Empty most of the year, full at the worst time of year.
Cover for a holiday property you let out — where the risk is driven by the months nobody is there and by the coastal, mountain or wildfire exposure that made it desirable.
Tell us the situation.
One licensed human replies the same business day — not five agents, not an auto-responder. If the policy you have is already the right one, we will tell you.
We use this to quote and service your insurance, and we do not sell it or pass it to lead networks. Privacy policy.
What vacation rental businesses actually need.
The property, occupied and not
Cover written around a property that is empty for long stretches by design.
Without it — Vacancy conditions on a standard form suspend cover after 30 or 60 days.
Catastrophe perils
Wind, hail, wildfire and flood, which are usually the reason the location is desirable.
Without it — Flood and often wind are separately purchased, not included.
Guest liability
Injury to paying guests, including around water, decks and outdoor features.
Without it — A homeowners policy does not contemplate paying occupants.
Freeze and water damage
Burst pipes in a property nobody visits for weeks in winter.
Without it — The classic seasonal loss, and often subject to specific heat or shut-off conditions.
Lost bookings
Season income lost when the property is out of action.
Without it — A summer closure on a beach let is most of the year’s revenue.
What vacation rental operators ask us.
Why does vacancy matter so much on a holiday let?
Because damage nobody sees keeps going. A leak in an occupied house is noticed in minutes; in a cabin closed for the winter it runs until someone visits. Insurers respond with vacancy conditions — cover suspended or cut back after a stated period — and with specific requirements: minimum heat maintained, water shut off and drained, or documented periodic inspections. Those are policy conditions, not advice, and a claim can turn on whether you met them.
Is flood or wind included?
Usually not, and on the coast this is the whole conversation. Flood is nearly always a separate policy, and in high-wind regions windstorm is frequently excluded from the main policy and placed separately or through a state wind pool. In wildfire states the same pattern applies from the other direction. Budget for the property as a package of policies rather than one, and get the structure explained before you buy the house — it is a material carrying cost.
We use it ourselves part of the year. Does that complicate things?
It is normal and it needs stating. Mixed personal and rental use is exactly what a secondary or seasonal home policy with a rental endorsement is for, and it is usually cheaper than a full commercial form. What causes trouble is silence — an owner who lets ten weeks a year on an unendorsed second-home policy has an undisclosed use, which is grounds for a denial regardless of how modest the letting is.
What about a cabin, yurt or anything unconventional?
Placeable, and it depends on construction and access more than on the label. Timber cabins, yurts, park models, domes and converted barns are all written somewhere; what underwriters ask is how it is built, how it is heated, how far it is from a fire station and hydrant, and whether the road is maintained year-round. Wood stoves and off-grid power need documenting. Expect a specialist market rather than a standard one, and expect the questions to be about the access road.
Not ready to talk? The guides answer the questions this page raises in more depth. Already insured with us and need a certificate or a policy change? Ask the service team rather than starting a quote — it is faster and it goes to the people whose job it is. We also write home and auto, which is usually cheaper alongside the business policy than apart from it.