Bellflower, CA Short-Term Rentals: Insurance Requirements (2026)

Liability-insurance mandates are a standard condition in city short-term rental ordinances - typically requiring a host to carry commercial general liability coverage and name the city as additional insured. Bellflower has no STR ordinance, so it imposes no insurance requirement on home rentals; there is no minimum coverage amount, no certificate-of-insurance filing, and no additional-insured condition for residential short-term rentals because the use is not permitted and there is no permit to attach insurance terms to. Hotels and motels operating in Bellflower's commercial zones maintain liability and property insurance as a matter of ordinary business practice and lender or operating requirements, but that flows from running a commercial lodging enterprise, not from a city STR insurance rule. For a homeowner, the absence of an STR insurance mandate is not a benefit: because short-term renting a residence is not a permitted use, a host operating one risks not only zoning enforcement but also gaps in standard homeowner's coverage, since many homeowner policies exclude or limit coverage for commercial short-term rental activity. Anyone evaluating lodging in a commercial zone should confirm insurance and indemnification expectations with the Planning Division and the city as part of the discretionary approval and development-standards process for hotels and motels. For residential property, the controlling fact remains that short-term rental is not authorized, so there is no city insurance framework to satisfy.