When you hire a house, apartment, or condo, you may be thinking that the insurance of the landlord covers all. Who knows, it is their building, after all. There is however one thing that many renters do not know: the insurance provided by your landlord only covers the building but not your belongings that could be found inside.
That is where renter insurance is involved.
This blog will elaborate on what renter insurance is, why it is necessary, who should carry it, and how it helps you escape huge losses.
What Is Renter’s Insurance?
Renter insurance (tenant insurance) is a form of insurance policy that covers your personal items, liability and other living costs in the event of an unforeseen situation such as a fire, theft or a bursting pipe.
Although you do not own the building, you own everything in your rental house; your clothes, furniture, electronics, appliances and so on. In case they are destroyed or stolen, renter insurance can also be used to compensate the replacement of such items.
What it typically covers may be broken down as:
Personal Property This is the principal reason why the majority of individuals purchase renter insurance. In the event of a covered event (such as a fire, smoke, vandalism, or water damage caused by a broken pipe) that causes damage or loss of your stuff, your insurance may cover any costs of replacement.
Liability Protection What will happen when a person is injured within your apartment and sues? Or what, should your dog bite a visitor? To pay the legal charges and medical expenses in case you are found guilty, liability covers will assist.
Additional Living Expenses In case your flat becomes uninhabitable due to a reason like a fire or flood (which is included in your policy) then renters insurance may cover the cost of hotel bills, meals and other expenses as long as you are displaced.
What Is the Significance of Renter’s Insurance?
Renter insurance is something that is avoided by many people due to a lack of understanding of the necessity or unaffordability. Yet here is the reason it is a clever step:
- Your Stuff Is Worth More Than You Imagined Take a second to consider all the things you have TV, phone, clothes, shoes, laptop, furniture, kitchen. It adds up fast. Although you may lack fancy stuff, it would be very expensive to upgrade everything at a time and may cost you thousands of dollars. Renter insurance aids in that.
- Disasters Happen Nobody anticipates a fire, flood, or a break-in yet these do occur more frequently than you may expect. You would be forced to replace everything with your money. Under insurance, you have a cover.
- Accidents Can Be Costly Suppose you run the bathtub and fill the apartment of your neighbor. Or your guest falls upon a rug and breaks his arm. In the absence of the liability insurance, you might face huge expenses. In such cases, renter is insurance that can save you money.
- It’s Usually Very Affordable One of the best things about renter’s insurance? It’s surprisingly cheap. The majority of plans are between 10-25 dollars monthly depending on the location and required coverage. That is not as much as a lot of people spend on coffee per week.
Who is eligible to obtain Renter’s Insurance?
The short answer? Anybody who hires out a home.
It does not matter whether you rent a studio apartment, a house or a room you still have individual possessions and risks of liability.
The following are some of the people who should put it into consideration:
- Off campus college students.
- Young workers with their first apartment.
- Homes/ condos are rented by families.
- Roommates (note: everyone might require his or her policy)
- Unintended long-term renters.
Although you may be really careful, you just can not control everything. Someone could flood your couch with the sink of your upstairs neighbor. Or somebody could even enter your unit when you are at work. With renters insurance you can relax.
What Doesn’t It Cover?
As is the case with any type of insurance, there are limits with renter policies. Things most basic policies are silent about include:
- Natural disasters such as floods (you may require a separate flood insurance)
- Earthquakes (may be required individually)
- The belongings of your roommate (unless he/she is on the policy)
- Damage from pests (like bed bugs or rodents)
Always look at the fine print, and ask an agent in case you are not sure what is covered.
How to Get Renter’s Insurance
It is simple to have renter insurance. You can find out how to do it in a few steps here:
- Take inventory of your belongings. Write a list of things of value and their worth.
- Select a coverage amount depending on what you have and what risks to you are important.
- Shop around (you may do it online).
- Read the policy and learn the coverage and non-coverage.
- Buy your policy it will normally begin the same or the following day.
Final Thoughts
One of the most clever and the least expensive methods to secure oneself is renter insurance. It might not sound so serious, until something bad occurs. Then you will be glad you have it.
In case you are renting your house and you have not bought renter insurance yet, now is the time to consider it. Peace of mind and security of your belongings, wallet and future is possible all you need is a few dollars a month.
