Renters insurance or tenants insurance as it is called in some places, is a fairly unfamiliar term among Indians. After all, who purchases insurance on a house that is not even yours! So if you are wondering why insurance providers came up with this one, you’d be surprised to know why this form of insurance is becoming increasingly popular among Indian tenants.
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Renters Insurance 101
Let’s begin by describing what renters insurance is and what it aims at. In simple terms, renters or tenants insurance is much like a home warranty. A kind of warranty that is widely used in America by homeowners to protect their household appliances and devices against damages and breakdowns. A renters insurance is a budget protection policy for people who are living in a rented house which has furniture and appliances included in the rental package.
Landlords often only take insurance on the building or the structure per se. Rarely the contents of the house and the like. Should the tenant ever face perils like fires, thefts, natural disasters etc, renters insurance would cover the expenses for repairs and replacements.
What Is The Coverage Offered By Renters Insurance?
This would depend highly on the kind of renters insurance you purchase. The coverage use depends on premium too. Higher the premium, larger the coverage. But at the end of the day, this is a policy that while omitting structure and fixtures of a building, will cover for damages to the contents of the house which includes furniture, appliances, personal belongings etc. in the event of a peril.
For further clarity, the various things that a tenants insurance covers can be classified into the following –
- Content coverage: As mentioned above, this is coverage for repairs and replacement costs of personal belongings like appliances, furniture and sometimes even clothes.
- Liability coverage: This is a significant aspect of renters insurance. It limits your legal liability should your guests or neighbors incur losses due to mishaps and perils.
- Elective coverage: Or even called special coverage comes with policies where the premium is considerably higher. This covers for repair and replacement costs of valuables such as televisions sets, jewellery, etc
Summary Of Benefits Provided By Renters Insurance
Budget protection is the primary aim of this insurance as if the aim for most insurance policies available in the market today. So when a tenant purchases renters policy, here’s what he/she is entitled to receive.
- Coverage on costs for replacing or repairing damaged household contents like furniture and appliances when they are stolen or destroyed by other calamities.
- Covers for hospital bills incurred while treating residents of the house for injuries caused due to mishaps in that house. Typically medical insurance would chip in for this, but if your renters insurance is extensive enough, some medical expenses can be claimed on this one too.
- Covers costs of alternate accommodation should a crime or natural calamity renders your rented property inhospitable due to damages.
- Covers for accidental damages to neighboring units during thefts or perils.
Who Needs Renters Insurance?
Any tenant interested in purchasing budget protection against crimes and hazards could use a renters insurance. However, here are some things to consider before purchasing renters insurance.
- Price: Total cost of replacing everything in your house would be primary factor to consider. If that is less than the premium you’d pay in a year.
- Likelihood of crimes and calamities: If the apartment or house you stay in has solid security, discouraging potential crimes and if your house is geographically in a location where natural calamities are unlikely, this may not be of much use to you.
- In-house Businesses: If the property you rented doubles as an office for your home based business, it is very strongly recommended that you get renters insurance.
This form of insurance is hugely popular in the west because there they have clear cut definitions on what is the tenant’s responsibility and the landlords. In here, most structural damages are fixed by the landlord and everything else becomes the tenant’s headache. As rental agreements are drafted and signed in a hurry, who pays for what is often settled by arguments between the landlord and tenant, leaving much unpleasantness in its wake.
Where Can I Get Renters Insurance In India?
While major cities would have some provider for renters insurance, we cannot say for sure if it is common or even popular amongst the average Indian. However, you can always approach your regular insurance provider and enquire if they would be willing to supply one. If you are failing to find a competent renters insurance, that is your cue to ensure safety of your family and personal belongings.
What If I Cannot Find Renters Insurance?
If you are in an independent house and you are not able to find a renters insurance, then it would be best to first discuss your options with your landlord and find out how much he will contribute too should a mishap ever happen. But if you ask experts, they would most likely say that your best bet would be to move into an apartment complex.
Housing societies that using technology in the form of mobile apps like ADDA Gatekeeper for security and even ADDA ERP for administration aid, the likelihood for crimes and maintenance related accidents are very slim. In fact, societies with GateKeeper app have reported commendable decrease in crime rates and even possibility of crimes. This means that it would reduce the chances of your house being robbed or your family members attacked.
Unconvinced? Why don’t you contact team ADDA and Schedule a Free Demo of our products? We promise that you’ll be more than impressed with the kind of services we have to offer.
In the meantime, share this article with your friends and let tenants around you know the benefits of renters insurance. Cheers!
