Newport News, VA Short-Term Rentals: Insurance Requirements (2026)
Key Facts
- Insurance required
- liability coverage for guest injury
- Coverage floor
- "no less than $300,000" per ordinance text
- Proof due
- annually with certificate renewal
- Certificate fee
- $150 to department of planning
- Certificate validity
- 1 year from issuance
- Revocation ground
- failure to comply with §45-517.1
Summary
Before Newport News will issue a short-term rental's annual certificate of zoning compliance, the owner must show proof of liability insurance covering accidental guest injury in an amount the code states as 'no less than thirty thousand dollars ($300,000.00)' under City Code § 45-517.1(c)(3). The mismatched wording and figure appear exactly that way in the adopted ordinance text.
Proof of liability insurance covering accidental injury to a guest on the property in an amount no less than thirty thousand dollars ($300,000.00);
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 81).
Full Breakdown
1(c) lists the documents an owner must submit before the zoning administrator will issue an annual certificate of zoning compliance for a short-term rental, and proof of liability insurance is one of six required items. 00; the printed text of the ordinance carries both, and an applicant should confirm with the department of planning which figure the office is currently enforcing before relying on either number. The insurance proof sits alongside the other certificate requirements: current payment of all real property taxes, nuisance charges and utility fees that constitute a lien on the property under (c)(2); a floor plan identifying bedroom locations and the safety equipment required by (b)(4) of the operating standards under (c)(4); and a $150 certificate fee paid to the department of planning, valid for one year from issuance under (c)(5).
The certificate must be renewed annually by submitting updated information to the department of planning before the prior certificate expires, and a lapse in the required insurance coverage would leave the certificate holder unable to demonstrate compliance if the zoning administrator opens an investigation.
Violations & Fines
Failing to maintain or document the required liability coverage is a failure to comply with the regulations set forth in § 45-517.1, one of the grounds the zoning administrator can use to revoke a certificate of zoning compliance under § 45-517.1(c)(6)b; a revoked owner cannot reapply for a new certificate for two years. Operating without a valid certificate at all exposes the owner to the general zoning civil penalty of $200 to $500 per summons under § 45-3501(d).
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Newport News short-term rental hosts need liability insurance?
How often does a Newport News short-term rental owner have to renew insurance proof?
What else does the city require besides insurance to certify a short-term rental?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Newport News
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