Guide to tenant insurance
Renters often believe that just because they don’t own a house, there is no need for insurance. Tenant insurance, however, is the best way to protect the stuff you value the most in your life, and in many instances, is made mandatory by your landlord.
Whether you want to insure your personal belongings, or want to be protected against liability, tenant’s insurance has you covered.
Comparing prices from various insurers can get tricky, but working with YouSet rather than working directly with an insurance company will help you compare tenant insurance quotes from different insurers instead of receiving one price, ensuring you get the most affordable coverage. But what exactly is tenant’s insurance and what does it cover?
Here is a complete guide on tenant’s insurance, including what it is, why you need it, and ways to save money on your tenant’s insurance policy.
Guide to tenant insurance
Renters often believe that just because they don’t own a house, there is no need for insurance. Tenant insurance, however, is the best way to protect the stuff you value the most in your life, and in many instances, is made mandatory by your landlord.
Whether you want to insure your personal belongings, or want to be protected against liability, tenant’s insurance has you covered.
Comparing prices from various insurers can get tricky, but working with YouSet rather than working directly with an insurance company will help you compare tenant insurance quotes from different insurers instead of receiving one price, ensuring you get the most affordable coverage. But what exactly is tenant’s insurance and what does it cover?
Here is a complete guide on tenant’s insurance, including what it is, why you need it, and ways to save money on your tenant’s insurance policy.
What is tenant’s insurance?
Tenant’s insurance is a form of property insurance that protects the insured from liability and loss or damages to personal property. Tenant’s insurance policies will typically differ from person to person, but certain standard coverages exist. These include, personal belongings coverage, liability insurance, and additional living expenses coverage.
Tenant’s insurance policies can also be customized based on your unique needs with a variety of optional coverages, ranging from identity theft protection, sewer backup, overland water, and above ground water.
Understanding the basics of tenant’s insurance and what it covers can help you protect yourself and your loved ones and find a personalized tenant’s insurance policy. Now, you might be asking: What does tenant’s insurance cover? Keep reading, we have the answers.
What does tenant’s insurance cover?
Tenant’s insurance is designed to protect you against the unexpected, including theft, water damage, fire, and more. Like with any insurance policy, including home and condo insurance policies, standard coverages exist and will feature as key components in your policy. The next consideration to make are the optional coverages, such as identity theft.
Liability insurance
Liability insurance is a standard coverage in every tenant’s insurance policy and protects you against potential lawsuits. This protection covers you if an individual gets injured while visiting your property, or even when you cause accidental damage to someone else’s property.
For example, if you forgot to close the hair straightener before leaving the house and it causes fire damage to your property or your neighbor’s, you will be deemed financially responsible. Liability insurance offers a tenant peace of mind, protecting you in any situation.
Personal belongings
Personal belongings insurance is an integral feature to tenant's insurance policies, protecting your cherished belongings against potential damage and any insured event, ranging from fire, theft, or water damage. With this coverage, your belongings are insured wherever you may be – as long as you are temporarily away from your home.
Tip: Take a complete inventory of your personal belongings before shopping for tenant’s insurance to gain a better understanding of how much to insure them for.
Additional living cost
Additional living costprotection can help you cover everyday living expenses, including hotel fees and food, should you need to temporarily relocate due to a claim. This coverage is yet another standard protection in every tenant’s insurance policy and provides an additional layer of security in the event of fire, water damage, or any insured event causing you to temporarily move out.
Water damage
Did you know that water damage is the leading cause of property damage in Canada? A number of different coverages exist for water damage, including sewer backup, overland water, and above ground water protection. Sewer backup coverage protects you if water backs into your property from a floor drain, septic tank, or sump.
Next, overland water protects your personal belongings against damage caused by fresh water, including rain and snow and remains one of the most important tenant’s insurance coverages.
Lastly, above ground water protection, as the name suggests, covers damage to your property caused by water entering from above ground. This coverage is especially important with tenant’s insurance policies if your unit is on the top floor, or for example, if you accidentally leave the window open and it causes damage to your personal belongings.
