Are Pets Covered by Renter's Insurance?

A question we often hear when talking about renter's insurance is, “What type of provisions does a renter's insurance policy include regarding pets?” This is a good question, and the answer applies equally to both renter's and homeowner's insurance.

Renter's Insurance Coverage

Renter's insurance typically provides three types of financial protection. These include:

• Personal Property Protection – covers your rental home's contents and your personal belongings against loss/damage resulting from specific named perils.
• Liability Protection – covers you and your family members living in your rental home from financial loss resulting from liability lawsuits or medical expenses stemming from a visitor to your home becoming injured.
• Additional Living Expenses Protection – if your rental home becomes unlivable as the result of a peril covered in your policy, this benefit will reimburse you for expenses incurred while temporarily being forced to live outside of your residence, within stated policy limits.

Pets Are Not Considered Personal Property

Of the three protections listed above, the only one that applies as a form of pet insurance is the second, liability protection. Personal property protection doesn't apply because insurance companies don't consider pets as personal property. Dedicated pet insurance is available from various insurance companies for financial protection should your pet become ill or injured, just as your medical insurance covers you in the event that you become ill or injured. Renter's insurance, however, is not applicable regarding your pet's illness or injury.

How Liability Factors In

The liability coverage contained in your renter's insurance policy could be looked at as a type of pet insurance in that it provides you with financial protection should your pet either cause damage to your rental home or inflict an injury to a third person, whether inside or outside of your actual residence.

The liability coverage in your renter's insurance won't cover all pet-related damage nor will it apply to all pets. Some breeds of dog, for example, may be excluded by your insurer. Typically, this includes breeds known to be aggressive. The most common pet-related liability claims made against renter's insurance policies are dog bites. Certain exotic pets such as monkeys or reptiles may also be excluded.

Damage caused by your pet to your rental home will likely be covered, however, this doesn't extend to damage to your own personal property. If your dog gets loose and tears up your neighbor's garden, this would likely be covered.

Bundling Renters and Auto Insurance: 4 Things to Know

If your insurance company offers this particular discount, bundling renters and auto insurance together is a way to potentially save some money as opposed to buying these two coverages separately. This bundling option is offered by most insurers that sell both auto and renters insurance because it increases their business.

It not only saves you some premium dollars but also helps make your insurance portfolio easier to deal with since you can transact business with a single agent and have contact with your insurer through one single contact point when you need to make a claim. Multiple policies carried with one provider also simplifies paperwork/billing, saving time and money for you and your insurer.

You may save additional funds by adding more policies to your bundling renters and auto insurance strategy. Motorcycle insurance, boat insurance and even life insurance can be added to the discount scenario to bring you even more savings.

Bundling Usually Saves Money

Insurers that offer a discount for bundling multiple policies typically give from 5%-25%, with the highest discount commonly for a homeowners insurance policy since, your home represents such a large investment. Renters insurance won't provide as large a discount, but every little bit helps. If your insurance company can get you to add multiple policies to your coverage that's one less client they need to bring in to make their customer quotas.

One caution about bundling policies, however, is to make sure you don't become complacent about your coverages and adopt a “set it and forget it” mentality. You should continue to compare rates with competitor insurers to make sure you're still getting acceptable rates. Just because you have a multiple policy discount from one insurer doesn't mean you shouldn't consider switching companies if you can get a better deal elsewhere.

A Word About Renters Insurance

The number of renters is on the rise, with renters now outnumbering homeowners in a number of American cities. While it's estimated that approximately 91% of American homeowners carry homeowners insurance, only about 46% of renters carry renters insurance. This is according to the 2018 Pulse Survey conducted by the Insurance Information Institute.

Like homeowners coverage, renters insurance provides protection against loss, damage or destruction of the the personal property you have in your residence. It also gives you liability protection and provides living expenses should you be required to temporarily vacate your dwelling following an insured disaster. Yet, renters insurance is relatively inexpensive, costing an average of less than $200 per year.

What Is Enough Greensboro Renter's Insurance?

