Tenant obligation: home insurance covering rental risks

Verified 16 April 2025 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Does the tenant of a rental unit with a residential lease (including a mobility lease) have to insure his/her accommodation? The tenant is obliged to subscribe to a home insurance contract covering at least the risks of rental, that is to say at least the risks of fire, water damage, explosion. If they do not, the landlord (or real estate agency) can either terminate the lease or take out insurance on behalf of the tenant (and get reimbursed). We present you with the information you need to know.

Warning  

The rules are different in the case of renting a furnished tourist or a official housing.

You're a tenant

As a tenant of a rental unit with a residential lease (including a mobility lease), you have an obligation to to take out a home insurance contract and to provide the certificate of your insurance contract to the owner (or real estate agency) at the following times:

  • When the owner (or real estate agency) gives you the keys to the accommodation
  • Once a year, at the request of the owner (or the real estate agency).

Warning  

If you don't, the landlord (or real estate agency) can choose to terminate your lease or take out insurance rental risk on your behalf.

For the tenant of a residential lease (or a mobility lease), only the rental risk guarantee is mandatory. The guarantee of rental risk concerns damage to the dwelling caused by a fire, explosion or water damage.

Be careful, this guarantee only covers damage caused to the rented accommodation. It does not cover damage that could be caused to neighbors, if the disaster extends beyond the rented accommodation. To cover these damages, you must purchase the warranty recourse of neighbors and third parties. This warranty is optional.

The rental risk guarantee also does not cover your personal property, which could be damaged in a disaster. To guarantee your goods, you must subscribe to a supplementary insurance, commonly referred to as multi-risk housing. This insurance is optional.

If you do not provide your insurance certificate rental risk when the landlord (or real estate agency) asks you for it, the landlord (or real estate agency) can choose either to terminate your lease or to take out insurance rental risk on your behalf.

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Termination of the lease

Your lease may or may not contain a rescission clause for lack of insurance covering rental risk.

Lease with rescission clause

The landlord (or real estate agency) must instruct a commissioner of justice (formerly the court bailiff's command) to issue you an order asking you to take out rental risk insurance.

After receiving the order, you have 1 month to take out rental risk insurance.

If you have not taken out insurance within this period, the landlord (or real estate agency) must apply to the court to protection litigation judge find that your lease is terminated and order your eviction from the dwelling.

Lease without this clause

The landlord (or real estate agency) must appoint a commissioner of justice (formerly the court bailiff's command) of you assign before the court, to ask the protection litigation judge terminate your lease and order your eviction from the dwelling.

FYI  

Before summoning you to court, the owner (or real estate agency) may send you a formal notice comply with your obligation to take out rental risk insurance, but he is not obliged to do so.

Subscribing to a "rental risk" insurance for your account

The landlord (or real estate agency) must send you a registered letter with notice of receipt indicating his intention to take out a "rental risk" insurance, on your behalf.

FYI  

When the landlord (or real estate agency) sends this email, they can no longer request termination of the lease for lack of insurance, even if your lease contains a rescission clause.

After receiving this letter, you have 1 month to take out a "rental risk" insurance.

After this one month period, if you have not taken out insurance, the owner can take out one on your behalf.

The owner (or real estate agency) must then give you a copy of the insurance contract when it is taken out and each time it is renewed.

The owner (or real estate agency) pays the insurance premium annual invoice by the insurer. But you have to pay it back of this amount, which the owner (or real estate agency) may increase by a maximum of 10%. You must refund the total by 1/12eeach time the monthly rent is paid.

Example :

The owner paid an annual insurance premium of €200.

The owner increases this amount by 10%.

You owe him in total: €200 x1.10 = €220.

Each month, you must repay him: €220/12 = €18.33.

The total amount to be repaid must be recorded on the notice of maturity and on the rent receipt.

You can terminate the insurance taken on your behalf by the owner (or real estate agency). To do this, you must take out rental risk insurance and give him the certificate of insurance. The owner (or real estate agency) must terminate his insurance as soon as possible. You must refund the insurer's portion of the premium until termination.

When you permanently leave the accommodation before the end of the insurance contract, the owner (or real estate agency) must terminate it as soon as possible. You must refund the insurer's portion of the premium until the contract is terminated.

You own it

The tenant of a rented dwelling with a residential lease (including a mobility lease) is required to take out a home insurance contract for the rented dwelling.

He must provide you with the certificate at the following times:

  • When you hand him the keys to the house
  • Once a year, at your request.

Only the guarantee of rental risks is mandatory. The guarantee of rental risk concerns damage to the dwelling caused by a fire, explosion or water damage. This guarantee only covers damage caused to the rented accommodation. It does not cover damage that could be caused to neighbors, if the disaster extends beyond the rented accommodation.

If the tenant does not send you an insurance certificate rental risk, you can choose one of the following:

  • Either terminate the lease
  • Take out "rental risk" insurance on behalf of the tenant. In this case, you lose the ability to terminate the lease for lack of insurance from the lessee, even if the lease contains a rescission clause.

Depending on whether the lease contains a rescission clause for lack of rental risk insurance from the tenant, the rules to be respected are different:

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Lease with rescission clause

You must load a commissioner of justice (formerly command of bailiff) to deliver to the tenant a command telling him he needs to take out "rental risk" insurance.

One month after the issuance of the order, if the lessee has not provided you with a certificate of insurance, you must refer the case to the protection litigation judge the court on which the rented accommodation depends. You can ask them to find that the lease is terminated and to order the eviction of the tenant.

FYI  

You can refer the case to the protection litigation judge in interlocutory.

Lease without this clause

You can ask the protection litigation judge termination of the lease and eviction of the tenant from the dwelling.

To do this, you must load a commissioner of justice (formerly command of bailiff) to issue to the tenant a subpoena before the court on which the rented accommodation depends.

FYI  

You can first send the tenant a formal notice to honor its commitments, but you don't have to.

When the tenant does not take out "rental risk" insurance, you can do so on his behalf.

You must first send the tenant a registered mail with notice of receipt. In this letter, you must indicate your intention to take on its behalf insurance covering rental risks. Rental risks are damage to the dwelling caused by fire, water damage or explosion.

Warning  

By sending this mail, you lose the ability to terminate the lease for lack of insurance from the lessee, even if the lease contains a rescission clause.

The tenant has 1 month to take out insurance "rental risks".

If after this period he has not given you an insurance certificate, you can take out a "rental risk" insurance on his behalf.

FYI  

You must give the tenant a copy of the insurance contract when it is taken out and each time it is renewed.

You have to pay the insurance premium charged by the insurer, but the tenant has to pay you back.

You can increase this amount by up to 10%.

The tenant must refund you the total amount by 1/12e every monthly rent payment.

Example :

You paid an annual insurance premium of €200.

You decide to increase this amount by 10%.

The tenant must refund you the total amount of: €200x 1.10 = €220.

Every month, the tenant must pay you: €220/ 12 = €18.33.

The total amount that the tenant must refund to you must be entered on the notice of maturity and on the rent receipt.

You must terminate as soon as possible the insurance you have taken on behalf of the tenant, at the following times:

  • When the tenant gives you a certificate of insurance "rental risks"
  • Or when he finally leaves the accommodation before the end of the insurance contract that you have signed.

The lessee must refund you the portion of the premium required by the insurer until the termination of the contract.

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