The Importance of Weekend & Vacation Rental Insurance
Everyone looks forward to a fun family vacation during the summer. Some of my best memories from my childhood have been made during vacations and road trips that I have taken with my parents and siblings. There was always so much to look forward to during these trips: fun games during the long car rides, the interesting stops along the way, and even the forced family photos that we could look back on years later. Since this is something near and dear to my heart, I decided recently to buy a second home to rent out as a vacation property; I wanted to help facilitate memorable vacations for other families, just as I had as a child. As prepared for this endeavor as I thought I was, though, I quickly realized that there were many things I hadn’t thought of: renovations were a lot more of an investment that I initially thought, creating a ‘unique’ experience for guests is a much taller order than I realized, and balancing costs with profit is no easy undertaking. While tackling these tasks, though, I came across an important aspect of renting a vacation home that I never thought I would need: vacation and weekend rental insurance.
I was having coffee with a friend a couple of weeks ago, and we were just sipping our drinks and updating each other on the latest. I began filling her in on the adventures that preparing my vacation rental entailed, from asking for advice on paint colors to showing her picture after picture of the relaxing outdoor space I had created for my future guests. My friend praised my work and even made some helpful suggestions from a guest perspective. Then, she hit me with a question that made me double-take: “What about your rental insurance?”
Rental insurance? While I knew having rental insurance was important, I was under the impression that it was only needed for long-term leases within apartments and homes. I mean, I already had homeowners’ insurance, why would I need anything else? When I asked her what she meant, she explained that not all insurance is the same; not everything is covered under just any policy, and sometimes extra coverage is needed depending on your situation.
“Liability is a huge issue when renting your vacation home out to strangers,” she said, “and you want to be prepared for the worst, just in case.” She emphasized her point with a story about her sister’s own experience with Vacation Rental Insurance (or lack thereof). While renting out her sister’s vacation home, a family’s child was running by the swimming pool, slipped and fell, and broke their arm. The parents of the child claimed that the flooring material surrounding the pool was to blame, and filed a lawsuit. Her sister was deemed at fault, and because her insurance carrier was unaware that she was renting her property, she was not covered; she had to pay the family a hefty price. “Like you, my sister just assumed that the insurance she already had would cover her rental. However, if she had invested in Vacation Rental Insurance, this incident probably would’ve been covered, and she could’ve spent her money on more amenities for her rental property instead of settlement and lawyer fees,” my friend explained. I had no idea that vacation and weekend rental insurance was even an option, let alone how much more at ease I could be about potential accidents at my own vacation rental property.
After this enlightening conversation with my friend, I immediately did some research on weekend and vacation rental insurance. She was right; what if something DID happen while guests were visiting my rental property on vacation? I decided that the peace of mind I would have was worth investing in vacation rental insurance for my rental home, and I am so glad that I did.
My thorough research on vacation rental insurance providers led me to Dickey McCay Insurance, as they serve the Tennessee area where my rental property is located, in addition to most vacation spots in Georgia, North Carolina, and Alabama. Because they’ve served these areas for so long, they were very helpful when it came to choosing the best insurance for my situation. If you own your own vacation and/or weekend rental property, I highly recommend checking with your insurance agent about your homeowners insurance, and if weekend or vacation rental insurance is right for you. Additionally, if your property is located in the Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, or Alabama areas, check out Dickey McCay Insurance for yourself and contact them today; these experts will make sure that you and your property is taken care of, and that you have nothing to worry about when guests rent your property!
