Booking.com short term insurance for house

jpholroyd

I recently booked a house for a weekend.
After booking I was contacted by ‘host and stay’ to tell me I needed to pay a security deposit (subject to a £10 admin fee), or waiver insurance for £25.
i opted for the latter.
i was not sent any documents after this relating to insurance, so I asked for them.
i was them sent the terms from a company called Superhog. Once again I asked for the policy schedule, or something stating the dates of cover, location, and my name.
I have been going round in circles with them, 6 emails so far.
i don’t think I’m being unreasonable, but think this is fairly standard when you purchase any insurance.
is it a scam, designed just to get a little more money? 

elsien

Was there anything on the accommodation page which references these fees before you booked? I’ve used Booking.com before and I’ve never been asked for this so I think it must be down to your specific host, but it should’ve been flagged up before you decided whether to book or not.

Looking at the superhog page, the contract is with the accommodation and they pass the charge onto you which might be why you’re having difficulty getting the details from them directly.

it’s not indicating a particularly good host so far.

DullGreyGuy

If you look at the Superhog website it's a "Damage Waiver", like car hire companies charge, and not described as insurance. 

What is a damage waiver?

A damage waiver is a fee paid by a guest to a host. It waives the guest from financial responsibility up to a certain amount (set by your host) for accidental damage caused during a stay to a property.

Superhog allows hosts to request either a damage waiver or deposit from their their guests. Damage waivers are offered as an alternative to a traditional security deposit and requires a guest to pay a smaller non-refundable fee, but offers the same protection as a standard security deposit.

jpholroyd

DullGreyGuy said:

If you look at the Superhog website it's a "Damage Waiver", like car hire companies charge, and not described as insurance. 

What is a damage waiver?

A damage waiver is a fee paid by a guest to a host. It waives the guest from financial responsibility up to a certain amount (set by your host) for accidental damage caused during a stay to a property.

Superhog allows hosts to request either a damage waiver or deposit from their their guests. Damage waivers are offered as an alternative to a traditional security deposit and requires a guest to pay a smaller non-refundable fee, but offers the same protection as a standard security deposit.

Sounds like insurance to me!

NewUser

Exactly the same has just occurred to us on Booking.com.
No mention at all of an "accidental damage waiver" when completing the booking online, full credit card payment taken immediately, then we received an email from the host saying: 

"3. ACCIDENTAL DAMAGE WAIVER:
Your booking may include an accidental damage waiver. This ensures you're covered for any small accidents that may occur, meaning you can focus on enjoying your stay. Your accidental damage waiver will cover you and your party for any reported accidental damage that occurs up to £500.

If an accidental damage waiver was not included in your booking, you will be required to put this in place when you fill out the check-in form."

Can anyone advise a course of action regarding purchasing such insurance?  We are only staying for 2 days.
Thank you. 

DullGreyGuy

jpholroyd said:

DullGreyGuy said:

If you look at the Superhog website it's a "Damage Waiver", like car hire companies charge, and not described as insurance. 

What is a damage waiver?

A damage waiver is a fee paid by a guest to a host. It waives the guest from financial responsibility up to a certain amount (set by your host) for accidental damage caused during a stay to a property.

Superhog allows hosts to request either a damage waiver or deposit from their their guests. Damage waivers are offered as an alternative to a traditional security deposit and requires a guest to pay a smaller non-refundable fee, but offers the same protection as a standard security deposit.

Sounds like insurance to me!

There are a few things that people may think are insurance but arent, like CDW, D&G breakdown plans on appliances etc. If it is legally insurance it has to be underwritten by the PRA authorised and FCA regulated entity, hold SII capital against claims, produce a mountain of regulatory turns each quarter... you're probably guessing why companies will make significant efforts to ensure their offering doesn't get classified as insurance.