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- As tenant of a furnished property, am I obliged to take out an insurance policy ?
Yes. The lease obliges you to insure yourself and to give proof of this insurance to the owner or his agency before entering the premises.
In addition, in France, you are presumed to be liable for the damage to the item hired; this is rental liability.
- This is the first time compulsory insurance has been mentioned to me. Why ?
The furnished property market is relatively new. Until now, it has been little known to insurers. In the absence of suitable policies and prudent advice, this is why you have not heard about it before. This would explain why a rental agency may not bring up the subject.
- Doesn't the insurance policy I have to take out double up on the owner's one ?
No. The owner insures his building and sometimes his furniture ? nothing more (furthermore, many are not insured or insufficiently so). Some also take out an insurance policy on behalf of the tenant, but it is limited to rental risks; therefore, it is insufficient as indicated above.
- The owner has informed me that he has taken out an insurance policy on my behalf. Is it sufficient ?
No. In general, insurance policies taken out on behalf of the tenant are limited to cover the rental civil liability of the tenants. Therefore, they exclude their personal effects and personal civil liability.
- Will the insurance policy covering my usual place of residence do ?
It might. However, if you are abroad, you should note that French law will be applicable in the event of litigation; you run the risk of your contract not covering you properly. So, you must obtain written confirmation from your insurer. If you are French, you will generally have automatic insurance called ?villégiature? (seasonal-holiday) cover, but it is often limited in amount and duration. It might be insufficient.
- Is my cover for civil liability enough ?
No. This insurance relates to events which have occurred between you and third parties (article 1382 and those following, of the civil code).
Now, relations between tenant and owners are governed by totally different articles (article 1732 and those following, of the civil code).
- Is insurance which only covers my rental liability enough ?
No. This insurance called "rental risks" is insufficient because it covers sometimes merely damage to the building (the owner?s furniture is sometimes excluded), and only in the event that you are personally liable. All other accidents and events (theft, glass breakage, water damage, for which you are not liable) are excluded.
- So, what type of insurance policy should I take out ?
We recommend a multi-risk household insurance policy which will cover damage to the building and the owner?s furniture, as well as damage to neighbours and third parties; also your personal effects, civil liability, etc. Basic insurance will comprise, in particular, fire-explosion, water-ice damage, theft-vandalism, glass breakage, natural disasters and climatic events, etc. The duration of this insurance contract should be identical to the lease?s duration; failing which, accidents might be only partially compensated.
- Are there other reasons why I should take out such an insurance policy ?
Yes. For example, in the event of an accident, etc., being assisted with formalities and procedures, and, if need be, represented for your defence; because managing an accident oneself is complicated especially when you are abroad on a visit and are unaware of local practices.
Or even, exclusively with our contract, you can automatically benefit from the following services, whatever the option:
- 24H/24H, 7/7 assistance in the event of an accident, which will cover the cost of a plumber, glazier, locksmith, etc., up to ?200 (and more if the accident is covered by the insurance contract).
- Rehousing assistance following an accident covered, which makes the rented accommodation unfit for use, with, if necessary, provision of essential items if your personal effects are destroyed.
- A service to help with formalities resulting from an accident.
- A caretaker?s service enabling you with a simple telephone call to reserve a taxi, a table at a restaurant, or a seat at a concert, etc.
- If I take out an insurance policy, will I be covered for all damage ?
No. Certain events are excluded by insurers (intentional commission, maintenance work, breakages) or are only partially compensated for due to insurance options. In these cases, you might lose your deposit.
- Do I have to put down a deposit with the owner if I take out an insurance policy ?
Yes, because some types of damage are not covered by the insurance, in the same way that some charges are your responsibility (electricity, telephone, cleaning, etc.).
- If, from time to time, I have a friend round who causes damage, am I insured for him ?
His own civil liability should be engaged. The owner might engage your liability as you are renting his property. Your insurer would then take action against your friend.
- And what if this friend is occupying the apartment with me, even though he is not a signatory of the lease ?
This all depends on your insurance contract. With us, any person living under the same roof is covered by rental liability. If the damage is not covered by the contract, we shall proceed with the claim action.
- How do I find out about your insurance coverage and prices ?
You can use the price calculator on our home page. You will however need a password, which will be sent to you by the rental agency if it is a partner.
- Do you take the number of rooms into account, like rental agencies?
To determine the type of apartment, we count the number of main rooms, which are defined as:
“all rooms, including verandas and mezzanines with an area equal to or greater than 9 m2. We do not consider the following as main rooms: corridors and entrance halls, bathrooms, toilets, storage rooms, garages, cellars and non-equipped basements. Kitchens are not counted as a room unless their area is greater than 25 m2.
