It’s common sense to get insurance for life, home or car to safeguard yourself against unforeseen emergencies and accidents. However, when it comes to rental properties, renters often seem to ignore insurance. This is primarily due to the misconception that the landlord’s home insurance will cover the losses for renters. Well, nothing could be further from the truth. Your landlord’s insurance will cover only his property, not yours. Renters insurance on the other hand covers the damages or losses to the renter’s personal property as well as extends liability coverage in case somebody gets hurt or injured on the rental property. Let’s take a closer look at why you should consider getting a renters insurance policy, rather than getting caught up unprepared in the face of calamity.

Renters Insurance: How it Protects You

Here are some of the major reasons why you should consider getting a renters insurance policy -

• Landlord’s Insurance Doesn’t Cover Renter’s Possessions – The landlord’s insurance policy will only cover the rental property, i.e. the building and other associated liabilities. It will not cover the losses or damages to the renter’s personal possessions in the event of an accident or emergency. Also, any upgrades made by the tenant to the rental property will not be covered by the landlord’s insurance. However, with a renter’s insurance policy, all the damages and losses to the renter’s personal property and belongings, including upgrades to the rental property will be covered.
• Liability Coverage – Besides covering property losses, renters’ insurance policies also covers financial losses suffered by the tenants. Tenants often forget that sometimes events like an explosion or fire can damage the rental property such that it becomes uninhabitable, while the repairs are being carried out. The tenants’ insurance policy will pay for temporary accommodation and other living expenses in such cases, for as long as deemed reasonable by the insurance company. Without rental insurance, the tenant will have to bear these additional costs.
• Medical Liabilities – Renters insurance policies also provide coverage against medical liabilities, in the event that someone gets hurt or injured while visiting the tenant’s home. The liability protection offered by rental insurance policy will cover loss of wages as well as medical expenses for the injured visitor. Without renter’s insurance, the tenant will have to bear the medical expenses.

So if you are a tenant, and still haven’t got a renter’s insurance policy, make sure you look for one right away. If you want to begin your search right now, just type in your zip code in the box on this page to get your renters insurance quote.