Sammamish, WA Short-Term Rentals: Insurance Requirements (2026)

Insurance is the most demanding state requirement for Sammamish short-term rentals. Under RCW 64.37.050, a short-term rental operator must maintain primary liability insurance to cover the short-term rental dwelling unit in the aggregate of not less than one million dollars, or conduct each short-term rental transaction through a platform that provides equal or greater primary liability insurance coverage. The statute allows an operator or platform to seek contributions from any other insurer also providing primary liability coverage. In practice, this means a host either carries a qualifying $1 million primary liability policy or relies on a booking platform whose host protection program provides at least that much primary coverage for each booking. A standard homeowner's policy typically does not satisfy this requirement, and RCW 64.37.040 specifically requires platforms to warn operators that a personal insurance policy covering the dwelling may not provide liability protection, defense costs, or first-party coverage during STR use. Sammamish has not enacted any additional insurance ordinance, so the $1 million state minimum is the governing standard for hosts within the city. Operators who list across multiple platforms or accept direct bookings should confirm coverage applies to every transaction, since the requirement attaches to each short-term rental transaction, not just bookings on a single platform. Hosts should consult an insurer about a dedicated short-term rental or commercial liability policy.