Renters insurance???

[KnifeAddictAK]

Can you guys give me some guidelines on acquiring renter's insurace. I.E. What to look for, what not to get, which coverage I won't need, etc...

Basically, I want something that will help cover clothing, electronics, guns and knives would be nice, burr king grinder, etc... Never really had to deal with insurance companies on things like this and am wanting to make sure that I keep an eye out and don't buy into something I don't really need. Thanks in advance.

And if it helps/matters, apartment was built in the early 50's or so. The garage walls are slatted as opposed to plywood (Too early IIRC)

 

[Cindy Denning]

I'm sure someone in the know will answer but make sure you get renters insurance, a girl I worked with lived in an apartment and lost everything she owned due to fire. She didn't have insurance but she had a chance to buy into it before this happened. Good luck!!

 

[mycroftt]

Not really an expert but I know you should definitely get renter's insurance. The property owner's insurance will not cover any of your stuff but should cover all the liability if one of your guests gets injured on the property (I would check into that just in case it doesn't cover your guests). Make sure you are covered for the usual risks like fire, water, and smoke damage whether the fire was in your unit or somebody else's. Make sure you have coverage for your stuff if a pipe breaks in the wall too.

 

[ronsec]

Well, I'm an agent so I'll give you a few hints. Renters insurance only covers your property and has a liability section that covers you in case someone gets hurt in your apartment. The construction type of the bldg you're renting is usually not an issue as that is the landlords responsibility. Figure out what it would cost you to replace your goods (clothes, furniture etc) and buy that amount of coverage. Make sure your policy provides for REPLACEMENT coverage. This means that if your couch is 5 yrs old, they won't depreciate it but will replace it at todays cost (up to your total policy limits). Most of the main companies write this type as a rule. All policies have limits on jewelry, electronics & firearms, so if you have excess amount of these goods you may need to get a rider for them - ask your agent. Renters insurance is usually pretty cheap (unless you're in Fl or Ca) and well worth it. You need to have it. If you have any questions feel free to email or PM. Hope this helps.

 

[DaveH]

you might want check about relocation coverage if your apt becomes unihabitable. Also I'd advise that you should read the exact policy, as the advertising blurbs do not give your enough detail to discern exactly what's covered and what's not. For example they say that fire is covered, but later they say any damaged caused susequently to a natural event is not covered. So if the fire was caused by lighting you are SOL.

Also and I have had experince with this, replacement covereage is not the full story, they will replace, but at the lowest price they can find. So for example let's say you have a Burr King Grinder that costs $500. Then the claims agent says oh yah, they have grinders at sears for $49 so we'll pay $49 to replace your grinder. Then you say it's not a burr king, then they say oh if you read your policy it says "or equivalent" and the seard one is equivalent. Then discussion of the "quality" of the replacement will have to occur at that point. So if you have anythign of "premium" quality it needs documentaion like sales receipt.

Also if you have antiques for instance, they need appraised and you may have to get additional coverage as the limits for antiques, firearms, etc. will be low.

Also you should understand the claim process. Often the sales agent and the claims agent are two different people. The sales agent wants you to sign up as they get a cut of your monthly payment as long as you have the policy.

The claims agent may not know you from adam, and they get payed differently, I'm sure insurance agencies run statistics to weed out claims agents that pay more then the company mandated % of claims or value.

Another thing to ask is the average length to pay a claim and what the policy say, There's probably a law about how long it can take, but waiting 6 months for you claim to be payed can suck.

 

[Gollnick]

As Mr. Ronsec says, watch the sublimits. Keep in mind that knives that have special value due to their age, history or historical value, or artistic merit are considered "collectibles" and fall under that sublimit. Most insurance and renter's insurance have very low sublimits on firearms because guns are common theft items and also commonly involved in insurance fraud. It is not uncommon to see a policy with $100,000 overall coverage and a $1000 sublimit on firearms. Well, one good pistol can be $1000 and even with lesser arms, it doesn't take very many to add up to $1000. So, if you have guns, watch that sublimit.

Loss of use coverage is important for renters. This pays you some money for a hotel or something is your appartment becomes unusable.