Home sharing growing in popularity
Posted August 11, 2013 9:07 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Thousands of people in Vancouver now share their homes when they go away on vacation.
Using the popular AirBnB website, almost 2,500 people in Vancouver are trying to rent out their homes
Before you let a stranger in the door, Daniel Mirkovic with Square One Insurance says you might want to switch from a standard home insurance policy to a rental policy. “In reality you’re not able to protect against all types of risks but you will have better protection and you won’t have to worry about your insurance provider declining your claim because you didn’t disclose information about your home and situation.”
He adds typically, your insurance won’t cover you if things “mysteriously disappear” or if your guests intentionally damage your home.
Mirkovic says the most important thing is to treat renters like a tenant. “If they’re going to be there for a long period of time or if you’re not going to be in the home, make sure you do things like a background check, get copies of identification, security deposit, you’ll really be protecting yourself well.”