Rooms larger than 40 m2 are counted as more than one room for each section or parts of sections of 40 m2”.
So an apartment offered by a rental agency as having 2 bedrooms will generally be considered by us to have 3 main rooms (lounge/dining room + 2 bedrooms).
- How are the rates calculated?
The rates take into account the type of apartment, the rental period, the type of cover and the rental costs.
- What should I do if, once I have moved in, I notice that there are more or fewer rooms?
In this case we would ask you to inform us so that we can change your policy and its cost.
- And then how do I subscribe ?
By using the link which you receive by e-mail. You won?t have to enter anything as all the details about the stay will already be filled in (surname, first name, address, apartment type, rental period, etc.).
All you have to do is select the options of your choice and validate some documents. If you are taking out the cancellation option, you must specify the names of the people subscribing and the cost of the return tickets.
- Is the price shown definitive ?
The price shown is definitive, all inclusive of tax and fees. There will be no surprises.
- How do I pay ?
Online by bank card (secure payment) or via a PayPal account. If you would like to pay by bank transfer, just let us know by e-mail in order to receive instructions of the procedure to follow.
- What happens then ? Will I receive a contract ?
As soon as the payment has been made, you will receive an e-mail of confirmation containing a certificate to give to the owner, as well as the access codes to your personal space.
On the scheduled day of your occupying the apartment, you will receive an SMS confirming your cover to you and giving you the contact details of the assistance service (if you took care to give us your mobile telephone number).
- What is the personal space ?
From our site, and using the access codes provided, this is a page where you will find all the documents comprising your contract, accident declaration forms and a direct e-mail link for any enquiries.
- Can I terminate the contract I have taken out with you ?
In accordance with the legal provisions regarding distance selling, you can terminate your insurance cover within 14 calendar days following subscription. The required form, terms and time for refund are indicated to you in the information notice which can freely be consulted before and after subscription.
- Do you offer other cover ?
Yes. At the same time as the household insurance, we can offer you cancellation insurance covering rent due to the owner in the event of your voluntary cancellation. You can extend this cover to the expenses of two-way transport.
We also offer you a range of products specially for travellers (health, repatriation, luggage, particularly meeting the requirements for obtaining a Schengen Visa).
We also provide insurance specially for non-occupier owners of rented accommodation, unfurnished or furnished.
- Why take out a ?cancellation? insurance policy ?
In order to be compensated for financial loss (that is, the expenses you have incurred and which are non-retrievable) resulting from the cancellation or termination of your stay on your own initiative.
- What expenses can I be compensated for ?
Depending on the case, rent (because when you rent accommodation, you then owe the owner the rent for the entire rental period), and agency fees.
You will also be compensated for the cost of two-way transport, if you choose this option.
- How do I find out details about your cover ?
When the rental agency sends you a link to subscribe to our multi-risk household insurance for tenants of furnished accommodation, you will have access to a complete description of the cover provided.
- What is the global compensation limit ?
It is ?15,000.00 incl. Tax, except for special cover.
(Terms and Conditions, Article 11)
- In what cases can I claim compensation ?
The list of cases can be consulted on our website. Apart from ?classic? events such as death, accident and serious illness, redundancy, etc., we offer novel types of cover such as:
- Cancellation resulting from the unavailability of the premises rented
(Terms and Conditions, Article 2)
- Refund of expenses that you will incur with a view to maintaining or continuing the stay, following the unavailability or recognised and accidental non-conformity of the premises rented
(Terms and Conditions, Article 2)
- Family guarantee
(Terms and Conditions, Article 2)
- We are planning to come to France with friends. What would happen if one of us has an accident as a result of which he or she will not be able to come to France or continue his or her stay ?
If the event is covered, we will compensate the victim for his arithmetical share, that is, by paying the sums due in proportion to the number of days and insured parties in the contract.
(Terms and Conditions, Preamble, Article 10)
- If there is an accident, what should I do ?
This is all explained in the instructions with our contract. Generally speaking, all you have to do is inform us by e-mail as soon as you know there has been an accident. In order to make it easy to manage the file, you can use the forms available in your personal space. We are then ready to react as swiftly as possible.
- If we come as a family (couple + children), will we be compensated according to the same method ?
Yes, but you do have another option: in the event that you come as a family and one of the members falls victim to an accident/event which is covered, at your request we can refund the entirety of expenses covered and incurred by the other members of the family.
(Terms and Conditions, Article 10, Chapter 3 & Article 11)
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