Data · September 2026

STR insurance requirements by city: what 17 US cities require

STR Regulations Guide editors · Published September 5, 2026. Every requirement sourced to the city's own ordinance or licensing page.

The short answer: most major US cities require liability insurance as a condition of STR licensing. Of the 17 cities surveyed here, 13 require it. Minimums range from $250,000 (Washington, DC) to $1,000,000 (seven cities). In at least 9 of those 13 cities, platform-provided coverage (Airbnb's Host Protection, Vrbo's Liability Insurance) can satisfy the requirement.

Cities requiring insurance

of 17 surveyed

Most common minimum

$1M

7 cities at this tier

Platform coverage accepted

of 13 that require it

Verify before you act. This table was checked in September 2026 against each city's published page. Insurance requirements, coverage minimums, and platform acceptance rules can change. Confirm the current requirement with your city's licensing office and your insurance provider before relying on any figure here.

The comparison table

Every city below was included in our STR permit fees and night caps comparisons. "Platform coverage accepted" means the city's ordinance or licensing page explicitly says that Airbnb/Vrbo host protection insurance can satisfy the requirement.

City	Required?	Minimum	Platform accepted?	Notes	Source
Austin, TX	No	N/A	N/A	Eliminated in October 2025. Previously required.	austintexas.gov
Boston, MA	$1M	$1,000,000	Yes	State law (Ch. 337, Acts of 2018). Platform coverage accepted; property damage coverage alone does not qualify.	mass.gov
Charleston, SC	$1M	$1,000,000/occurrence	Not stated	General liability covering personal injury (including death) and property damage, from an insurer authorized in South Carolina.	charleston-sc.gov
Chicago, IL	$1M	$1,000,000/occurrence	Not stated	Must be commercial general liability (CGL), covering bodily injury, personal injury, and property damage. Higher bar than standard homeowner's liability.	chicago.gov
Colorado Springs, CO	$500K	$500,000	Yes	Not required if reservations go exclusively through platforms that extend $500K+ coverage.	coloradosprings.gov
Denver, CO	$1M	~$1,000,000	Yes	Signed rules say "within limits set by the director." Advisory materials cite $1M. Must notify insurer of STR use.	denvergov.org
Los Angeles, CA	No	N/A	N/A	Home-Sharing Ordinance does not require insurance for registration.	planning.lacity.gov
Nashville, TN	$1M	$1,000,000/occurrence	Yes	Homeowner's fire, hazard, and liability insurance required. Platform coverage may satisfy the liability component.	nashville.gov
New Orleans, LA	$1M	$1,000,000/occurrence (per unit)	Not stated	Must be commercial general liability (CGL). Standard homeowner's policy typically does not qualify.	nola.gov
New York City, NY	$300K	$300,000	Yes	State law (Real Property Law 447-B). Booking service insurance accepted if equal or greater coverage. Must cover third-party property damage or bodily injury.	nysenate.gov
Portland, OR	No	N/A	N/A	ASTR permit requirements do not include insurance.	portland.gov
San Diego, CA	No	N/A	N/A	STRO ordinance does not mention insurance.	sandiego.gov
San Francisco, CA	$500K	$500,000	Yes	Platform-provided coverage accepted. Only required if the platform does not provide its own insurance.	sf.gov
Savannah, GA	Required	Not specified	Not stated	Proof of insurance required; must indicate the premises is used as an STVR. No minimum dollar amount stated in the application materials.	savannahga.gov
Scottsdale, AZ	$500K	$500,000	Yes	Direct coverage or via an online lodging marketplace. Per Ordinance 4566.	scottsdaleaz.gov
Seattle, WA	$1M	$1,000,000 aggregate	Yes	Platform coverage of equal or greater amount accepted.	seattle.gov
Washington, DC	$250K	$250,000	Yes	May be obtained through a rental platform or from an insurance company.	dlcp.dc.gov

What the data shows

Liability insurance is a near-universal condition of STR licensing. Of the 17 cities surveyed, 13 require it. The 4 exceptions are Austin (which dropped its requirement in 2025), Los Angeles, Portland, and San Diego.

The most common minimum is $1,000,000, required by seven cities: Boston, Charleston, Chicago, Denver, Nashville, New Orleans, and Seattle. Three cities require $500,000 (Colorado Springs, San Francisco, Scottsdale). New York City requires the least at $300,000, followed by Washington, DC at $250,000. Savannah requires insurance but does not specify a dollar amount.

