How to protect yourself and your family with Renters Insurance

What you’ll discover in this report:

• Surprising secrets about what’s covered in a standard Renters Policy!
• The most dangerous myth about renters insurance
• What to do before you ever have a claim
• Protecting your jewelry, art, computer equipment and other valuables that may not be covered!
• Renters Insurance demystified! What are you really getting? Find out here…

Busting the Myths about Renters Insurance

It is one of the most commonly repeated myths about insurance. Renters don’t need insurance because their landlord’s policy provides coverage for the renters’ property.

No, it doesn’t. Further, if someone slips and falls in your apartment or rented home, your landlord’s insurance usually won’t provide any coverage for you if you are sued.

Renters insurance is basically like homeowners coverage without coverage for the structure.

* Note. Renters insurance provides coverage for your possessions and for liability if someone injured while on your premises sues you. Renters insurance also covers any of your possessions when they are away from your residence, including in your car.

In addition, renters policies provide what are called additional living expenses. If some catastrophe covered by the policy — fire, bursting pipes — makes the place you are renting uninhabitable, the policy will pay some of the costs you incur to live somewhere else while the residence is being repaired.

The coverage is usually limited to either a specific period of time, say 12 months, or what the insurance company considers a “reasonable length of time.” Also, there is a cap on the amount of additional living expenses the insurer will pay, usually a percentage of the total liability limits.

Like homeowners insurance, renters policies do not cover damage or losses resulting from flooding, landslide or earthquake — although it is possible to buy coverage for these risks separately.

Actual Cash Value vs. Replacement Cost for renters

Like homeowners insurance, there are two options for covering your possessions:

• Actual cash value, which is the replacement cost of an item minus depreciation.
• Replacement, which allows you to buy a new item to replace the one lost, stolen or damaged, no matter how old that item is.

* Note. Because replacement cost is better coverage, it costs more. Usually about 10% to 15% more.

Speaking of cost, renters insurance is fairly cheap when compared with other personal insurance policies. Usually, you can get a decent policy for about $300 a year, depending on where you live. If you choose higher limits for your personal property and liability coverage, you could pay up to $400 a year.

The policy has dollar limits on certain types of items. For example, there is usually a $1,000 limit for jewelry and anywhere from a $3,000 to $10,000 limit for computer equipment. If you want higher limits, you can purchase an endorsement, or “floater,” to the basic policy.

Like homeowners insurance, renters coverage has a deductible — the amount you will pay before insurance kicks in. The higher the deductible, the less your policy will cost.

You probably should have the same liability limits on your renters policy as you do on your auto insurance policy. Like your auto policy, you want to make sure your renters insurance will cover all your assets if you are sued.

If you are renting with a roommate or roommates, it’s probably best to include all your roommates on the policy. In addition, if you are living and renting with a significant other, many insurance companies will allow you to obtain joint coverage, just as if you were married.

If You Rent: How to Keep Track of What You Own…

* Tip. Like homeowners, you as a renter should have a written and visual inventory of all of your possessions. For items of significant value, you should write down the model numbers, serial numbers, date of purchase and price. Make a written copy of your inventory and keep it at another location, along with your photographs and/or video of the items. A safe deposit box is a good place to keep such records.

* Note. If one of your “possessions” is a dog, you may find it more difficult to get coverage, particularly if that dog is a Rottweiler, Pit Bull or Doberman.

* Tip. Finally, remember that many insurance companies give discounts to those who have multiple policies with a given insurer. Shop around, or have your agent shop around, for insurance companies that have the best rates, discounts, etc., for renters and auto insurance if both are placed with the same company.

It’s Not Just for Old Folks!

If your college-age student is living off-campus this year, it might be a good idea to invest in renters insurance.  Your homeowners policy may cover the property, but there will most likely be a limit to the amount paid out for belongings that are off-premesis.  The good news is that renters insurance is pretty cheap.  Check out http://consumerist.com/5351680/renters-with-cool-stuff-you-cant-afford-not-to-have-renters-insurance and then call us today for a quote.

Renters Insurance

Back during my apartment days, I woke up one morning to the sound of a very loud truck right outside my window. It was being used to pump about a foot of water out of an apartment in the next building. During the night, a hot water pipe had sprung a small leak. That leak shot onto the cold water pipe right next to it. The cold water pipe melted, creating an enormous leak in the ceiling of one of the downstairs units. When the apartment manager asked the tenant why she didn’t call the emergency number when the water started coming into her apartment, she said that she had been asleep and dreamed that it was raining.

Basically, everything in this young woman’s apartment was ruined. I know, because it was all out on the lawn that morning. It’s bad enough to deal with having all your stuff destroyed, but what if you couldn’t replace it? You see, by law Texas landlords are not responsible for replacing or repairing tenants’ belongings. Simply put, the apartment complex had no responsiblity to reimburse the tenant for her damaged property, even though it was the landlord’s property that caused the damage.

The best way to protect your property is to purchase a renters policy. This provides coverage for your things while they’re at home or out with you. The cost is very reasonable. Depending on your address, you can purchase $15,000 of coverage for about $15 a month. So ask yourself: If you woke up and found that your bedroom had become a swimming pool overnight, could you easily pay to replace all your stuff? If not, contact us for more information about renters coverage.