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I would consider a "guest option" because right now I have traditional refundable damage deposit ($300 to $500) added to the quote, depending on property. Since most renters do not read that it is "refundable", I suspect that quote total scares many off because they think that my total is $300 (or $500) higher that it is. Depending on how Guest Option will work and be shown to potential guest, I think many may opt for that vs big "scary" number of $300 to $500. I have 154 bookings between 3 cabins this year.

Thanks for the feedback, Rich. 100 bookings is a lot of bookings for one property. The average per year is 30-50 per property. There is typically a lot more broken damage than a broken glass over that many bookings, but it's great for you that you don't have that. The 500 coverage may be better for people will less damage. 500 will cover a lot of things - broken windows, ripped/stained sheets, fridge screens, TVs - and is only $13 per booking. For your 100 bookings, that would be 1300 per year but 100 groups is a heck of a lot of traffic to have nothing. Self insuring is also a good option. There is no perfect solution that works for all owners/PMs.

I'm curious how many owners are planning on including this coverage. In the past year I've had about 100 bookings and if I had paid $27/booking I'd be out $2700. Maybe I've been lucky, but I had maybe one broken glass in the year. Now maybe there could have been a broken window or TV or countertop, but I imagine most years I won't have any significant claims per each 100 bookings.

This seems like for some owners it could be a useful protection, but I'm not getting why I shouldn't just self insure. This coverage won't help with catastrophic losses, and I already have mentally prepared to spend $2000+ on repairs/upgrades anyway so in years where nothing goes wrong I'd rather pocket the cost of the insurance.

My view is that I have to pay for this out of my own pocket. If I'm able to pass it along to the guest it means I could have raised my rates anyway.

Now on the flip side, I would be interested in offering guests the ability to protect themselves. I've had a few (maybe 2 or 3) in the past year tell me that they bought vrbo's added insurance for their own peace of mind. I figure it might be nice for my guests if I told them I could offer some kind of protection (damage + trip insurance) as a convenience. Not looking to make more $$'s on this, but it might let me have a more strict cancellation policy and not lose any guest visits.

No, you can't because of insurance regulations that say that if the guest is paying for it, then they are the insured party and, as such, they are supposed to be allowed to opt-out and so on. This spread-risk model is not insurance for the guest, it's for the owner/PM. As such, the guest can not be the one paying for it. You can increase your other fees or add on other nominal charges for admin/management, but the guest cannot have a named fee for damage protection. That being said, we will be adding a Guest Option program, totally separate, where the guest will see and be able to select if they want it but that's a totally different program with different guidelines, rules and rates.

Transition will occur on Mon Nov 18:

https://www.ownerrez.com/blog/transition-to-rentalguardian-will-go-live-on-monday-nov-18

Unless you've been living under a rock, you already know that our Damage Protection program is changing - we've talked about it on our blog and emailed users directly.  If this is the first time emerging from your rock, take a second to go read those articles. 😀

We wanted to announce that the transition to RentalGuardian will be complete on Monday November 18.

As mentioned previously, you do not need to do anything or confirm anything during the transition.  The system will take care of that for you.  If you want to confirm, look at new bookings that are created after the transition date and make sure that Damage Protection is still showing on those bookings.  You can also watch the Insurance Detail report.

Not exactly.

It used to be that you were expressly forbidden by the contract from rolling Damage Protection into your rates or listing it as a specific line item.

Now, you can, except that you cannot literally have a specific surcharge saying "Damage Protection". Just call it "Maintenance Fee" instead, or if you already have a fee like that, simply build the cost of the damage protection into that fee.

"n the past, you were not allowed to build Damage Protection into your rates as a limitation of the program. However, you will now be able to do that. While you can't explicitly say "Damage Protection" as a line item in the guest charges, you can add a general maintenance or admin fee to cover the amount, thereby passing the cost onto the guest."

We used to be able to list DP as a line item, but no longer?

yes, my RDD is not a sec hold. It is actual charged amount

Yes, but it depends on how you do your RDD. Guest Option will be surfaced (ie. shown to the guest) in a similar way that Travel Insurance is currently. There will be settings for it where you can configure whether the security hold is skipped if they select the damage protection option (or you can still do both). If your RDD is a hard-coded surcharge in the charges, because you collect the money and refund it back after, there wouldn't be a way of removing that upfront. However, we plan to make security deposit have a RDD/surcharge option and not just be the hold, so that would work later on.