Three patterns worth noting

Platform coverage is widely accepted but not universally

At least 9 of the 13 cities that require insurance explicitly say that Airbnb or Vrbo host protection coverage can satisfy the requirement. This is a meaningful concession: it means a host booking exclusively through major platforms may not need a separate insurance policy. But 4 cities either do not mention platform coverage or require a standalone policy. Charleston, in particular, requires insurance from an insurer authorized in South Carolina, which may or may not include platform-provided coverage.

Two cities require commercial general liability

Chicago and New Orleans both require commercial general liability (CGL) insurance, not just standard homeowner's liability. A CGL policy is a distinct insurance product designed for business operations. A standard homeowner's policy does not typically qualify, and some homeowner's policies explicitly exclude short-term rental activity. An operator in either city should confirm with their insurer that their policy is classified as CGL and covers STR use.

The coverage tiers suggest a policy floor, not a market price

The $250K-to-$1M range across these cities is the regulatory minimum, not a recommendation. Insurance professionals and most STR guides recommend at least $1,000,000 in liability coverage regardless of what the city requires. The city minimum is the floor below which the license is not valid; the right coverage amount depends on the property, the guest volume, and what the operator can afford to lose in a lawsuit.

What this means for an operator

If you book through Airbnb or Vrbo and your city accepts platform coverage, you may already meet the requirement without buying a separate policy. But "may" is doing a lot of work in that sentence. Platform coverage has exclusions, and the question of whether a platform's coverage satisfies a specific city's ordinance language is one for your insurance agent, not for a comparison table.

If you operate in Chicago or New Orleans, you almost certainly need a standalone CGL policy. If you operate in Austin, LA, Portland, or San Diego, the city does not require insurance at all, but that does not mean you should skip it. The city requirement is about licensing compliance, not about protecting you from a liability claim.

If you use a property manager, confirm whether their policy covers your property or whether you need your own. Many property management agreements require the owner to carry separate coverage.

Confidence notes

High confidence (verified against the city's published page or ordinance): Austin (no requirement, city page states it explicitly), Colorado Springs ($500K with platform exception), Nashville ($1M), San Francisco ($500K), Scottsdale ($500K), Washington DC ($250K), Portland (no requirement), San Diego (no requirement), Chicago ($1M CGL).
Moderate confidence: Seattle ($1M; requirement is referenced in applications but not stated on the public-facing code-questions or licensing pages), Denver (~$1M; the signed rules delegate the figure to "limits set by the director" but advisory materials cite $1M), Boston ($1M; state law, not city ordinance), New York City ($300K; from state Real Property Law, not Local Law 18), Savannah (required but no minimum stated), Los Angeles (no requirement; planning.lacity.gov FAQ returned 403, confirmed via ordinance summary).
Sourced to ordinance handbook: New Orleans ($1M CGL; sourced to the 2019 STR Handbook PDF rather than a current web page), Charleston ($1M; sourced to Zoning Ordinance Sec. 54-208 via the permit information page).

Sources

City of Austin, Short-Term Rentals licensing page (austintexas.gov).
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Short-Term Rental Insurance (mass.gov).
City of Charleston, Short-Term Rental Permit Information (charleston-sc.gov).
City of Chicago, Shared Housing and Accommodations Licensing (chicago.gov).
City of Colorado Springs, Short-Term Rental information (coloradosprings.gov).
City and County of Denver, Short-Term Rental laws, rules and regulations (denvergov.org).
City of Los Angeles, Home-Sharing initiative, Department of City Planning (planning.lacity.gov).
Metropolitan Government of Nashville, Short-Term Rental permit checklist (nashville.gov).
City of New Orleans, Short-Term Rental Administration handbook (nola.gov).
New York State Senate, Real Property Law 447-B (nysenate.gov).
City of Portland, Accessory Short-Term Rental permits, before you apply (portland.gov).
City of San Diego, Short-Term Residential Occupancy, Office of the City Treasurer (sandiego.gov).
City and County of San Francisco, guide to opening a short-term residential rental (sf.gov).
City of Savannah, STVR Application Process (savannahga.gov).
City of Scottsdale, neighbor notification and liability insurance compliance attestation (scottsdaleaz.gov).
City of Seattle, Short-Term Rentals code questions (seattle.gov).
District of Columbia, Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection, operating a short-term rental (dlcp.dc.gov).