territory.
It does not automatically follow that there is no cover — but it does follow that the existing policy does not necessarily cover the new use. And you find that out when a claim arises, not before.
Swiss insurers are clear on this point. The advice is consistent: clarify with your insurer whether you are adequately covered. That is not a formality but the difference between a covered loss and one you bear yourself.
What AirCover provides — and what it does not
Airbnb makes AirCover available to hosts: property damage protection up to USD 3 million and liability cover up to USD 1 million, the latter through an actual insurance contract.
AirCover is not a single insurance policy, however, but a bundle of pre-booking checks, claims handling when an incident occurs, and that liability cover. The liability element responds to harm suffered by guests — where somebody is injured or a guest’s property is damaged.
What AirCover does not replace, Airbnb states itself: building insurance, tenant’s insurance and liability insurance. It comes in addition, not instead.
Your figures, not our examples
The calculator takes the number of rooms, the neighbourhood and the fit-out and shows you a range — with the arithmetic beside it, not as a single figure you have to take on trust.
Estimate the returnWith subletting: an additional subtlety
Anyone subletting a rented flat should know a point that appears in the conditions but is rarely read: your own contents remain protected — provided the damage was not caused by the person you are subletting to.
And contents which a subtenant brings with them are normally not covered under your policy. With short-term letting that is usually immaterial, because guests bring hardly any furniture. With longer stays it can matter.
What to settle before the first guest
Five questions that one call to your insurer will answer. They cost twenty minutes and save an argument when an incident occurs.
- Does my household contents policy cover letting for payment to changing guests, or does that count as commercial use?
- Is there a duty to notify — do I have to report the change of use, and what happens if I do not?
- Does my private liability policy respond if a guest is injured in the flat?
- With condominium ownership, is the building insurance affected, and does the association’s management know about the use?
- Do I need separate cover for the period when guests are present?
How we handle it
We are not insurance advisers and give no assurances of cover. What we do: we raise the subject before the first booking — not after. In the review before we accept a property, the insurance question is one of the points we go through with you.
If damage occurs, we document it: the condition before and after the stay, the time, the items affected. You need these records when making a claim — with AirCover just as with your own policy.
Frequently asked questions
According to Airbnb itself, no: it replaces neither building nor tenant’s nor liability insurance. It comes in addition to your existing policies.
Yes, as a rule. Household contents policies usually exclude commercial use, and failing to notify can cost you the cover. Whether your policy makes an exception is in the terms — ask in any case, before the first guest arrives.
We document the damage and report it through the platform. AirCover covers property damage in accordance with its conditions. Whether your own policy also responds is decided by its wording.
And for your property?
Sources
State of our research: 9 April 2026. Official rules change — check the current position with the competent authority.
