Protection & payments · 21 September 2026

Your alternative to security deposits. Give guests a better booking experience.

No more asking guests for a deposit. Holidu Protect covers guest-caused damage up to €50,000 per booking for €3 a night, so your guests book more easily and you spend less time on deposit admin.

Protecting a property shouldn't come at the expense of the guest's experience. Hosts want guests to feel comfortable while booking, and confident that the stay will be easy from start to finish. A deposit sits awkwardly between those two things.

Why hosts ask for a deposit

Handing over the keys to a home you've invested years in, to someone you've never met, is an act of trust. The deposit is the traditional answer to that: a sum held back, returned after check-out, there in case something breaks. It's a reasonable instinct, and for a long time it was the only tool available.

What it asks in return is that the host becomes a payment processor. Collecting the money, checking it arrived, holding it, inspecting the property, deciding what to deduct if something has happened, refunding on time, and handling the disagreement if the guest sees it differently. For the one stay in a hundred that goes wrong, the deposit is administered on all hundred.

Why a deposit puts guests off

Guests have already made the decision to stay. The last thing they need is another payment to arrange before their holiday begins.

A deposit can mean:

Paying money on top of the booking
Keeping track of when and how it will be returned
Wondering what might happen if something gets damaged
Potentially having to discuss deductions after the stay

This can make the holiday feel more complicated than it needs to be — stressful, and less joyous. With no additional deposit to pay, guests complete their booking without a payment or refund process hanging over the stay. It's one less thing to think about while planning a holiday.

And for the host, it means fewer questions about deposits before and after a stay.

Your alternative to security deposits. Give guests a better booking experience. — A simpler booking for your guests, without a deposit to arrange.

Keep your property protected – and hosting hassle-free

Holidu Protect gives hosts another option: guests don't need to pay a separate deposit, and every booking that comes through Holidu is protected against guest-caused damage for up to €50,000 per booking. Replace the need for deposits with just €3 per night for up to €50,000 in damage protection through Holidu Protect, powered by Truvi.

Of course, removing a deposit shouldn't leave you worrying about what happens if something goes wrong. That's the balance every host has to manage: you want guests to feel welcome and trusted, but you also need to protect your property. Holidu Protect is designed to give you that balance.

With Holidu Protect active, every booking that comes through Holidu is covered for up to €50,000 against guest-caused damage — accidental, intentional or criminal. There's no minimum claim, so a broken glass is as claimable as a broken sofa.

Cover applies to bookings confirmed while Holidu Protect is active on that property, across every channel Holidu manages for you, including Airbnb. Bookings you enter manually and those imported by iCal are not covered, and neither are bookings confirmed before you switched Holidu Protect on.

Once activated, your guest doesn't have to pay a deposit upfront just in case something happens. They get a simpler stay. You still have protection when you need it.

Every guest is checked before they arrive

Once a booking is confirmed, our protection partner Truvi checks the guest's name, email address and phone number.

Almost all guests are approved for the full €50,000 — 99.5% of them. If something can't be verified, usually an email address or a phone number, the booking is flagged and cover is capped at €1,000; there's nothing for you to do. In the rare case a guest is rejected, the booking is cancelled for you at no cost: no cancellation fee, and no effect on your ranking or Star Host status.

You'll see the result in the booking details.

Spend less time talking about deposits

The guest experience doesn't end when the booking is confirmed. Imagine having to tell a guest that part of their deposit won't be returned because of a damaged item.

Even when the deduction is justified, it's an uncomfortable conversation. The guest may disagree, ask questions or challenge the amount.

With Holidu Protect you don't put the cost on the guest. You submit the claim with your evidence, and Truvi handles it from there. The guest isn't involved.

You can focus on looking after your guests, and providing a great experience, rather than negotiating over their deposit.

If something does go wrong

Before you claim. Photograph the damage within 72 hours, wide shots of the room and close-ups of the damaged items, timestamped where you can. Don't repair or throw anything away unless it's urgent, don't settle anything directly with the guest, and if something was stolen or damaged deliberately, report it to the police and keep the report number.

Start the claim from the booking. Open the booking in your Holidu account, scroll down to the Damage protection section and select Start a claim. You'll see a short list of what to prepare, then you're taken to Truvi's claim form.
Add your evidence. The guest's full name, your photos, and receipts or contractor quotes for the repair or replacement. For missing items, proof that you owned them — a receipt, a photo, a bank statement.
Submit within 14 days of check-out. Ideally within 24 hours of finding the damage, while the evidence is fresh.

Truvi comes back to you within two business days. Most claims up to €250 are resolved within three business days, up to €1,000 within four, and up to €5,000 within six. Larger claims take longer, and Truvi keeps you updated.

