Without renter's insurance of your own, all of your electronics, furniture, books, clothes, etc. could be destroyed in a fire or lost during a burglary, and you would have no legal avenue to reclaim the cash value of your personal property.
What is Renter's Insurance?
Renter's insurance is a special kind of homeowners insurance. It provides no coverage for the building itself. Instead, it covers your personal possessions and protects you against liability claims if you rent a house or apartment.
Renter's insurance policies cover only losses that result from any of 17 named perils. If your property is lost or damaged as a result of one of these perils, your insurance company will compensate you for your loss. The covered perils are:
- Fire or lightning
- Windstorm or hail
- Explosion
- Riot or civil disturbance
- Aircraft
- Vehicles
- Smoke
- Vandalism or malicious mischief
- Theft
- Broken glass
- Volcanic eruption
- Falling objects
- Weight of ice, snow, or sleet
- Accidental discharge or overflow of water
- Sudden and accidental tearing apart
- Freezing
- Artificially generated electrical charge
Keep in mind that most renter's insurance policies specifically exclude certain perils (e.g., earthquakes, flooding). As a result, you may need to purchase a separate policy to insure your possessions against damage caused by these hazards.
Property coverage levels typically start somewhere around $15,000 and go up from there. As you increase your coverage level, your premiums increase as well. An financial professional can help you determine the amount of coverage that you need. Or, you can visit one of our favorite insurance websites for more information.
Replacement Cost vs. Actual Cash ValueThese may sound like highly technical terms, but they are actually very important when determining how much money you will get if you ever have to file a claim. When you get a quote from your insurance agent, make sure you know which type of coverage is being described.
- Actual Cash Value Coverage - reimburses you for only the amount that your property was worth at the time it was stolen, damaged, or destroyed. This means that if all of your clothes suffer smoke damage in a fire, your insurance company probably will pay as much as you could've made at a yard sale--not the $4,000 you spent over the last couple of years to create the perfect wardrobe.
- Replacement Cost Coverage - reimburses you for the amount that it will cost to replace your property. If you bought a $400 television two years ago, you'll receive enough money to go out and buy another television just like the old one. You will probably have to replace the lost property with your own money and submit the receipt before you receive compensation. Nevertheless, replacement cost coverage typically pays significantly more than actual cash value coverage.
Renter's insurance also provides liability coverage. A typical renter's insurance policy covers you for accidents and injuries that occur in your dwelling, as well as accidents outside of your home that are caused by you or your property. (This does not include automobile accidents.) This liability coverage includes legal defense costs, if you are taken to court over such an accident. Standard levels of liability coverage are $100,000, $300,000, and $500,000. The amount of liability coverage that you need depends on your individual circumstances.
What Does it Cost?
The cost of renter's insurance varies greatly depending on where you live, the construction of the building, your deductible, and how much insurance coverage you need. But renter's insurance is much less expensive than traditional homeowners insurance. On average, you will pay somewhere between $100 and $300 annually for a basic policy providing about $30,000 worth of coverage for your property. Replacement cost coverage is typically more expensive than actual cash value coverage and, in our opinion, is usually worth the extra money.
Labels: Keys_to_Shine
