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Tenant's obligation: home insurance

Verified 29 September 2022 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

The tenant of an empty or furnished dwelling with a dwelling lease (including a mobility lease) must take a dwelling insurance. The insurance must at least cover the risks of fire, water damage, explosion. If the tenant does not insure the accommodation, the landlord can choose to terminate the lease or take out insurance on behalf of the tenant (and get reimbursed). We present you the information to remember if you are a tenant or owner of the rented accommodation.

Warning  

the rules are different for a furnished tourist or official accommodation.

Tenant

If you are a tenant of a rented accommodation with a residential lease (including a mobility lease), you must take out home insurance. This obligation applies regardless of your nationality and regardless of the length of your stay in France.

What insurance should be taken out?

Insurance must cover at least rental risks.

Rental risk insurance covers damage to the dwelling caused by a fire, explosion or water damage.

But the coverage of this insurance is only for the rental itself. Damage to neighbors is not covered by this insurance. They must be covered by another guarantee, called recourse of neighbors and third parties, which is optional.

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

How can this be demonstrated to the owner of the dwelling?

You have to prove to the homeowner that you have taken out rental risk insurance.

To do this, you must provide a certificate of insurance at the following times:

  • When the owner gives you the keys to the accommodation
  • Once a year, at his request

If you do not provide the landlord with a "rental risk" certificate of insurance, then the landlord can choose to either terminate the lease or take out "rental risk" insurance 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 risks (damage caused to the dwelling by a fire, explosion or water damage).

Lease with rescission clause

The landlord must instruct a commissioner of justice (formerly the court bailiff's command) to give you a command asking you to take insurance "rental risks".

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

If you have not taken out insurance within this period, the owner must apply to the court to protection litigation judge find that your lease is terminated and order your eviction from the dwelling.

Other Lease

The landlord 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 can 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 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 sends this email, they can no longer request termination of the lease for lack of insurance, even if your lease contains a termination 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 must then give you a copy of the insurance contract when it is taken out and each time it is renewed.

The owner pays the insurance premium annual invoice by the insurer. But you have to pay it back of this amount, which the owner may increase by not more than 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 x 1.10 = €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 end the insurance taken by the owner on your behalf. To do this, you must take out rental risk insurance and give him the certificate of insurance. The owner 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 must terminate it as soon as possible. You must refund the insurer's portion of the premium until the contract is terminated.

Owner

The tenant of a rental unit with a residential lease (including a mobility lease) must take a home insurance covering at least the rental risks. Rental risks are damage to the dwelling caused by a fire, explosion or water damage.

This obligation applies to the tenant, whatever his nationality and whatever the duration of his stay in France.

The tenant must prove to you that he has taken out a "rental risk" insurance. To do this, he must provide you with a certificate of insurance at the following times:

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

If the tenant does not send you a "rental risk" insurance certificate, you can choose:

  • Either terminate the lease
  • Or to take out a "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.

Terminate Lease

The lease may or may not contain a rescission clause for lack of rental risk insurance from the tenant.

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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 the tenant to find that the lease is terminated and order the tenant to be evicted.

FYI  

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

Other Lease

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.

Take out insurance on behalf of the tenant

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 rescinding 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: €200x1.10=€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:

  • when the tenant provides you with an insurance certificate "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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