Central Insurance
I’ll be the first to admit that when I rented an apartment during my senior year of college, I didn’t have renters insurance. Looking back, I’m lucky I never needed it. At the time, I told myself that the likelihood of something bad happening to the building that I lived in was slim to none. Although that may be true, it only takes one event to turn your world upside down.
It’s no surprise that the Insurance Information Institute’s 2018 Pulse Survey found that 91 percent of homeowners had homeowners insurance, but only 46 percent of renters had renters insurance. There are numerous reasons that renters don’t get renters insurance, but the fact is, most of those reasons are myths. Let’s bust those myths right now!
Renters insurance is too expensive.
The average renter’s insurance policy costs $144 per year. That’s only $12 a month! Many policies supply $30,000 in property coverage and $100,000 in liability coverage. Would you rather pay the $12 a month or the $30,000 to replace your personal property?
My landlord’s insurance will cover my losses.
Your landlord’s insurance will only likely cover the cost of repairing the damaged building/dwelling or the liability of someone who gets injured outside on their property if the landlord is liable in causing or contributing to the injury. That means the personal property inside of your unit/home may not be covered, and you may be liable if someone is injured while inside where you live, depending on how and why the injury occurred. You also may not be covered if you negligently damage the property of someone else.
I can afford to replace my belongings on my own.
If you’re renting, it’s likely that you don’t own many items that are particularly valuable by themselves. However, when you add the cost of everything you own together, it quickly adds up to thousands of dollars. I know as a college student, most of the big items I owned like my couch, bed, and TV were given to me by family for free, but it wouldn’t have been free to replace them. It’s also important to think not only about your personal property but the liability of someone getting injured while in your apartment. Liability losses can cost much more than property losses and can be catastrophic.
Renters insurance policies cover other losses that most renters don’t think about, too. That can include stolen property (at home or away from home) or living expenses if you have to stay somewhere else while your apartment is repaired. It’s easy to think that you don’t need renter’s insurance, but you’ll regret it later if you end up needing it. So if you’re renting and don’t have renters insurance, get it now before it’s too late!
Sources:
https://www.cheatsheet.com/money-career/8-facts-you-didnt-know-about-renters-insurance.html/
The information above is of a general nature and your policy and coverages provided may differ from the examples provided. Please read your policy in its entirety to determine your actual coverage available.
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Someone had to write on it. It was getting misquoted all the time. Thanks for writing on this. Will surely share this.