The Uniplaces Rent Guarantee covers one situation: a tenant who moves out before the end of the term. If a covered tenant leaves early, Uniplaces re-lets the accommodation and, until it is re-let or the term ends, pays you the daily rent — up to €2,000 per booking. It is free for bookings accepted while your listing is in an Exclusivity Period — a period in which you let the listing only through Uniplaces — which starts when you activate the Essential Package (the dashboard option that commits the listing to Uniplaces in exchange for this cover) on the listing; bookings accepted outside an Exclusivity Period are not covered. To claim, you must notify Uniplaces through the help form within 14 days of the tenant leaving or stopping rent, and have demanded the unpaid rent in writing.
What the Rent Guarantee covers
The Rent Guarantee covers early departure only — a tenant who permanently stops occupying the accommodation after the move-in date and before the end of the term. When a covered tenant leaves early:
- You authorise Uniplaces to re-book the accommodation, and Uniplaces does so straight away. Uniplaces may re-let it at a discount it considers reasonable.
- Until the accommodation is re-let or the term expires, Uniplaces pays you an amount equivalent to the daily rent. This is your sole remedy under the guarantee.
- Payments only start once any credit you already hold — the first rental payment, any rent paid in advance and any deposit — has been applied to the unpaid rent.
The cover runs from the booking’s move-in date until one month before the end of the term. The term is the tenancy term or 12 months from the contract start date, whichever is shorter.
Who is eligible
The Rent Guarantee is offered free of charge for bookings accepted during a listing’s Exclusivity Period. You start an Exclusivity Period by activating the Essential Package on the listing in your Accommodation Provider Dashboard. It runs from activation until 30 days before the listing’s next availability date.
A booking accepted outside an Exclusivity Period is not covered by the Rent Guarantee. The guarantee is not applied automatically to every booking.
Your obligations during the Exclusivity Period
While a listing is in an Exclusivity Period, for the availability period announced on the listing you must not:
- market the listing anywhere other than Uniplaces;
- enter into a tenancy for the accommodation other than through a Uniplaces booking; or
- let anyone occupy the accommodation other than through a Uniplaces booking.
Breaching these obligations carries an Exclusivity Violation Penalty of one month’s rent — the rent announced on the listing at activation, or the rent of the last confirmed booking, whichever is more recent.
Either you or Uniplaces can end the package through the Accommodation Provider Dashboard with at least 90 days’ notice.
How to claim
For anything to be payable, you must do both of the following:
- Notify Uniplaces in writing through the help form at uniplaces.com/help within 14 days of the tenant ceasing to occupy the accommodation or ceasing to pay rent.
- Demand the rent from the tenant in writing. Nothing is payable until rent has remained unpaid for more than seven days after your written demand. The two run in parallel: do not hold back the help form while you wait for those seven days to pass — the 14-day deadline runs from the day the tenant left or stopped paying.
Keep a record of the move-out date, your written demand and any replies. Uniplaces may inspect the accommodation, and you must tell Uniplaces as soon as it is re-let.
When nothing is paid
Nothing is payable under the Rent Guarantee if:
- you re-let the accommodation without using Uniplaces, hinder Uniplaces from re-letting it, or fail to tell Uniplaces that it has been re-let;
- you receive the rent from the tenant’s guarantor;
- you agreed with the tenant that they could pay less rent or stop paying;
- the tenant moved to another accommodation of yours;
- the tenant never moved in (a no-show);
- you or the tenant knowingly provided false information;
- the tenant complained to Uniplaces about the condition of the accommodation within 24 hours of the move-in date;
- the tenant left because of your breach of the tenancy agreement, incorrect or misleading listing information, the accommodation being unavailable, inaccessible, unsafe or in disrepair, your failure to remedy defects, or because you procured or colluded in the departure;
- the tenant cancelled under the Uniplaces cancellation policy, or the booking was accepted in error and not reported through the help form.
The guarantee also never pays out for:
- the first rental payment, rent paid in advance or a deposit — whether you collected it or failed to collect it;
- insurance, utilities, superior rent, mortgage payments, or any rent above the rent stated on the listing;
- unpaid service charges, fines, dilapidations, damage or repairs. Damage is a matter for the security deposit, which you collect directly from the tenant and which Uniplaces never holds.
How and when Uniplaces pays
The first payment is made on or around the first business day of the calendar month following 60 days from the date Uniplaces receives a valid and substantiated claim. After that, payments are made monthly in arrears until the accommodation is re-let or the term expires.
Uniplaces’ total liability under the Rent Guarantee is limited to €2,000 per individual booking.
The tenant must reimburse Uniplaces
Any sum Uniplaces pays you under the Rent Guarantee remains the tenant’s debt. The tenant must reimburse Uniplaces for all such sums immediately on written demand.
Payment security on every booking
Separately from the Rent Guarantee, on every booking the tenant pays the first rental payment, the Uniplaces service fee and, where your listing has one, the holding deposit (a sum that reserves the accommodation; not a damages deposit) through the Uniplaces checkout; the card is only charged once you accept the request, and the booking is confirmed once that payment goes through. Uniplaces holds the first rental payment and transfers it to you, minus commission, within two business days of the move-in date, once the 24-hour Safety Period — the tenant’s 24 hours after the move-in date to report a problem with the accommodation to Uniplaces — has passed without a help request. If the tenant reports a problem in that period, Uniplaces holds the payment while the report is reviewed and releases it once Uniplaces has reviewed the case.
Payments stated on your listing — deposit, admin fee, rent in advance, monthly rent from month two — are collected by you directly from the tenant, once the booking is confirmed (accepted by you and paid by the tenant). Do not ask a tenant for any payment before the booking is confirmed on Uniplaces, and do not ask for anything that is not on your listing. Uniplaces does not collect monthly rent on your behalf.
When to contact Uniplaces support
- A tenant has moved out early or stopped paying rent — submit the help form within 14 days
- You are unsure whether a booking was accepted during your listing’s Exclusivity Period
- The accommodation has been re-let and you need to tell Uniplaces
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to activate the Rent Guarantee?
Yes. It only covers bookings accepted while the listing is in an Exclusivity Period, which you start by activating the Essential Package on the listing in your dashboard.
Can I advertise the listing on other websites while the package is active?
No. During the Exclusivity Period you must not market the listing elsewhere or let it other than through Uniplaces. Doing so carries a penalty of one month’s rent, and re-letting outside Uniplaces means nothing is payable under the guarantee.
Does the guarantee cover damage to the property?
No. Damage, dilapidations and repairs are excluded. Collect a security deposit directly from the tenant, stated on your listing, to cover damage. See Should I Collect a Security Deposit from My Tenant?.
What if the tenant never shows up?
A no-show is not covered by the Rent Guarantee. What you receive from the first rental payment depends on the cancellation policy on your listing.