What's covered

Holidu Protect covers guest-caused damage, including:

Broken furniture
Stained linens and towels
Theft by a guest, and items missing after a stay
Damage from an unapproved party
Damage from a pet a guest brought to a property that doesn't accept pets
Unauthorised smoking damage
Damage to items included in the rental, such as bikes
Extra cleaning costs, and delivery costs for replacements

It doesn't cover wear and tear, maintenance, damage you cause yourself, loss of income, management fees, or acts of nature such as storms and flooding. Cosmetic marks that don't affect whether the home can be used or let are assessed case by case.

What it costs

€3 per booked night, deducted from your payout. No setup fee, no monthly fee, no minimum contract.

A four-night booking costs €12.

Switch it on, or off, whenever you like

Holidu Protect works per property, so you can try it on one of your properties to start with. Turn it on and the deposit you configured for that property switches off automatically. Turn it off later and your previous deposit setting comes back, and any booking confirmed while Holidu Protect was active stays covered, and the Holidu Protect cost remains on that booking.

A better experience for your guests. Less work for you.

Hosting is about more than protecting your property. It's about creating an experience guests want to remember, and making it easy for them to choose your property in the first place.

A deposit adds friction before and after the stay. Extra questions, extra payments, and a deduction conversation that can come back as a negative review.

Holidu Protect gives you another way. Your guests can book without a deposit. You can host without managing one. And if guest-caused damage happens, you have protection to fall back on.

Activate Holidu Protect

New to Holidu? List your property your guests book without a deposit from their very first stay, and you're covered up to €50,000 per booking.

Do I still need to collect a deposit?

No. When Holidu Protect is switched on for a property, the security deposit on that property is switched off automatically. Guests book without paying one, and eligible bookings are covered against guest-caused damage. Holidu Protect and a deposit can't run side by side.

What's covered?

Guest-caused damage up to €50,000 per booking — accidental, intentional or criminal, including theft by a guest. That covers broken furniture, stained linens and towels, damage from an unapproved party, a pet brought to a property that doesn't accept pets, unauthorised smoking, damage to items included in the rental such as bikes, extra cleaning, and delivery costs for replacements. There's no minimum claim, so a €2 glass is as claimable as a €2,000 sofa.

What isn't covered?

Wear and tear, maintenance, damage caused by the host, loss of income, management fees, and acts of nature such as storms and flooding. Cosmetic marks that don't affect whether the home can be used or let are assessed case by case. Damage from an approved party, or from a pet at a pet-friendly property, isn't covered either.

Does Holidu Protect cover all my bookings?

It covers every booking that comes through Holidu, on every channel Holidu manages, including Airbnb. Bookings entered manually in the calendar and bookings imported by iCal aren't covered.

What happens to bookings I already have?

They keep their original terms. Holidu Protect applies to bookings confirmed after activation — earlier bookings aren't covered retroactively.

How much does Holidu Protect cost?

€3 per booked night, deducted from the payout. No setup fee, no monthly fee, no minimum contract. A four-night booking costs €12.

Is my guest checked before they arrive?

Yes. Once a booking is confirmed, Holidu's protection partner Truvi checks the guest's name, email address and phone number. 99.5% of guests are approved for the full €50,000. If something can't be verified the booking is flagged and cover is capped at €1,000 — no action is needed from the host. If a guest is rejected, the booking is cancelled at no cost: no cancellation fee, and no effect on ranking or Star Host status. The result appears in the booking details.

What happens if a guest damages my property?

Photograph the damage within 72 hours and don't repair or discard anything unless it's urgent. Then open the booking in your Holidu account, scroll down to the Damage protection section and select Start a claim — you'll be taken to Truvi's claim form, where you upload your photos and your receipts or quotes. Submit within 14 days of check-out. Truvi assesses the claim and handles it from there.

How long does a claim take?

Truvi replies within two business days. Claims up to €250 are usually resolved within three business days, up to €1,000 within four, and up to €5,000 within six. Larger claims take longer, with regular updates from Truvi.

Is my guest involved in the claim?

No. The host submits the claim and Truvi handles it — the guest isn't contacted, and there's no deposit deduction to argue about.

Do I still need home insurance?

Yes. The two cover different things. Home insurance covers the big events — structural damage, fire, flooding — but usually has a minimum claim value, so smaller guest damage falls below the threshold. Holidu Protect covers that everyday damage, with no minimum claim.

Can I turn Holidu Protect off again?

Yes, at any time, per property. The previous deposit setting comes back. Any booking confirmed while Holidu Protect was active stays covered, and the Holidu Protect cost remains on that booking.