Renter’s insurance is woefully underutilized. It doesn’t even occur to a lot of people that they can get their belongings insured and protected in spite of not being the owners of the property they live in. To help mitigate this, here are the things you need to know about renters insurance.
Why get renters insurance?
If you are hesitating to get renters insurance because you are not sure it would come into effect too often, don’t be worried. Here are just the most common problems that this insurance applies to:
- Theft of belongings
- Vandalism
- Fires
- Freezing
- Water and steam damage
- Tornadoes
- Windstorms and hail
As you can see, the list is pretty extensive. It would be able to provide you peace of mind and maybe even make a landlord’s job easier if something unpleasant does end up happening. Of course, it would be best if nothing happened. But the peace of mind knowing that you are still protected even in such scenarios can be invaluable.
The costs of renters insurance
Speaking of costs, one of the things you need to know about renters insurance is that it’s nowhere near as pricey as you might think. Many people give up on even looking into it for fear of adding another considerable monthly expense. However, most quality insurances of this type are between 150 and 250 dollars. Now, you can admittedly find even cheaper insurance. For example, you may even be able to spend only 25 to 50 dollars on renters insurance. Still, in these scenarios, the insurance you have is typically particular. It may only cover deft and malignant property damage. On the other hand, the first prices we mentioned refer to insurances that cover most or all of the points on our previous list.
Renters insurance covers displacement
One of the most amazing things you need to know about renters insurance is that it covers displacement costs. Say that your apartment or rental home has just gone through a major fire. Not only have you lost most of your belongings, but you also have no place to stay while the renovation is ongoing to fix the damage. In this scenario, your renters insurance would fully cover the costs of staying elsewhere for the duration of the work. This means you can move into a hotel with peace of mind instead of having to rush about in panic about organizing stuff. The experts from Pack & Go Movers also like to point out that this may even cover the cost of your moving expenses for the belongings you had managed to save.
Pet policies
Typically, the biggest point of contention between landlords and their tenants, other than making an oopsie by asking one of the questions you are not allowed to ask your future tenants, is pet policies. Interestingly enough, renters insurance also has special clauses and considerations when it comes to pets. Typically, pet owners will need to purchase additional liability insurance. If they allow this option at all, that is. Plenty of renters insurance simply does not apply to damage by pets, leaving you to cover the cost of any damage or hospital fees that pop up. Note, too, that any additional payments to cover pets in your insurance are likely to be expensive.
Personal liability
Do not underestimate the importance of liability protection. ‘Liability’ is simply a term used to denote responsibility when someone gets hurt on the premises of your rented or owned property. Most landlords will insist that their tenants have insurance. This is done for the tenants’ sake since landlords are not responsible for paying for damaged property or medical bills. Additionally, if they have guests over or sublease to someone, tenants are held responsible for them. This means that insurance is even more important! Renters insurance will not just ensure you have no need to worry about this. It will even serve to pay the medical bills of the person who had gotten hurt on your property. This way, you can protect yourself. And even be of help to those whom you want to invite into your home if something happens.
The types of reimbursement
There are two different types of reimbursement available to the owners of renters insurance. There are cash value payouts and replacement cost value payouts. While they might both sound like you’re just getting handed money, this is not true. Cash value payouts are more in line with what people tend to imagine when discussing insurance. Simply put, you get paid a reasonable amount for your lost items. Though, do note that there is depreciation to take into account. Replacement cost value payouts, on the other hand, either qualify you for getting repair costs covered or just straight up getting a replacement of the items lost. Honestly, the latter is not great for what is essentially home insurance. On the other hand, no matter what you prefer between hiring movers vs DIY move, coupled with efforts to prevent damage and injury, it would be the ideal insurance. Reimbursement type
What no renters insurance covers
Contrary to all reason and logic, one of the things you need to know about renters insurance is that it doesn’t cover flooding or earthquake damage. This likely follows the same dubious logic that typical home insurance schemes follow as well. This forces you to take out separate flooding and earthquake insurance if you do want to protect yourself from them. Of course, most costs you would be looking to cover from renters insurance would be more in line with summer property maintenance issues rather than home-destroying disasters.
Final Word
Now that you are familiar with the things you need to know about renters insurance, you can better protect yourself and your interests as a tenant. Just remember to carefully check what insurance covers before you jump at a seemingly cheap offer!