While it's estimated that approximately 95% of homeowners carry homeowners insurance, according to the III (Insurance Information Institute), 37% of home renters have renters insurance. In some U.S. locations, rentals actually outnumber owner-occupied homes, and their risk of suffering a loss from one of the many perils covered by a homeowners or renters insurance policy is just as great.

A major reason fewer renters take out insurance is likely the fact that homeowners with a mortgage are required by their lending institutions to obtain homeowners coverage. While some renters may be required to have renters insurance as a condition of their rental agreements, most are not subject to such a requirement. Unfortunately, for many, the need for renters insurance doesn't hit home until a disaster occurs and they take a financial hit for something against which they could have easily been protected.

What Does Greensboro Renters Insurance Provide?

When you buy Greensboro renters insurance you're getting protection against the risk of suffering financial loss in several areas. The first is property protection covering your personal possessions in your rental home, if any are damaged or destroyed as the result of a covered peril, up to the policy limits. Your possessions are also covered if stolen. Be aware that if your rental home catches fire and burns down it will be your landlord's insurance that pays for rebuilding the structure but it will pay nothing toward replacing your personal possessions. You should also realize that, just like homeowners insurance, renters insurance doesn't cover losses due to earthquakes or floods. These perils must be insured against separately by additional coverage.

Renters insurance also provides liability protection in case someone is injured in your rental home or sustains personal damage caused by you, a family member or pet. Thirdly, many renters insurance policies provide ALE (Additional Living Expenses) protection. This is coverage to reimburse you if a covered event causes you to have to temporarily move out of your rental home.

How Much Coverage You Need 

                                        

To determine how much coverage you need, make a list of all your personal possessions, determine their value and add these up. Choose between actual cash value (retail value minus depreciation) or replacement value (retail value without depreciation). Expensive items such as jewelry, artwork, coins or other collectibles may be worth more than your coverage limits, in which case you should add a floater.

Is Renter’s Insurance Worth It?

As a tenant renting a home, you may be operating under the assumption that your landlord's dwelling insurance covers your personal possessions as well as his/her interests. Many renters are under this false assumption.

The fact is, if something happens to the home you're renting, whether it be fire damage, theft, storm damage, etc., without renter's insurance your personal possessions have absolutely no insurance protection.

The Importance of Renter's Insurance

According to a poll conducted for the Insurance Information Institute, renter's insurance is significantly under-utilized in the U.S., although statistics show it's recently becoming more popular. According to the poll, approximately 95% of homeowners in the country have homeowner's insurance, while only about 41% of renters have renter's insurance. This is a sizable uptick since 2011, when those having renter's insurance was only 29%. Renters made up approximately 37% of all American households in 2014, according to the Census Bureau.

A renter's policy is similar to a homeowner's policy, with the exception of coverage relating to the actual structure, including fixtures, plumbing, heating systems and any appliances not owned by the tenant.

Specific benefits of a renter's policy include:

• Coverage for personal possessions against damage/loss from a long list of perils including fire, theft, smoke, vandalism, windstorm, explosion, water and more.
• Liability protection from lawsuits stemming from bodily injury or property damage caused by you or your family members. This includes medical coverage in case a visitor becomes injured while in your home.
• Additional living expenses to pay hotel bills, restaurant meal bills and other expenses above and beyond your normal daily expenses as a result of your home being temporarily uninhabitable because of a covered peril.

Why It's Important

It's natural to consider your personal possessions and their protection as the major factor covered by tenant's insurance. When you start adding up the value of everything you own that's kept in your home you'll probably be surprised at the total. This includes clothing, furniture, electronics, books, artwork, appliances, kitchen utensils, bathroom and bedroom linens and more.

But, perhaps even more important is the liability coverage your policy provides. If someone is injured in your home, or a fire starts in your apartment and ends up damaging every other apartment in your complex, imagine the cost of a liability lawsuit! The average cost of renter's insurance ($188 annually) is a small price to pay for all the protection provided.