Q: My landlord is asking me to buy renters’ insurance before I move into my apartment. I do not own the place, so I do not understand why I would need it. Is this really something I should pay for, or is my landlord just covering himself? — Alison
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A: Get the renters’ insurance. This is one of the best deals in insurance, and people find it surprisingly inexpensive. It protects you in three ways most tenants never consider until it is too late. Your landlord is not just covering himself. He is steering you toward something that protects you far more than it protects him.
Here is the piece almost everyone gets wrong. Your landlord’s insurance covers the building, not the items inside your unit that belong to you.
If there is a fire, a burst pipe upstairs, or a break-in, the landlord’s policy rebuilds the walls but does nothing for your furniture, clothes, television, or laptop. Add up what it would cost to replace everything you own if it were gone tomorrow. For most people, that number is far bigger than they expect, and renters’ insurance is what writes that check instead of you.
The second part is the one that really matters: liability. If someone slips and gets hurt in your apartment, your dog bites a visitor, or you leave the bathtub running and flood the unit below, you can be held personally responsible for the damage and medical bills. Renters’ insurance steps in and covers that, usually up to a hundred thousand dollars or more. Without it, that money comes straight out of your pocket.
Third, there is loss of use. If a covered disaster makes your place unlivable for a while, the policy helps pay for the hotel and the extra costs of living somewhere else while it gets fixed. Your living expenses do not pause just because the ceiling caved in, so this coverage keeps a bad month from turning into a financial hole.
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One caution, because I have seen tenants get burned here. If your landlord offers to add you to a “tenant liability” policy for a few dollars on your rent, understand that this is not the same as getting your own renters’ insurance. That kind of policy protects the landlord, not your belongings or you. It is not a substitute for a real renters’ policy, so do not let it lull you into thinking you are covered when you are not.
So yes, buy it, and read and understand what you are buying. Confirm that it pays the replacement cost rather than the depreciated value of your 10-year-old couch. Ordinary flooding is almost never included, which matters if you live near water, and will usually require you to get additional insurance.
For the relatively low cost, renters’ insurance turns your worst day as a tenant into an inconvenience rather than a catastrophe.
Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary Singer writes about industry legal matters and the housing market. To ask him a question, email him at [email protected], or go to SunSentinel.com/askpro.
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