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

Jurisdictions with formal short-term rental programs often require operators to carry liability insurance - commonly $500,000 to $1,000,000 - and to provide proof as a permit condition. Kings County has adopted no such requirement for its unincorporated areas because it has no short-term rental ordinance. Nothing in the County Code obligates an STR operator to maintain a minimum amount of general liability or homeowner/host insurance, to name the County as additional insured, or to submit a certificate of insurance to any county department. The Transient Occupancy Tax ordinance (Chapter 22, Article III) is a tax measure and contains no insurance provision. As a result, insurance for a Kings County short-term rental is governed by private arrangements rather than public regulation: a hosting platform such as Airbnb or Vrbo may provide or require host protection coverage, a mortgage lender or HOA may require specific coverage, and standard homeowner policies often exclude or limit commercial short-term rental activity, so operators are generally advised to obtain a short-term-rental or landlord endorsement. But these are commercial and contractual considerations, not county mandates. Because requirements can change if the County later adopts an STR ordinance, operators should confirm the current rules with the Community Development Agency before relying on this summary.