Aon Risk Solutions, the global risk management business of Aon Corporation, has announced its strategic alignment with Global Excess Partners, an innovator in the specialty insurance products business, and Terminix, to introduce the first bed bug insurance solution for hotels, landlords, student residences and businesses. For example, if you temporarily rent your flat to a guest through Airbnb and bed bugs bite or destroy your personal property, neither your renters insurance nor Airbnb’s host protection insurance will cover the expenses related to the event. Home insurance coverage guideState guidelinesHome insurance discountsFactors affecting home insurance quotesDeductibles. Your renters insurance also will not cover co-payments for doctor’s office visits to diagnose insect bites or medications to treat any irritation or reaction to the bites.
Renters insurance protects the personal property of tenants who use home-sharing services, such as Airbnb. In some states, Assurant includes coverage for extermination and other bedbug-related expenses in its renters’ policies. Since renters’ insurance does not cover bedbugs, identifying their presence early is the best way to prevent an infestation from spreading and causing further damage. Renters’ insurance, on the other hand, is primarily intended to cover losses resulting from sudden and unexpected events.
However, neither renters’ insurance policies nor the coverage provided by homeowners’ insurance policies cover bedbugs. To be sure that your home is protected against infestation, you should make sure that the bedbug clause in your insurance policy is explicitly stated in the contract. If your guest can prove that the bedbugs in your home came from your home, your insurance company should be obliged to pay the cost of extermination. Another reason bedbug extermination is not covered by a standard insurance policy is that the cost directly related to the infestation is difficult to determine.
Therefore, some homeowners assume that a bedbug infestation is an accidental event that is covered by their insurance policy. Extermination costs can cost an arm and a leg if left untreated, so most homeowners ask whether their insurance can cover the costs of controlling bedbug infestations. This is because renters insurance is designed to cover sudden and unexpected disasters, such as a fire or hurricane. The few bedbug insurance policies that are available are mostly for landlords and property managers and not for tenants.