There are sitters who don’t own a home or do not have a home at all. Everyone should renters’ insurance for their belongings whereever they may be, but I bet a lot do not.
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@Katie have never had insurance in my life…i have always ‘winged it’! Abit late for me to start now so I travel light, try to roll with changes that might crop up, dont carry anything of real value and aim not to cause damage to anybody’s property…so far so good!
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Yeah, I think the difference here is that we’re talking about Personal Liability insurance, not insurance on the house and/or belongings. Often when you buy house insurance, you can also get personal liability as a part of the package. I wonder if Nomads can/do buy PL insurance separately to cover themselves wherever they travel?
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Exactly! I would not rely on Credit Cards, not even on the THS insurance.
It can be very tricky and you absolutely need to use the right words to submit something you have broken to the insurance company. We never do this by ourselves but always ask our insurance broker.
So in case it’s “only” something like a broken window, ruined carpet or something not necessarily to be mended or replaced immediately without anybody insured, I would ask the sitter to contact us or wait until we’re back to find a common solution. Because, before I begin to argue with a foreign insurance company, I rather ask my broker first if there’s not a way around this 
Some might call it cheating, I call it common sense.
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So to clarify, with French home insurance, if someone is staying in your home and they damage something in your home, it’s not covered under your house insurance? That is shocking really. In Canada, my house and belongings are covered no matter who damages it.
Do you worry about your home when you have guests visiting etc?
I totally understand the liability insurance though. I think that works the same everywhere. We carry liability insurance which covers us everywhere we travel in the world, and yes, it’s attached to our house insurance.
I totally agree with you describing french home insurances @provence.
And I should add concerning the exemple you give about the tap and the fload : my assurance would NOT cover me in that case saying « if I leave my house for more than 3 days it is my responsability to turn he water off » !! So yes, you have to read carefully the little lines of the contract as Companies have their own rules ! And it can be very tricky…
This is also why I am very interested in what @anon39388349 says about her “insurance broker” helping her to declare the damage !
And yes a catastrophy can always occur, you never know.
HO has never asked me about my insurance policy but should it happen I would be glad to send them a copy of my contracts (home insurance with my personal Liability insurance or car insurance which covers me as a driver of a borrowed car - but not against speedy lights fines 
)
Very interesting topic.
Next time I go to my insurance company I will ask them all sort of questions about house-sitting.
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So interesting. My liability insurance only covers me if someone sues me. It wouldn’t cover me staining a carpet or something like that (I guess unless you sued me for it).
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@Kelownagurl : so you would have to pay for a new carpet or for a professional washing of it ?
Can you tell us which nationality you are ? I mean in which country you are insured ?
Yes very interesting !!
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@Kelownagurl @Françoise-et-Youn @Provence I have been following this conversation with interest and I may be a terrible sceptic but I think many insurance companies will look for the slightest get out clause to not pay out on an insurance claim; as you all and others have said you need to check evrything with a very careful eye and even then its not guaranteed that a claim will be honoured…I apologise unreservedly to any honest insurance agents reading this!
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I agree you do have to be careful, fully understand your policy, and be sure to follow all the warnings/exemptions attached to it. That being said, I don’t think it’s reason enough to not purchase insurance. I’ve made claims more than once in my lifetime and have had no problem.
The key is, don’t lie or exaggerate when buying insurance thinking they won’t find out because they likely will.
No, in Canada, my house insurance covers any damage to my home, regardless of who does it. I’m referring to Personal Liability Insurance.
" Personal Liability
Whether you own or rent your home, you can be held liable for bodily injury or property damage unintentionally caused to others. Your home insurance’s personal liability portion provides coverage if such an event occurs on your property or anywhere in the world.
For example, if a visitor slips on a snow-covered walkway on your property and is injured, you may be held legally responsible. If you’re found negligent, your personal liability coverage would cover the damages resulting from the injury up to the coverage limit. Liability coverage does not apply to injuries sustained by you or members of your household."
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@Françoise-et-Youn Yes, we have an insurance broker. Of course going this way is a little more expensive than choosing an insurance from the internet but experience showed that this is worth it.
