What Is AirCover for Hosts?
Airbnb AirCover for Hosts is the protection Airbnb gives a host every time they welcome guests, made up of guest identity verification, reservation screening, USD 1 million in host liability insurance and USD 3 million in host damage protection (How AirCover for Hosts works (Airbnb Resource Centre)).
Last updated: November 2026
How Airbnb AirCover works
Two of the four parts act before check-in: guest identity verification and reservation screening. Screening uses Airbnb's own technology to analyze hundreds of factors in each reservation and block certain bookings (AirCover for Hosts (Airbnb)). It launched in the US and Canada in November 2022 (The 2022 Winter Release (Airbnb Newsroom, Nov 2022)).
Host liability insurance pays up to USD 1 million if a host is found legally responsible for a claim, and it also includes people who help run the listing, such as co-hosts and cleaners (Host liability insurance (Airbnb Help Centre)). Third-party insurers carry the policy: Zurich Insurance Company Ltd underwrites it in the UK, and Zurich Insurance Europe AG, through its branch in Spain, does so in the European Economic Area (Host liability insurance (Airbnb Help Centre)).
Host damage protection is the larger part, at up to USD 3 million, and it runs on different terms. Airbnb states that it isn't insurance and isn't related to host liability insurance (How AirCover for Hosts works (Airbnb Resource Centre)). Section 2.5 of the Host Damage Protection Terms adds that those terms are not an insurance contract (Host Damage Protection Terms (Airbnb)). A host with a damage problem therefore works through Airbnb's terms, with their deadlines and conditions, instead of filing a claim with an insurer.
Why it matters for hotel distribution
Host damage protection applies only to hosts who offer accommodations on the Airbnb platform (Host Damage Protection Terms (Airbnb)). A hotel, aparthotel or rental operator that sells the same rooms on Airbnb, other online travel agencies and its own website therefore has different protection depending on where each guest booked. A guest who causes damage on a reservation from another channel is outside AirCover entirely. Booking.com's program, compared below, also covers only home-like properties, so hotel-type listings fall outside it.
Airbnb strongly encourages hosts to buy insurance that covers losses caused by guests which fall outside host damage protection (Host Damage Protection Terms (Airbnb)). For a professional operator, that points to a commercial policy that follows the property across every channel, with AirCover sitting on top for Airbnb stays.
Vrbo and Booking.com run their own programs, and both cover liability only. The table below sets them side by side. Record the source channel of every booking, because it decides which program applies when something goes wrong.
AirCover for Hosts compared with Vrbo and Booking.com liability cover
| AirCover for Hosts (Airbnb) | Vrbo $1M Liability Insurance | Booking.com Partner Liability Insurance | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liability cover | Up to USD 1 million | USD 1 million | Up to USD 1 million per reservation |
| Damage a guest does to the host's own property | Up to USD 3 million through host damage protection | Not covered: liability and medical payments claims only | Not covered: the exclusions include a guest breaking the partner's TV or table |
| Bookings covered | Stays offered on the Airbnb platform | Stays processed through Vrbo checkout | Stays booked through Booking.com at eligible home-like properties in covered countries, for nights from 1 January 2026, while the partner stays opted in |
| Who provides it | Third-party insurers for liability (Zurich in the UK) | Administered by Generali | Zurich |
| Cost to the host | Included at no charge | No additional cost | No additional charge (commission does not go up) |
Table sources: How AirCover for Hosts works (Airbnb Resource Centre) Host Damage Protection Terms (Airbnb) Host liability insurance (Airbnb Help Centre) $1M Liability Insurance (Vrbo) Partner Liability Insurance (Booking.com)
Frequently asked questions
What is AirCover on Airbnb?
What does AirCover cover for a host?
How much does AirCover for Hosts cost?
How does AirCover work when a guest damages a property?
When did AirCover for Hosts start?
Related terms
See all termsWhere Jetstream fits
An operator selling through several channels needs each reservation, rate and night of availability to be accurate everywhere it appears. Jetstream builds an AI channel manager that connects a property's systems to the channels where guests book and keeps rooms, rates and availability accurate on each one, managed from one place.