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Enhanced Damage Protection Specific Questions

OwnerRez offers an Enhanced Damage Protection insurance product that covers not only minor damage to your property, but offers $1,000,000 in Host Liability and $15,000 in Bed Bug protection. Enhanced Damage Protection provides hosts with an advanced level of protection at multiple levels compared to the damage protection offered by listing channels like Vrbo or Airbnb. As a host, you are covered, and the guest has no control over whether your claim is honored or not. Read more about it in our Damage Protection overview article.

This article provides a list of common questions and answers about Enhanced Damage Protection that are not covered elsewhere.

Disclaimer: This FAQ is not an insurance contract nor an endorsement or amendment to an any contract of insurance.

Enhanced Damage Protection Coverage

What is the OwnerRez Enhanced Rental Damage Protection Program (ERDP)?

The OwnerRez ERDP program provides supplemental protection against guest-caused damages, host liabilities arising from vacation rental activities, and bed bug infestation.

The program responds to damage to your owned / managed property at the rented premises caused by rental guests during a protected occupancy, subject to the program limits.

The program also responds to liabilities arising from activities during rentals of your unit resulting in bodily injury, certain medical payments, and damages to adjacent property and adjacent property belonging to tenants.

In addition, the program responds to bed bug infestation and will pay for certain remediation expenses including replacement of ruined furnishings, extermination and rehabilitation of the unit, lost revenue during the extermination period, and alternative stay accommodations for rental guests impacted by the infestation. The bed bug section does not respond to disease including associated behavioral health maladies.

What does Enhanced Damage Protection (ERDP) add to the Damage Protection Program (DP)?

In addition to the first dollar contents damage protection, ERDP adds to each booking:

  1. Up to $15,000 in Bed Bug remediation
    • Pays for affected, relocated guest’s hotel room
    • Pays for extermination of bed bugs
    • Pays for replacement of ruined furnishings
    • Pays for loss of rental income after 72 hours wait for subsequent bookings
      • Does not apply to the affected guest booking – this guest does get a hotel room paid for –
      • Applies to any disrupted / lost bookings with check-in dates after the infestation is discovered.
  2.  Up to $1,000,000 in liability protection
    • Pays for legal response and/or defense in the event of bodily injury of guest(s) at your unit during a rental
    • Pays for guest-caused damage to adjacent property
      • When damage arising from your rented premises spreads to neighboring property
    • Pays for first dollar medical treatment up to $500 per person
      • This can be great for keeping minor injuries such as a few stiches from becoming a lawsuit
    • Legal response begins when you receive a summons, court order, or demand
      • The insurer backing the ERDP program chooses defense counsel as needed and settlement is handled at our sole discretion

What are the limits of protection?

The limits are as follows:

  • Contents Limits:
    LEVEL Bronze Silver Gold Platinum
    LIMIT $500 $1,500 $3,000 $5,000
  • Homeowner (Vacation Rental Owner) Liability for all levels Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum:
    $1,000,000
  • Bed Bug Infestation for all levels Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum:
    • $5,000 for 1-bedroom unit,
    • $10,000 for 2-bedroom unit,
    • $15,000 for 3 + bedroom unit.
    • Limit 1 Bed Bug claim per unit per year.

What is the cost of the ERDP program to the Ownerrez Account Holder?

LEVEL Bronze Silver Gold Platinum
PROGRAM COST (per booking, per 30 days) $23.00 $37.00 $55.00 $79.00

What is the deductible for the OwnerRez ERDP program?

There is no deductible for contents; however the minimum contents claim amount is $25.

The owner-liability section deductible is $5,000.

The Bed Bug section deductible is $100.

What are some important limitations and exclusions?

The program is occupancy-based and only provides protection while the unit is rented. Non-rental stays for which no payment is made are expressly excluded from the program. The Program does not protect stays at the Home by the Owner, Owner family members, or any other Owner invitees or employees, or for any damage or injury that occurs outside the rental period for an Ownerrez-booked stay at the Home.

The program does not respond to intentional acts of the owner or non-paying guests. Damage will be verified timely upon guest check-out. As such, damages reported by the owner after unit inspection may not be protected, depending on the timing, circumstances, and causes of the incident.

The program specifically excludes disease including any associated behavioral health maladies such as mental distress, anguish, anxiety, trauma, nervous breakdown, etc. The program for example will not respond to any suit brought against you or us with respect to anyone contracting COVID-19.

Will I still be covered in the case that a guest checks in and then cancels or checks out early?

The protection applies to the covered booking while the unit is occupied. If the guest checks out early, the protection no longer applies after the guest leaves the premises of the protected unit.

Is the OwnerRez ERDP program a Homeowners policy?

No, the OwnerRez program is not a Homeowners policy, nor is it intended to replace Homeowners Insurance, Condo Insurance, or Commercial Property Insurance for the rented property. Property owners should contact a local, licensed insurance agent(s) to discuss specific primary insurance needs.

Are non-occupied days protected?

