
When is landlord insurance or lodger insurance needed?
July 9, 2025Are you an “accidental” landlord? It might be that you’re just letting out a spare room in your own home, or hosting a short-term guest on Airbnb, let’s say. Yet these are the times when you become a landlord – and, as a landlord, you’ll typically need some form of landlord insurance.
What is landlord insurance?
If you let out your home – even if it’s just a spare room – the insurance risks change. When you have a paying guest, there is a greater risk of loss or damage than when it’s only you and your family.
Landlord insurance has been developed to cover these additional risks – the ones typically not covered by your regular home insurance, such as any damage caused by tenants, the potential loss of a rental income if you can no longer provide the rented space due to an insured event, and your liability for any injury, loss or damage suffered by your tenant or tenants.
Because of the change in the risks of loss or damage, you must inform your home insurance provider if you have a paying guest in your home. If you fail to inform your insurer and then need to make a claim in the future, that claim could be rejected.
Do you need landlord insurance for a lodger?
By that same logic, you will also want to inform your insurer if you take a lodger into your home. The government’s Rent a Room scheme currently offers earnings of up to £7,500 a year tax-free. But the risks of damage, thefts by your lodger, your liability for their injury, or loss of rental income continue to apply.
Provided you have informed your provider, some insurers may continue cover under your regular home insurance or may extend its terms – by way of a lodger add-on – to include the lodger you have taken in. In other cases, however, you might have invalidated your home insurance cover if you take in a lodger and have failed to inform your insurer.
What if you use Airbnb or offer short-term lets?
Not only do the same considerations apply with respect to keeping your home insurance company informed, but you might also want to look more closely at the AirCover offered as a type of insurance for Airbnb hosts.
Although AirCover offers a limited degree of protection against damage caused by your Airbnb guests and also extends some landlord liability cover, Airbnb itself urges hosts also to arrange their own insurance cover personally.
That’s why landlord insurance and lodger insurance matters
Landlord insurance and lodger insurance offer a safe and efficient way of safeguarding your home if you take in any kind of paying guest or tenant.
The insurance helps indemnify you against damage to your home or its contents caused by your tenant or lodger, the theft of your belongings, your liability for any injury sustained by your tenant or guest, the potential loss of any rental income, and – depending on the cover you arrange – the legal costs involved in settling any dispute.
As a reminder: Without informing your home and contents insurer that you have a lodger or tenant or arranging separate cover, you may find that any insurance claim is refused – even if the cause of that loss or damage has nothing at all to do with a lodger or tenant.
How Alan Blunden can help
If you’re unsure whether you need landlord insurance or lodger cover – or if you’re simply not certain what your current home insurance does and doesn’t include – our expert team at Alan Blunden is here to help.
With decades of experience in the property insurance sector, we offer clear, friendly advice tailored to your specific situation. Whether you’re renting out a room, hosting short stays, or letting a second property, we can help you find the most appropriate – and cost-effective – level of protection.
We’re always happy to talk you through your options, answer any questions, and make sure you have the most appropriate cover in place for complete peace of mind.
Get in touch today on 01702 826060 – we’re here to support you every step of the way. Further reading: UK holiday home insurance and Airbnb insurance