But almost half of guests have experienced home-stay horrors.
Half of home-share hosts have had items stolen from their properties by paying guests, a new survey from Aviva reveals.
The study – which interviewed 1,000 people who let out their homes and 1,000 people who have stayed in home-shares – unearthed irritations on both sides.
Of those who have let out properties as home-stays, three out of five (60%) have experienced some sort of unpleasant incident involving guests. Within this figure:
- 53% of hosts said their homes / possessions had been damaged by guests.
- 48% have had items stolen from their properties.
- 38% have experienced a domestic disturbance involving neighbours or the police.
- While 18% said guests had left their homes in an unacceptable state.
In line with this, two thirds of guests (66%) admit to having broken or damaged something when staying at a home-share. Most visitors said they had either owned up and offered to pay (35%) or replaced the offending item (28%). But one in eight (13%) said they had blamed the problem on someone else and one in 10 (9%) hid the damage.
But many guests have grumbles about their home-stay experiences. Almost half (47%) of people who have stayed at home shares or holiday lets have been disappointed with the properties. Criticisms include cockroaches in homes, rude owners and a lack of locks on toilet doors. But the most common complaints are as follows:
| Smelly house (bad odour caused by pets/drains etc) | 42% |
| Rooms smaller than expected | 38% |
| Property was dirty | 35% |
| Noisy neighbours / road | 35% |
| Location not quite as advertised e.g. not near to attractions | 28% |
| Photos from website obviously old, hiding wear and tear in property | 26% |
| Unwashed bedding / towels etc | 17% |
| Previous occupants still in the property | 12% |
| Owner left strict list of dos and don'ts | 9% |
Adam Beckett, Product Director for Aviva UK General Insurance says: “Home-stays provide a great opportunity for people to earn extra income by allowing others to stay at their properties. However, guests can be unpredictable and our research shows around half of hosts have had something damaged or stolen when they’ve let out their homes.
“Anyone who has a standard home contents and buildings insurance policy and is thinking about letting out their home – even if it’s just for occasional or temporary use – should tell their insurer in advance. This helps to ensure people have the level of cover that’s right for them.
“For peace of mind, we’d also encourage homeowners to remove or lock away any valuables or easily-damaged items while guests are in their homes. Accidents happen, but this can help to minimise holiday headaches.”
- ENDS -
Methodology:
The study was carried out by Censuswide research in August 2019, interviewing 1,000 UK adults who let out properties to guests as a short-term / holiday let, and 1,000 UK adults who have stayed in home-stay properties.
Aviva standard home insurance allows people to let out their homes for temporary / short-period lets, but cover excludes theft or accidental / malicious damage by paying guests under both buildings and contents cover. Guests should also be aware that their belongings are not covered under a host’s Aviva home insurance policy.
If customers have Aviva Plus home insurance and have selected the ‘accidental damage’ option, this cover would also extend to guests in the home.
Media enquiries:
Sarah Poulter
UK External Communications
-
Phone
-
+44 (0) 7800 691 569
-
-
Email
Notes to editors:
- We are the UK's leading diversified insurer and we operate in the UK, Ireland and Canada. We also have international investments in India and China.
- We help our 19.6 million (as at 31 August 2024) customers make the most out of life, plan for the future, and have the confidence that if things go wrong we’ll be there to put it right.
- We have been taking care of people for more than 325 years, in line with our purpose of being ‘with you today, for a better tomorrow’. In 2023, we paid £25.6 billion in claims and benefits to our customers.
- In 2021, we announced our ambition to become Net Zero by 2040, the first major insurance company in the world to do so. We are aiming to have Net Zero carbon emissions from Aviva’s operations and supply chain by 2030. While we are working towards our sustainability ambitions, we recognise that while we have control over Aviva’s operations and influence on our supply chain, when it comes to decarbonising the economy in which we operate and invest, Aviva is one part of a far larger global ecosystem. There are also limits to our ability to influence other organisations and governments. Nevertheless, we remain focused on the task and are committed to playing our part in the collective effort to enable the global transition. Find out more about our climate goals at at www.aviva.com/sustainability/climate and our sustainability ambition and action at www.aviva.com/sustainability.
- Aviva is a Living Wage, Living Pension and Living Hours employer and provides market-leading benefits for our people, including flexible working, paid carers leave and equal parental leave. Find out more at https://www.aviva.com/about-us/our-people/
- As at 30 June 2024, total Group assets under management at Aviva Group were £398 billion and our estimated Solvency II shareholder capital surplus as at 30 September 2024 was £7.6 billion. Our shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange and we are a member of the FTSE 100 index.
- For more details on what we do, our business and how we help our customers, visit www.aviva.com/about-us
- The Aviva newsroom at www.aviva.com/newsroom includes links to our spokespeople images, podcasts, research reports and our news release archive. Sign up to get the latest news from Aviva by email.
- You can follow us on:
- X: www.x.com/avivaplc
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/aviva-plc
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/avivaplc
- For the latest corporate films from around our business, subscribe to our YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/aviva