The OwnerRez ERDP program responds to occurrences during a paid rental occupancy period. The Program does not protect stays at the Home by Owner, Owner family members, or any other Owner invitees or employee. Non-occupied days are not protected. Likewise, occupancies for which there is no paid booking are excluded from protection.

Am I selling insurance when I include OwnerRez ERDP program with the bookings?

No, the owner participating in the program is accessing program benefits as a contracted owner. Unless insurance-licensed, neither OwnerRez nor OwnerRez program participants may act as licensed agents and are not qualified to represent insurance products.

Do I have to include all of my properties in the program?

There are specific requirements regarding property inclusion / exclusion.

Can I exclude some types of bookings such as Third-Party OTA (Vrbo/Airbnb/HomeAway) bookings from the ERDP program?

You cannot pick-and-choose specific bookings, but, you can exclude bookings that came from specific channels that provide their own coverage, as discussed here.

Are there any states ineligible for the program?

As of February 1, 2022, there are no states ineligible for participation.

Will the EDRP program respond if my primary insurance does not?

Yes, the program responds per the above listed sections, parameters and limits. Where there is an overlap of protection, such as for example a rental-related liability claim, your primary insurance policy would pay first and the OwnerRez program would respond for any remainder up to the program limits. Where there is no overlap, such as first dollar Contents or Bed Bug protection (features typically not available with homeowners insurance policies), the OwnerRez ERDP program will respond per the program parameters and limits.

Can I bind or make effective the program protection by phone?

No, the Damage Protection program is activated and configured online in your OwnerRez control panel.

Is damage that already existed prior to the effective date protected?

No, damage(s) that already existed prior to a covered booking is excluded. The program only covers damage that occurs during the scheduled and paid duration of a covered booking. Any attempt to make an ERDP claim for known damages that already existed or for liability incidents that occurred outside of a covered booking constitutes fraud.

What are my duties as an owner participating in the OwerRez ERDP program?

As a participating owner, with respect to the program, your duties include the following:

  • Give prompt notice of events or circumstances that might lead to a liability claim, such as a notice, demand, summons or complaint;
  • Provide names and addresses of any claimants and available witnesses;
  • Cooperate with us or program representatives, adjusters and agents in the investigation of a loss or claim;
  • Notify the police in case of loss by theft;
  • Protect damaged property from sustaining further damage.

What should I do if I receive legal notice of potential liabilities arising out of an OwnerRez rental?

  • Inform your OwnerRez representative in writing about the notice, via the Helpdesk.
  • Inform your primary insurance provider (your agent or insurer carrying your primary homeowners, condo, or commercial property policy) of the incident.
  • If you have not already filed a Damage Protection claim, do so. Provide the notice to your claims representative.

IMPORTANT NOTICES:

  • Only a licensed insurance broker can analyze your personal situation, discuss your insurance needs and advise you on insurance coverage. For questions on primary insurance, please consult a licensed insurance professional.
  • The OwnerRez Enhanced Rental Damage Protection Program (ERDP) is supported by an insurance policy issued to OwnerRez, effected with certain Lloyd’s Underwriters through TERN Financial Group Inc , a Lloyd’s Approved Coverholder acting as agent for the Underwriters.

Bed Bug Coverage

What is the loss of income limit for bed bugs?

The program provides limited lost income for up to 72 hours while the unit is being rehabilitated from the infestation.

What kind of proof of bed bugs would the ERDP program require?

Proof of bed bug infestation would consist of an invoice from the exterminator indicating the cost of treatment and the length of time the extermination process took. Other specific items may be requested by the program claims adjudicator at the time of the submission of bed bug related damages.

How does the Bed Bug Protection Work?

Whenever bed bugs (cimex lectularius) are discovered, the program will respond to the "residence premises" being uninhabitable for the period of the bed bug infestation remediation.

What is covered by the Bed Bug protection?

  1. Extermination of bed bugs by a professional exterminator
  2. Replacement of ruined soft furnishings
  3. Alternative hotel accommodations, i.e. moving the affected guest party to a hotel. (There is NO reimbursement for moving a guest to another short term rental home.)
  4. Loss of rental income after a 72 hour waiting period. This means that if the unit is still not habitable due to bed bug remediation at time of next check-in, and you have to cancel the next booking, the program will reimburse you for the lost revenue. Just provide a copy of the cancelled signed lease agreement along with the other proof of infestation and remediation expense.

What’s not covered by the Bed Bug protection?

  1. Other vermin or insect infestations.
  2. Refunding the affected guest. (The program only provides for reimbursement for HOTEL-relocation expense). You may of course refund the affected guest, but the bed protection will not reimburse for this or any other contractual guarantee related to bed bugs which you make to a guest, whether verbal or in writing.
  3. Replacement of appliances.
  4. Replacement of sheets, towels, and pillow cases. These are excluded because linens are not covered at all by any section of the program. (However, pillows, mattresses and box springs, along with wicker head boards can be reimbursed.)