Identity theft
Adding identity theft coverage to your tenant insurance policy is a great way to protect yourself, especially in light of the ongoing rise of identity theft and fraud in the nation. This coverage is designed to reimburse any legal fees associated with reclaiming your identity, as well as fees paid to replace legal documents.
Identity theft coverage can also protect you if an unauthorized use of a credit or debit card is issued in your name. In some instances, this protection is automatically included in your tenant insurance policy, but is typically an add-on.
How is tenant insurance calculated?
Tenant insurance premiums are contingent on a variety of factors. Simply put, the more information you provide your broker, the easier it will be to determine your price and assess whether you qualify for discounts.
Common factors considered when calculating a tenant insurance premium include but are not limited to, the property type, the location of your rental unit, your personal claims history, as well as the deductible you set. Ultimately, tenant insurance premiums will differ from person to person based on these factors and the type of coverages you seek.
Ways to save money on tenant’s insurance
There are a number of ways to save money on your tenant insurance policy and find the best rate. From raising your deductible, to installing anti-theft devices, here are a few tips to save money on your tenant insurance policy.
Shop Around
The best way to save money on your tenant insurance policy is to shop around. YouSet will help you compare tenant insurance quotes from various insurers, ensuring you get the most affordable coverage. Our automated platform takes care of this, comparing tenant insurance quotes so you don’t have to.
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Bundle insurance products
Bundling different insurances together, typically home and auto, is among the most effective ways at saving money on your tenant insurance policy. By bundling your auto and tenant insurance with YouSet, you can take advantage of multiple discounts and save money on both policies.
Increase your deductible
Increasing your deductible is another way you can save money on your tenant insurance policy, however, you should only raise it to a point where it remains financially feasible to you. Put simply, the deductible is the amount you pay out of pocket when submitting a claim. The higher your deductible, the lower your tenant insurance quote will be.
Keep in mind that deductible savings plateau at a certain point, and is something you should discuss with your broker.
Install safety and security equipment
Installing an anti-theft alarm and additional security equipment reduces the likelihood of theft and vandalism, and therefore will result in a lower tenant insurance premium. Before signing the lease, inquire about the safety and security equipment in your building or apartment with your landlord.
Consider potential increases when making a claim
Home insurance policies are designed to cover larger losses, including water, theft, fire damage, and more. As such, before submitting a claim, it is important to consider potential increases to your next condo’s insurance policy. Put simply, submitting multiple small claims can impact your upcoming home insurance premium – especially if you are already benefiting from a discount for being claims free.
Why is tenant’s insurance important?
Tenant’s insurance policies are designed to protect you and your loved ones in any situation, be it fire, water damage, theft, and civil liability. Your landlord’s insurance does not, in fact, cover your personal belongings and can prove to be costly. With tenant’s insurance, your personal belongings are completely covered, even if they are temporarily out of the unit.
As a tenant, you are legally responsible for damage caused to someone else and their belongings, however, with tenant’s insurance, you are covered. Landlords will also often require you have a tenant’s insurance policy before signing the lease, and is something to consider when apartment hunting.
Shopping for tenant insurance
Comparing tenant insurance quotes by yourself can become an extremely tedious process – especially if you don’t know what you’re looking for – but YouSet is here to help. From helping you understand the different coverages to saving you money, shopping for tenant insurance is as transparent as ever with YouSet.
With YouSet by your side, the hassle of manually comparing tenant’s insurance quotes is completely eliminated. Our automated platform has saved our clients an average of 29% on all their home and auto insurance policies, comparing quotes from different insurers in under four minutes.
While we have covered all the basics of tenant’s insurance, including ways to save money and the types of coverage available, you still might have questions before shopping around. YouSet is here to help, offering personalized support via chat, SMS, or email, ensuring you find the best tenant insurance policy available.
Shopping for tenant insurance