Rent-Guarantee & Unpaid-Rent Insurance for Landlords (2026): GLI, Impago & UK Cover Compared
Published on: June 15, 2026
Quick answer: Rent-guarantee insurance pays the landlord when a tenant stops paying, covering arrears and, crucially, the legal and eviction costs of getting the property back. France's GLI, Spain's seguro de impago de alquiler, and UK rent-guarantee cover share the same architecture: unpaid-rent reimbursement plus legal cover, gated by upfront tenant vetting. The single biggest cause of refused claims is letting to a tenant who didn't pass the policy's solvency check, so set the cover up before the tenancy, not after the trouble starts.
Every landlord's quiet nightmare is the same: the rent stops, the tenant won't leave, and the legal system that is supposed to help moves at a glacial pace while you keep paying the mortgage on a property generating nothing. For a foreign landlord, it is worse, you are managing the problem from another country, in another language, under eviction rules you don't fully understand and that are often heavily tenant-protective.
There is a specific product for exactly this, and most cross-border owners don't know it exists or don't set it up correctly. It is variously called rent-guarantee insurance, unpaid-rent insurance, or non-payment cover, and the difference between having it (properly) and not can be a year of lost rent and thousands in legal fees. Here is how it works across the major European markets in 2026.
France, GLI: powerful, but conditional
France's GLI (garantie loyers impayés) is unpaid-rent insurance taken out by the landlord, and it is comprehensive: it reimburses unpaid rent, typically funds the legal and eviction costs of recovering the property, and usually covers damage caused by the defaulting tenant beyond the deposit.
The catch, and the reason claims get refused, is the tenant-solvency conditions. To be eligible, the tenant generally must meet income criteria (commonly earning around three times the rent) and pass referencing before the tenancy starts. Skip or fudge that vetting and the insurer can decline. There is also a structural rule foreign landlords miss: in most cases you cannot combine GLI with a personal guarantor (caution), French law makes you choose, except in limited situations such as student or apprentice tenants. As an alternative for eligible tenants, the state-backed Visale guarantee (via Action Logement) provides free unpaid-rent cover, which can be relevant for younger or mobile tenants. For a foreign landlord, GLI is excellent protection if you respect the eligibility rules from day one.
Spain, seguro de impago de alquiler
Spain's equivalent, the seguro de impago de alquiler, covers unpaid rent, commonly for a defined number of months (often in the region of 6 to 12), and bundles legal-defence cover to pursue arrears and eviction (desahucio), with many policies also covering tenant-caused damage and acts of vandalism.
As in France, the protection is gated by tenant vetting: the insurer assesses the prospective tenant's solvency (employment, income, payment history) before agreeing to cover them, and the policy responds only for tenants who passed that screen. Given how slow Spanish eviction proceedings can be, the legal-defence component is often the most valuable part, it funds the litigation that actually gets your property back, not just the lost rent. A foreign landlord should treat the tenant-solvency check as the price of admission, not an obstacle.
United Kingdom, rent guarantee + legal expenses
The UK packages the same protection slightly differently. Rent-guarantee insurance pays out when a tenant defaults, typically continuing the rent for a set period and up to a cap, and is almost always sold alongside or bundled with legal-expenses (legal-protection) cover that funds possession proceedings and eviction.
The universal precondition is tenant referencing. UK rent-guarantee cover is conditional on the tenant having passed referencing checks (affordability, employment, credit, previous-landlord references) at the outset; a tenant who fails or is not referenced generally isn't covered. With possession through the courts being slow and costly, the legal-expenses element again carries much of the value. Note too that UK possession rules are evolving, so the eviction process the cover funds is itself a moving target, another reason a foreign landlord benefits from a policy that handles the legal mechanics.
The pattern across all three
Look past the different names and the same architecture appears everywhere: unpaid-rent reimbursement + legal/eviction cover, gated by upfront tenant vetting. The variations are in the caps, the covered months, and the local eviction process the legal cover has to navigate.
| Feature | France (GLI) | Spain (impago) | UK (rent guarantee) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Covers unpaid rent | Yes | Yes (often 6–12 months) | Yes (set period / cap) |
| Legal & eviction costs | Yes | Yes (often the key value) | Yes (legal-expenses cover) |
| Tenant-caused damage | Usually | Often | Sometimes (add-on) |
| Main eligibility gate | Tenant income ~3× rent; vetting | Tenant solvency screen | Tenant referencing |
| Notable quirk | Usually can't combine with a guarantor; Visale alternative | Eviction (desahucio) can be very slow | Evolving possession rules |
What foreign landlords should do
Three rules carry most of the value. First, set the cover up before the tenancy and let only to tenants who pass the policy's vetting, the single biggest cause of refused claims is skipping or mishandling the solvency check. Second, prioritise the legal-expenses component, because in most of these countries the cost and delay of eviction, not the lost rent itself, is what ruins absentee landlords; the cover that funds getting your property back is the one that earns its premium. Third, understand the local eviction timeline, the slower and more tenant-protective the jurisdiction, the more this insurance is worth. For a landlord operating from abroad, rent-guarantee cover is less a luxury than the thing that makes remote letting viable at all.
Frequently asked questions
What is rent-guarantee insurance?
Cover that pays the landlord when a tenant stops paying, usually including legal and eviction costs and sometimes tenant damage. France's GLI, Spain's seguro de impago, and UK rent-guarantee cover are the main versions.
What is GLI in France?
Landlord-bought unpaid-rent insurance that reimburses arrears and covers legal/eviction costs, conditional on tenant income criteria and generally not combinable with a personal guarantor.
Does rent-guarantee insurance cover eviction costs?
Typically yes, most policies bundle legal-expenses cover for arrears recovery and eviction, often the most valuable element.
Why might a claim be refused?
Most often because the tenant-vetting conditions weren't met, these policies require referencing and income/solvency thresholds before the tenancy begins.
Make remote letting viable
Remote letting only works if the downside is insured. JanusHermes helps cross-border landlords run rental property across 50+ markets, from cover to compliance, explore listings and country intelligence on JanusHermes.
This guide is general information, not insurance or legal advice. Policy terms, covered periods, and eviction rules vary by country and change over time, confirm the current position with a licensed local broker and lawyer before letting.