Top 5 Reasons You Need Tenant Insurance

While tenant insurance isn’t mandatory in most apartments or rental situations, it should be at the top of your list of things to do when renting. Often renters think that insurance is either too expensive or the building owner might have insurance that will protect them, but unfortunately, that isn’t the case. The building owner's insurance policy is only there to protect their building and their liabilities, their policy does not offer any coverage for your belongings.

Here are some of the top reasons you need to have tenant insurance:

1. Coverage for your belongings

One of the most important reasons to have insurance is to protect your “stuff”. Often renters assume they don’t have much in regard to belongings, but if you add everything up you might be surprised. Coverage for your belongings includes everything from your toothbrush, clothes, furniture, and your dishes and plates. A typical two-bedroom apartment could have between $30,000 to $40,000 in belongings, but even if you don’t have this much “stuff”, if you lost everything you owned could you afford to replace it all at once?

2. Protect visitors to your home

When people visit you at your home or apartment you could be found liable if they are injured. Own a dog? If your dog were to bite a visitor while they on in your home you could be liable for their injuries, if you have insurance you can make a claim for this.

3. Coverage for temporary living arrangements

Temporary living arrangements primarily come into play for larger losses such as fire, smoke damage, or significant water damage. This coverage will cover the cost of your temporary living arrangements if your apartment or home is inhabitable. The coverage will also cover the cost of eating out at restaurants, etc.

4. Protection for damage you cause

Accidental damage happens, but if you cause significant property damage it will be costly. For example, you turn on the faucet to fill your bathtub and forget to turn it off - flooding the apartment below you. If you don’t have insurance you will be on the hook for all the costs to repair the damage and replace/repair any belongings.

5. It costs less than you think

One of the main reasons people neglect to buy insurance is that they think it is far too expensive. While a home insurance policy can on average vary between $700 - $1200 per year in cost, a tenant's insurance policy typically ranges from $200-$300 per year.

There are several other reasons to have tenant insurance and if you would like to discuss further please visit your Advisor. We offer you multiple insurance quotes so you can pick the best policy that works for you.