"Another great feature will be a new program called Guest Option. This program will allow you to offer Damage Protection to the guest on a booking by booking basis for a higher cost but one that is entirely passed to the guest. If the guest purchases coverage, you will have the option of automatically skipping the security deposit (or not) based on settings. To be clear, you will have to choose between the Spread Risk (current) program and the Guest Option. You cannot have both programs running on the same properties. Any Spread Risk properties will be treated separately and the guest will not be shown any options. Guest Option is coming in early 2020 and will not be available at the transition date."

Question, does that mean that on quote guest can select either RDD or Guest option? As my RDD is set as separate not taxable item on quote.

Guest option sounds wonderful!

Hi John, take a look at our support article on Damage Protection here:

https://www.ownerrez.com/support/articles/damage-protection-overview#imported

That has a section about VRBO/Airbnb bookings. Basically, we highly recommend that those bookings be covered as well (because this is a different better coverage that the channels do not offer). But we do have a "don't apply DP" toggle on channel settings where you can skip over those bookings. Read that article.

Thank You great job!!

I am new, how does this apply to bookings from VRBO and Airbnb?

Thanks! It looks great!

This is good news, thanks,

We recently announced that our Damage Protection program was changing, and today we're excited to announce the new program that will be taking its place.

In the near future, we will be adding a number of new products, both on the Damage Protection and Travel Insurance sides, but we first have been focusing on creating a drop-in replacement for the Damage Protection we have now.  And we've done just that!

We're happy to introduce a new partnership with RentalGuardian!

We are highly impressed with RentalGuardian's product lines, technology and team.  They understand the market and the customer base and can provide the same or better level of coverage that our users depend on to secure their rentals.

Our team is hard at work getting the transition in place and we anticipate announcing the transition date in the next few days.  In the meantime, here are some details we can share...

Features

The new program will be very similar to the Damage Protection program we currently offer.  Like before, the program will follow a spread-risk model that protects you (the owner or PM), not the guest.  We continue to feel that this is the best type of damage coverage for vacation rentals as it does not require an admission of guilt by the guest and does not create a "self-selecting bad group" of guests who buy protection.

All bookings will be required to carry the protection for the properties that are enrolled in the program.  Cancelled bookings will automatically remove coverage, but you will not be able to pick and choose which bookings have it and which do not.  Accidents happen, of course, and our support team will help you remove erroneous coverage (eg. bulk-imported bookings, etc).  Like before, we highly encourage holding a security deposit on all bookings even with Damage Protection in place.

In the past, claims were filed via manual PDF and the process lacked transparency.  RentalGuardian has an online trackable tool for filing claims that will be much easier to use.

In the past, you were not allowed to build Damage Protection into your rates as a limitation of the program.  However, you will now be able to do that.  While you can't explicitly say "Damage Protection" as a line item in the guest charges, you can add a general maintenance or admin fee to cover the amount, thereby passing the cost onto the guest.

Another great feature will be a new program called Guest Option.  This program will allow you to offer Damage Protection to the guest on a booking by booking basis for a higher cost but one that is entirely passed to the guest.  If the guest purchases coverage, you will have the option of automatically skipping the security deposit (or not) based on settings.  To be clear, you will have to choose between the Spread Risk (current) program and the Guest Option.  You cannot have both programs running on the same properties.  Any Spread Risk properties will be treated separately and the guest will not be shown any options.  Guest Option is coming in early 2020 and will not be available at the transition date.

Rates and Coverage Amounts

We negotiated with RentalGuardian to keep coverage levels the same as well as adding a new $5,000 coverage level for our users who have wanted a higher level.

We also tried to keep premium amounts as low as possible while accommodating a newer carrier, better features, better technology and some small cost-of-living adjustments which we have not done in several years.

The new coverage amounts and premiums will be as follows:

Transitioning Over

Again, we are working hard to make this as seamless a transition as possible.  The new program is specifically designed to be a drop-in replacement for the old program.  As such, there is nothing you have to do to transition from one to the other.  On the transition date - which we will be announcing in a few days - your current properties will be automatically enrolled in the new program and the coverage amounts will stay the same.  Continue watching our blog and your inbox for more details about the transition.

