If you rent and don't have renters insurance, you could be asking for a lot of trouble. Renter insurance is important for anyone who rents something from someone else in case something goes wrong. The disaster could be caused by leaks, floods, fires, earthquakes, or tornadoes. It could also come in the form of lawsuits or injuries if one of your guests hurt themselves with. If you don't have renters insurance and a disaster happens, you could lose everything and have no way of getting it back or replacing it.
Your landlord has insurance on the house in case something happens to it, but their policy won't cover your things. When looking for renters insurance, it's important to know what to expect. Not every insurance company is the same. Some may offer different types of coverage than others, and it almost always depends on where you live in the world. Most of the time, your insurance company will cover things like lightning, fire, smoke, hail, and windstorms. Your insurance company may offer extra coverage with the policy or for an extra fee to cover flooding, water damage from broken pipes, damage to your property from cars or planes, falling objects, and riots.
If any of your belongings are damaged, your renters insurance will help in one of two ways: either by giving you a check for the items' actual cash value or for the amount it will cost to replace the damaged items. The difference between the two is simple: the actual cash value is the amount it would cost to replace the damaged items minus the depreciation value.
Even though you can't replace the items themselves, especially if they have a lot of sentimental value, renters insurance will let you get replacements. With renters insurance, you could keep living the same way even if something bad happened to your rented home.
You should talk to your renters insurance agent about what is covered, how much it costs each month, how much your deductible is, and how to file a claim if something bad happens.
