Italy's mandatory natural catastrophe insurance for hotels, agriturismi and B&Bs: who must buy it and since when

Updated: 10 November 2026

Since 2025 Italian businesses have had to insure their assets against natural catastrophes, and for small hotels and other hospitality businesses the last deadline was 31 March 2026. We read Law 213 of 30 December 2023 (art. 1, paragraphs 101-111) in the Gazzetta Ufficiale, the Chamber of Deputies' dossier on Decree-Law 39/2025, the technical report on Decree-Law 200/2025 (the «milleproroghe»), IVASS's presentation of implementing decree DM 18/2025 and the MIMIT FAQs. Links are at the end. Where we could not confirm something, we say so. This is not legal or insurance advice: for your own case, ask a lawyer, your accountant or an insurance broker.

The short answer

In November 2026, under Law 213/2023 and the later decrees:

Who: businesses with their registered office in Italy, and foreign ones with a permanent establishment in Italy, that must register on the companies register (art. 2188 of the Civil Code) (para. 101). That means hotels, residences, campsites and B&Bs run as a business.
What: land and buildings, plant and machinery, industrial and commercial equipment (art. 2424 Civil Code, assets B-II, items 1-3). Stock is not included.
Events: earthquakes, floods, landslides, inundations and overflows hitting the assets in Italy (para. 101).
Deadlines: large businesses 31 March 2025; medium 1 October 2025; micro and small 31 December 2025 (DL 39/2025); micro and small hospitality and food-and-drink businesses 31 March 2026 (DL 200/2025, art. 16(2)).
No direct fine for the hotel: non-compliance «is taken into account» when public grants, subsidies or incentives are awarded (para. 102). The IVASS fine of 100,000 to 500,000 euros is for insurers that refuse to provide cover.
Excluded: agricultural businesses under art. 2135 of the Civil Code (para. 111) and unlawfully built buildings (para. 106).

Deadlines by size

Size follows Recommendation 2003/361/EC, as DL 39/2025 states:

Large business: 31 March 2025; the para. 102 consequences from 30 June 2025.
Medium business (fewer than 250 staff and turnover up to 50 million or balance sheet up to 43 million euros): 1 October 2025, hospitality included.
Micro and small business (fewer than 50 staff and turnover or balance sheet up to 10 million euros): 31 December 2025 in general.
Micro and small hospitality or food-and-drink business (bars, restaurants): 31 March 2026. The technical report on DL 200/2025 calls it an extension «for only three months». Fishing and aquaculture are in art. 15(2).
All deadlines have now passed. We did not confirm in an official source the law converting DL 200/2025, or whether there was any further extension after March 2026.
If you already have fire insurance, the MIMIT FAQs say it is brought into line at the first renewal or premium payment.

What happens if you do not have it

Para. 102 sets no money penalty for the business:

Non-compliance is taken into account when grants, subsidies or incentives are awarded, including disaster relief.
According to the MIMIT FAQs it is neither automatic nor retroactive: each administration writes it into the rules of its own incentives, and MIMIT said it intends to do so for its own.
In practice: regional renovation grants, tourism funds or aid after a flood may be refused. Always read a call's exclusion criteria.
An ANCE dossier also cites the Incentives Code (Legislative Decree 184/2025, art. 9); we did not read it in an official source.

B&Bs, holiday homes and short lets

The rule applies to businesses, not private individuals:

A B&B run on a non-business basis and a private owner's short let are not on the companies register: under para. 101 they fall outside the duty. This is our reading of the law and of MIMIT FAQ 5, not an express sentence.
If you run your B&B, guest rooms or holiday homes with a VAT number and Chamber of Commerce registration, the duty applies to you.
Agriturismo: agricultural businesses under art. 2135 are excluded (para. 111), and an agriturismo is normally a related activity of a farmer. The MIMIT FAQs do not mention agriturismo and some private sources list it as obliged: not confirmed. If the property is run by a non-agricultural company, the duty applies.
To open a B&B or guest rooms in Tuscany or Campania, see our guide /open-bed-and-breakfast-guest-rooms-holiday-home-tuscany-campania-scia-cin-2026.

If the building is rented

The MIMIT FAQs speak of assets used «under any title»:

The operator must also insure assets it uses without owning them, such as a rented building, unless they are already covered by a similar policy, even one taken out by someone else (FAQ 1).
So: if the owner has already insured the building against these events, the operator insures its own plant, furnishings and equipment. If not, it falls to the operator.
According to the ANCE dossier (DL 39/2025, art. 1(3-sexies)), if the tenant insures, the indemnity goes to the owner, who must use it to rebuild; we did not read this in the official text.
Put in writing in the lease or management contract who insures what.

Excess and indemnity limits

Para. 104 of the law and DM 18/2025, as IVASS describes them:

Excess or deductible of no more than 15% of the damage; the premium is proportional to the risk.
Up to 1 million euros insured: the indemnity limit equals the sum insured.
From 1 to 30 million: the limit may not be below 70% of the sum insured.
Above 30 million or for large businesses: freely negotiated.
Flash flooding («bombe d'acqua») without a river or basin overflowing is not covered, nor is slow ground movement: only rapid landslides. Stock cover is optional.
Business interruption (lost revenue) is not part of the duty: if you need it, ask for it separately.

Tuscany and the Amalfi Coast

Your area does not change the duty, it changes the price:

The rules are national: the same in Florence, the Val d'Orcia, Positano or Amalfi.
The premium is proportional to the risk (para. 104): a building near a river or on a slope will pay more.
Ask your broker to state in writing the events, sum insured (rebuilding value), excess and indemnity limit.
Keep the policy and the payment receipt: you will need them for regional and Chamber of Commerce grants.

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Frequently asked questions

Does a family-run B&B in Italy need catastrophe insurance?

Only if it is run as a business on the companies register (Law 213/2023, para. 101). A non-business B&B and a private short let fall outside the duty, on our reading of the law and the MIMIT FAQs.

By when did a small Italian hotel have to be insured?

By 31 March 2026 if it is a micro or small hospitality business (DL 200/2025, art. 16(2)). Medium businesses by 1 October 2025 and large ones by 31 March 2025 (DL 39/2025).

Is there a fine if a hotel has no catastrophe policy?

No, Law 213/2023 sets no fine for the business: para. 102 counts non-compliance against public grants, subsidies and incentives. The IVASS fine of 100,000 to 500,000 euros applies to insurers that refuse cover.

Sources

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