What Is Home Renters Insurance?
Home insurance isn’t just for people who own their homes. It’s equally important for people who rent houses, apartments, and condominiums to have insurance coverage. That’s why most insurance companies offer what is known as renter’s insurance policies.
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Protect your personal property with a renters insurance policy, get your low-cost renters insurance quote today. A renters insurance policy will cover your personal property, such as TVs, furniture, and bicycles both in your home and away. Renters insurance even extends to personal items in your vehicle as those types of things are typically not covered by your car insurance.
- Protect Your Personal Property: Your landlords property owner policy won’t cover your stuff
- Liability Coverage for Occupants: Coverage in the event of a claim for injury or damage to others property in your apartment.
- Temporary Housing Coverage: If your apartment is damaged and unlivable, a renters policy may provide for temporary housing
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Why You Should Consider Renters Insurance?
One of the benefits of renting is the fact that your landlord, as the homeowner, is responsible for general maintenance and issues that arise with regard to the property. But there are some things that your landlord is not responsible for, and that’s where renters insurance comes in handy.
Renters insurance policies cover certain perils that make living in and caring for a rented property easier for both the renter and the landlord.
The main person who benefits from the renter’s insurance, however, is definitely the renter. So if you rent a property or unit, keep reading: a little renters insurance can go a long way to protect you against major financial loss and a whole lot of hassle.
Renters Insurance Coverage
Renters insurance generally covers everything that homeowners insurance does. The difference, however, is that renters insurance does not cover damage to the home itself, as you are not the owner.
That said, there are three main areas of coverage:
- Your Possessions:
- Belongings in your home such as clothing, electronics, or tools are covered in most tenant insurance policies.
- If your possessions are damaged or lost in a covered peril, you will be covered. Covered perils include most sudden and accidental occurrences like theft, fire, or windstorms.
There are two types of renters policies with regards to your possessions:- A replacement cost policy is more expensive and will cover the cost of replacing your items with new ones.
- An actual cash value policy is less expensive and provides you with the monetary value of your damaged or lost items.
- Personal Liability:
- While your landlord maintains liability with regards to the property, the renter is also liable in certain instances. For example, if a guest is injured by your pet you are liable.
- The liability section of renters insurance covers both legal and medical fees for the person injured.
- It is also possible to purchase additional coverage that extends to medical fees for all people injured on the property no matter who is at fault. You may wish to speak with your insurance provider for more details on that.
- Loss of Use:
- Covered perils (as previously mentioned), such as fire and theft, may result in an inability to live in your rental home. In such cases, additional living expenses will be covered in your tenant insurance policy.
- Examples of additional living expenses include the cost of staying at a hotel and the additional mileage from the hotel you are staying at to your workplace.
These are the three areas of coverage offered in your typical renters insurance policy. It is worth noting that you are able to purchase an endorsement to extend your coverage if you feel you need more.
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Home Renters Insurance Policy Exclusions
As with homeowners insurance, home renters insurance has exclusions. The standard exclusions are the same. They include (but are not limited to):
Make sure to read your renters insurance policy and all of its exclusions before purchasing so that you have a good understanding of when you are permitted to make claims and when you are not.
Do You Need Renters Insurance?
That depends. Some rental properties require proof of renters insurance before you can occupy the building or unit. Even if renters insurance is not necessary, it still may be a good idea to have renters insurance, for your own personal safety and peace of mind.
How much does renters insurance cost?
Depending on how much coverage you require, the price of your renters insurance will vary. Generally speaking, most policies in the United States are around $20 or less per month, which is pretty affordable. A lot of insurance companies offer renters insurance as bundles meaning you can reduce your rates by combining your renters insurance with other policies. For example, with your car insurance.
The more valuable the assets you are protecting in your insurance, the higher the price will be. There is plenty of flexibility in renters insurance rates, caps, and deductibles. It’s worthwhile speaking to your insurance provider to gain an understanding of what your needs are and the best policy to match them.
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How To Get Renters Insurance?
There are five easy steps to getting renters insurance:
- Evaluate Your Needs: Sit down and assess what the value of your possessions is and how much coverage you believe is necessary for them. Think about the risks of peril in your area and how likely you are to experience one.
- Research: Find out everything you can about various policies to truly understand the nature of renters insurance coverage.
- Get A Quote: Contact an insurance provider to receive a quote on your renters insurance to see how it fits with your budget. Get a few quotes to get a handle on the pricing. Start here, with us. Request a free home renters insurance quote now.
- Purchase a Policy: Buy the best policy from the best provider that fulfills your needs.
- Keep Records: Organize your insurance documents as well as any receipts that will be necessary when making a claim to ensure ease in the process.
The Bottomline: If You Rent, You Can Benefit from Home Renters Insurance
Even if you aren’t required to have renters insurance by your landlord, home renters insurance can protect you against serious financial hardship. At the very least, home renters insurance is worth considering, so get a quote to get started.
FAQs
If you rent your residence vs purchase it, you are a candidate for a renters insurance policy. Your landlords insurance policy likely won't cover your personal property from damage or theft unless it is caused by a loss that your landlords policy is covering. Even then there may be exclusions.
Typically a renters policy won't cover damage to your actual rented residence, water damage caused by flooding or underground water, or damage from earthquakes or other earth movements
Yes, they are different in that a Landlord's insurance policy will cover his/her building(s) resulting from a covered loss. Your Landlord's policy will likely not cover your personal items
Likely renters insurance will not cover damages to your personal property resulting from a flood. However, all companies and policies vary so be sure to ask your agent.
A renters insurance policy will cover your personal property due to damage or theft and use either a Replacement Cost or Actual Cash Value method to determine value. Each policy and company is different so please ask your agent for more details.
The amount of coverage that you need depends on the value of your possessions and your net worth. The higher those numbers, the more coverage that you will need and vice versa. Speaking with your insurance provider can help provide clarity on this.