BlueZoo, a company that offers sensors that measure occupancy in single-family homes, has launched a partnership program with property insurers in order to stop parties at short-term rentals before they start.
The program, SafePro, has debuted with three property insurance partners — Proper Insurance, Property Protect and Relax Damage Waiver — who will offer short-term rental operators discounts on BlueZoo’s “Party Squasher” sensors and offer preferred insurance rates to those who adopt the sensors.
“Vandalism and destruction of property, injuries to guests, violence and theft, and neighborhood nuisances as simple as parking and noise create potential liabilities for insurers,” the company said in a press release. “Traditional property insurance provides limited coverage for short-term rental use, so specialized products have been created to provide proper protection.”
Out-of-control parties have become an increasing concern for short-term rental platforms and operators. In April, two Beverly Hills homeowners filed a lawsuit alleging real estate brokerage Compass leased their home to someone who illicitly used it as a short-term rental venue for big parties, including one in which someone was fatally shot. And in August, renters violated Airbnb’s no-party rule and two people were shot, one fatally, at a listing.
Fred Renard
“Parties at rentals represent a significant new peril that insurers need to understand,” said Fred Renard, SVP of sales at BlueZoo, in a statement.
“We are thrilled to launch SafePro for innovative insurers to help deliver modern technology for risk mitigation. Like monitored fire alarms, Party Squasher sensors provide a simple way for both insurers and the insured to prevent risks.”
The Party Squasher occupancy monitoring service consists of a small sensor connected to a proprietary cloud-based service that passively counts the mobile devices in and around a home, even if they are not connected to Wi-Fi — thus measuring single-family home occupancy in real time, the company said. Property operators set a threshold and if there is unusually high occupancy in a property or if the sensor is unplugged, the service sends property operators a text message or email to let them know.
Party Squasher sensors “deter parties before they rage and therefore reduce the risk of having damage claims,” a spokesperson told Inman via email.
Moreover, the sensors are discreet and privacy-friendly, according to the company.
“Party Squasher has no microphones or cameras and doesn’t collect or store personal data or track phone numbers,” the company said.
Without discounts, an initial 12-month subscription for Party Squasher costs $249.
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