Renter’s insurance is an important component in renting an apartment. It offers personal property protection and liability protection. When purchasing renter’s insurance, it is important to understand each component of the policy.
As you finish signing your lease for your first apartment, the rental office reminds you to make sure you have your Renter’s insurance in place. Walking to your car you think, doesn’t the landlord take responsibility for your property in case of a fire? Many people do not know where the landlord’s liability stops and their liability begins. There are three components to consider when looking at renter’s insurance coverage: personal property coverage, medical expense coverage, and liability coverage.
Personal property coverage protects pretty much everything you have brought into your home from a number of disasters. Risks that would be included are damage from fire, lightning, smoke, explosion, windstorm, hail, weight of ice, snow, or sleet, volcanic eruption, freezing, riots, vandalism, theft, and damage from airplanes or vehicles. Some natural disasters that may not be covered are floods, earthquakes, or hurricanes. If you are concerned about those disasters, speak with an agent about additional coverage.
Having acquired all your personal belongings over time, you may not feel it is worth having Renter’s insurance. However, if something happened and you had to replace all your personal belongings, it could be devastating financially. It is beneficial to go through your items and write down how much they cost when you purchased them or how much it would cost to replace these items today. Once you see that total at the end, you will realize just how important this component is to you.
There are different levels of coverage, so you need to consider how much protection you need. Don’t forget items depreciate in value over time. Another option worth looking into is replacement coverage. This type of coverage will reimburse your property’s actual cost at time of loss instead of looking at the property’s worth at time of loss.
Liability insurance is as important as property insurance. Liability insurance offers protection against any injury that could occur to someone staying at your home or visiting your home. If you plan to have a lot of people in and out of your home, this is very important to have. If someone fell down while at your apartment, without this coverage, you would end up paying some medical bills. This insurance would help pay medical expenses up to a certain amount per person if someone was injured at your home. It will also protect you up to a certain amount per accident for property damage or bodily injury.
There is a misconception that the landlord’s insurance will cover your property or your property is not worth the cost. With very basic components, such as those described above, Renter’s insurance can help you in a variety of situations. For something that might cost less than $15 per month, it is affordable and can wind up being your lifesaver.