Renters' Insurance-Required
Renters' Insurance is required for all tenants.
What does Renters' Insurance cover? Depending on the type of plan you have, Renters' Insurance can cover everything from your personal belongings, to home injuries, bodily harm and liability if you were to cause an accident such as a fire or flood in the unit you are renting. You will have to discuss precise coverage benefits with an insurance agent or broker.
Why do we require Renters' Insurance? It is a fairly common practice that landlords require their tenants to carry Renters' Insurance coverage. There are many reasons to have this type of coverage, especially to protect your personal items in the event of fire, flood, theft or vandalism. However, landlords generally require it because it covers you for liability in the case that you may accidentally cause damage to the building. For example, if you cause a fire (please don't!) you may be civilly and financially liable to cover the repair costs, if it was determined to be your fault. Renters' Insurance protects you agains this, which is why it is often required by landlords.
We will cover you for $9.50 per month. You are more than welcome to procure your own Renters' Insurance, but otherwise, you will be automatically enrolled in coverage and the $9.50 cost will be pushed to you. Now, understand, that this is limited coverage only, and will only cover you on the liability side. If you wish to have a more comprehensive plan, that covers your personal belongings, for example, you should contact an insurance agent to arrange for a different insurance plan.
If you do decide to find your own insurance plan, you can opt out of our policy. All you have to do is show a copy of your Renters' Insurance declaration page to your property manager, and your $9.50 per month charge will be removed.
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A Bad Situation that Could Have Been Worse
A few years ago, we had a tenant that was cooking chicken wings for the Super Bowl. The grease on the stove got away from him and a stove-top fire occurred. Luckily the Fire Department was able to extinguish the fire before it caused structural damage to the building. However, the cost to remedy was nearly $6,000. The tenant had opted into our policy. And with a ZERO DOLLAR deductible, he was able to walk away from this accident scott-free. This is a prime example of why you should have Renters' Insurance.
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If you are opted into our program, this is some additional information you might like to know:
