If you are renting a home or apartment, it is important to have renters insurance. Although there is no legal requirement that you carry renters insurance, it may be required by your landlord under the terms of your lease. It helps protect both you and your landlord by ensuring that, if something happens on the premises, either the landlord’s insurance or your renters insurance will cover it.
Your landlord’s insurance will not cover damage to or loss of your personal possessions – only damage to the building. If a visitor to your rented home is injured on the property, that person could file a premises liability claim against you, your landlord, or both. In this case, your landlord’s insurance policy will only provide liability coverage for your landlord.
What Types Of Protection Does Renters Insurance Provide?
Renters insurance can help protect you in three important ways:
- It can help replace your belongings if they are damaged or lost as a result of fire, theft, or vandalism.
- It can cover the cost of repairs or medical bills if you accidentally damage something or someone gets hurt on the property.
- It can cover your hotel and meals if it is not safe to live at home while damage to the property is being repaired.
Coverage For Your Property Under Renters Insurance
In case of a fire, you can file a claim under your renters insurance policy, pay the deductible, and receive compensation for the costs of your loss, up to the policy limits. This includes smoke and fire damage to your belongings in the rented property.
If your rented home is burglarized, your possessions are covered under your renters insurance policy. Typically, this coverage will extend to items stolen from your car while you are traveling. However, this type of policy will not cover damage to your car itself. That would be covered under comprehensive auto insurance.
Liability Coverage Under Renters Insurance
If you are sued or a claim is made against you because of a covered occurrence, your renters insurance can help pay your legal expenses and related damages. For example, if a visitor to your rented home trips and falls on a moveable object that belongs to you and breaks a leg, your renters insurance should provide protection. Most rental insurance policies provide a minimum of $100,000 in financial protection against covered liability claims for damage to property or bodily injury that:
- Occurred inside your rented home
- Was caused by your personal activities
- Was caused by your children or pets
Medical payments to others coverage in a renters insurance policy generally pays up to $1,000 per person for necessary medical expenses, regardless of legal responsibility, when an accident in your home causes bodily injury to others. It can also provide coverage in other situations, and higher amounts of coverage are available.
Where Can You Get Renters Insurance?
The most common way to buy renters insurance is through an insurance agent. Our friendly agent can help you find the best quote on the right renters insurance policy to suit your needs.