My husband’s bike was stolen two years ago and he took his receipt to our broker and said: “do what you can!” In the end the insurance paid him more than the bike actually had cost 8 years earlier. I am sure this would have been different if we had tried it ourselves.
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@Kelownagurl yes dead right be very precise and honest as they have ways of finding out and then the insurance is void…i know a few people who have fallen foul of this…the other thing being is that even with the slightest of changes to your situation with regard to the insurance you have TELL THEM its another way they use to void insurance!
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@anon39388349 @Françoise-et-Youn @Kelownagurl thats good advice a broker will know all the pitfalls or should
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I totally agree !
You always discover that you don’t fit it the box :
YES you pay insurance against floading but this tap has been leaking for more than 3 days and the water should be turned off when you leave for more than 3 days…
YES you pay for “life accident”, but falling on your own and broke your hip is NOT an accident (true story 2 years ago while dog sitting in Portugal !)
I am too very sceptic… sadly… 
Same apologise to any honest insurance agent reading this 
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@carpediem that’s why we have an insurance broker. He has helped every single time we needed him and over the years we got back more than the price difference to any insurance contract you sign via the internet.
When we need a new insurance we ask him and of course he gets paid a commission but he knows the contracts, knows what makes sense for us and helps in case of a claim.
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That is very interesting. I would love to have such a trustful broker ! I would be very happy to pay for this kind of advices !
But in any case, I will ask my company about our insurance when staying in OH home for pet-sitting…
We now have a very good insurance company with real people in real office ready to speak to you, and not only a voice machine asking you to dial 1, dial 2 and bip bip bip…
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Sounds right, @Provence
(I learned French long long ago but haven’t spoken for years. )
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@VNcatontheroad , this is such an unfortunate situation. So sorry this happened to you.
From what I have read, the TV would have been covered if the HO had had the THS standard or premium Homeowner’s membership. Their regular homeowner’s insurance policy, alone – at least in the US, would not cover this.
Because of this discussion, I called my insurance agent to find out if my homeowner’s insurance would cover me as a sitter if I caused damaged in someone else’s home. I live in the US. My insurance only covers damage to my own home, things like theft, fire and water damage. It does not cover replacement of items such as appliances or televisions. My homeowner’s liability insurance covers me if I am sued by someone else for things such as damage from a falling tree, a dog bite, an injury incurred by someone while on my property, such as walking into a hole or slipping on ice and breaking a bone.
In order to be covered for damage I caused to someone else’s home while staying there, I would need my own liability insurance, generally commercial insurance. If, for example,
I caused a fire or was responsible for water damage to their home, their homeowner’s insurance would pay for repair but they could come back and sue me for liability.
This is what it says about the insurance that comes with THS standard and premium Sitter memberships:
Accident & third party liability protection - For extra peace of mind, if a pet causes damage or injury to another person, their property, or pets whilst under your control during a sit, and this is due to negligence on your part, then you will be covered by our Sitter guarantee up to $1,000,000 per incident.***
**It appears this only covers damage by the pet you are watching.
Go here to see exactly what the THS liability insurance for Homowners covers:
Home and Contents Protection Terms and Conditions | TrustedHousesitters.com
Here are a few highlights:
-
Property damage — This covers accidental and malicious damage to your property during a sit. It protects your household goods and your valuable belongings too.
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Theft — If something goes missing, you’re covered.
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Public liability — This covers you in case the sitter has an accident in and around your property.
Exclusions:
- The insurance only covers the owner for damage or theft if admitted to by the sitter. It does not cover acts where the Sitter(s) does not admit liability unless the damage is Malicious damage or Theft;
- (e) liability arising from the ownership or use of any motor vehicle or other machinery, whether licensed for road use or not; I assume this would not cover damage to a lawn mower or snow blower (or a bicycle or golf cart??)
As someone else said in an earlier post, as a sitter it is to your advantage to sit for a homeowner who has a standard or premium membership if you do not have your own liability policy.
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But how do you know what level the homeowner has? I am sure sometimes even if you ask them they may not know based on some peoples lack of understanding of the site and that it is new.
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