Lydia - I've done the same but only $100. I guess I'm self-insuring on this stuff and not worrying too much about it. Thanks for clarifying that this insurance is for owners ;-)

We liked how our current ARDI product worked too. We're trying hard to replace it with something as similar as possible to what we've all come to appreciate. It looks like there will be some differences, but we may be able to have some improvements as well. We'll post more information as we have it. For now, keep using the ARDI as they'll honor any policies purchased for the next few weeks. By the time that shuts down, we'll have something ready for you.

Rich - this is not coverage for the renter. It covers the owner - which is good because you don't want to have to get a renter to admit they screwed up. How do you cover VRBO bookings now? The "Property Damage Protection" they offer - with plans starting at $59 - is a guest purchased insurance so they are ultimately in control of how the claims process goes. Plus - the plans OR has been offering thru ARDI have been much less expensive. I hold $300 in a Refundable Damage Deposit thru VRBO, which hopefully encourages the guest to be good so they'll have the hold released. And on top of that I purchase the ARDI (without telling the guest).

I still get 100% (well almost) of my bookings from VRBO, so I'm curious if anyone offers this product to their guests after getting a VRBO booking, and if so does anyone purchase it?

I am so sad to hear this. I really liked them :(

Our Damage Protection carrier, TravelGuard/AIG, just announced that they are going to be ending support for the Damage Protection (ARDI) program that we sell through OwnerRez.  This took us very much by surprise.

However, we are actively discussing a drop-in replacement product with several other carriers and will have more information in the upcoming days and weeks.  We are working hard to make sure that there is a seamless transition to the new carrier and program.

FAQs about the transition

When does the current Damage Protection program with Travel Guard/AIG end?

You can continue buying Damage Protection policies until November 25 through Travel Guard/AIG, exactly the way you've been doing.  To put that differently, as new bookings come in, the current Damage Protection program will continue covering them with new policies up to November 25.  After the 25th, new bookings will no longer be covered by Travel Guard/AIG.

However, we anticipate having the new carrier and product in place before the 25th, so the transition should be seamless. We will of course update everyone about the process as we learn more.

Will current policies be honored?

Yes.  Travel Guard/AIG will continue to honor the policies that have been sold until those bookings are over, no matter how far out into the future those bookings occur.  So if you've purchased Damage Protection on bookings in 2020, they will still be honored.

Who will the new carrier be?

We don't know yet.  We have talked to two already and are meeting with a third this week.

Will the coverage levels be the same?

They will be similar.  Most similar products offer $500, $1500 and $3000 coverage levels.  Some also offer $5000.

Will the rates stay the same?

Most likely not. From what we've seen so far, there will be changes in what Damage Protection will cost you moving forward.  We are doing out best to keep the product the same, but we are limited by what the carrier charges.

Will the program requirements be the same?

They will be as close as possible to what we offer now. We are entertaining adding an Optional Guest Add-On product in the future, but only in addition to the All Bookings Covered model that we have now.  We like the current spread-risk model because it's easier to underwrite by the carrier, and we believe it is a better business model for vacation rental owners and PMs.

How will I know?

We will issue another blog post when we have the new carrier ready to go, and will provide full information as to how to go about the transition.  Depending on the details, we will make the transition happen automatically with no action by you if possible.  If not, you'll be given clear instructions as to what to do.  Of course, you always have the ability to turn off ARDI, and that will not change.

With all the new features, new and old users, OwnerRez wanted take a moment and get to know some of you personally!

Since a lot of people will be in town for the VRBO Partner Summit, OwnerRez is hosting a Happy Hour Hangout on Friday, November 8th in Scottsdale, AZ from 5-9 pm. We would love to be able to have the opportunity to get together and celebrate our industry.

Sign up here for the event, and please feel free to email us with any questions!

Wow, all sounds exciting !

Thank you for staying on top of this and great blog post!

Sure thing! You can have pricelabs automatically update the rates into OwnerRez. Then in OwnerRez you can push the rates on to VRBO.

Here's how to set up the PriceLabs integration into OwnerRez: https://www.ownerrez.com/support/articles/pricelabs

And here's how to push rates from OwnerRez to VRBO: https://www.ownerrez.com/support/articles/push-rate-airbnb-homeaway-vrbo

Do you know how to take a list of spot rates in pricelabs and it is now updating into ownerrez. How do I get these rates to update my vrbo listing and keep updating them in pricelabs and then it will keep updating in ownerrez and then all I would need to do is press sync and it will automatically update the pricing from pricelabs into my vrbo listing.