A College Student's Guide To Renters Insurance

For most students, going off to college typically means moving away from home for the first time. Many of them eagerly await the newfound sense of independence that comes with it. They're living their own lives, making their own decisions, and answering only to themselves. It truly is a liberating time of life - but it's not one without a certain amount of responsibility.

Case in point: renters insurance. While you're trying to balance the finer points of school, work, and social life, a student doesn't need also to be worried about what they're going to do if they lose or have to replace one of their belongings. One minute, you're inviting people you've just met over to your dorm for a gathering. The next minute, something you love is stolen or broken, and you're unsure what to do next. It does happen - and scenarios like this are why renters insurance is key.

All told, this type of policy offers essential protection for college students at a pivotal time in their life. It's also a lot more affordable and has less complexity associated with it than one might think. Taking advantage of the best renters insurance offers, though, requires you to keep a few key things in mind.

What is Renters Insurance?

Renters insurance is precisely what it sounds like - a specific type of policy that is designed with renters in mind. Since you don't own the dorm you live in (or apartment, if that matches your situation), you would be renting - thus requiring this type of policy.

Indeed, the one major difference between renters insurance and homeowners insurance is that with the latter, you're insuring your belongings. You're not insuring the dwelling itself. The property manager or landlord will insure the building, and they'll be responsible for everything that this entails.

In other words, don't assume your landlord's insurance policy is going to cover you. If your dorm should suddenly burn to the ground, and you lose all your belongings, their policy will cover the building itself and related assets. The renters insurance policy would cover your personal possessions - if you have one, that is.

What Does Renters Insurance Cover?

As stated, one of the many things that renters insurance policies cover has to do with personal property. This would include all the items that you're bringing with you to college that you own like electronics, clothes, books, and more. Renters insurance policies for college students protect them from both the loss of or any damage to those personal items during your time as a policyholder.

Another major element that makes up a renters insurance policy that most college students don't think too much about has to do with liability coverage. This means that you are provided coverage in the off-change that someone in your rented dorm or home should get hurt. If you're like most college students, the chances are high that you're going to be having people over every once in a while. Possibly a lot of people - many of whom you might not know. If one of these "friends of a friend" gets hurt, you could be personally responsible for any medical bills that they have (or if they try to sue you) if you do not have a renters insurance policy.

Finally, a renters insurance policy will also offer additional living expenses that may be necessary depending on your situation. This part of the policy makes sure that you are reimbursed if your rented home should become uninhabitable due to peril, for example. So if you live in an area of the country that is prone to earthquakes and one strike that forces everyone out of the building, your renters insurance policy would provide you at the very least money to temporarily find another place to stay.

How Can a Collect Student Get Renters Insurance?

All told, students can get a renters insurance policy to meet their needs in a few different ways depending on their own unique situation.

If you're planning on living on-campus for a while (like in a dorm room provided by your college or university, for example), it's important to check whether you are already covered in some way. As long as you are below a certain age, for example, all of your items may be covered under your parents' existing homeowners insurance policy. This is true even while you're living in a dorm.

Having said that, your parents should look into their own personal property coverage limits - meaning how much coverage they have for their own items. No insurance company is going to provide an infinite amount of money for any type of coverage, personal property included. So on the off-chance that something happens to both the parents' home and the student's dorm at the same time, it's conceivable that total losses in both situations could meet the limit - leaving everyone responsible for making up the difference.

If you're planning on living off-campus in something like an apartment, you should definitely consider getting your own renters insurance policy. Thankfully, this process is fairly straightforward.

• First, photograph and videotape absolutely everything you care about in the home. That includes high-ticket items like computers, television sets, and anything that would be very expensive to replace out-of-pocket.
  
  
• Then, make a complimentary list of those items and go through one-by-one and estimate their cost. Most of the time you can quickly find this information online if you know something like the model number on your computer.
  
  
• For bulk items like clothing, estimate how many individual items you have and try to assign a dollar value to it. Moving forward, it may be a good idea to keep your receipts on new items that are purchased - at least until you're able to make a note of their cost in something like a spreadsheet.
  
  
• When you're done, you can calculate how much coverage you'll need for personal property by adding up all the factors you just took into consideration. Keep in mind that you'll also want to consider how much you may need for liability and additional living expenses, too - but the personal property is the main item to focus on when selecting a policy.

In the End

While it's true that selecting a renters insurance policy isn't necessarily one of the more fun parts of going to college, it is nevertheless important - especially if you want to make sure all of your belongings are protected. So feel free to contact us today to get a renters insurance policy of your own, allowing you to enjoy all the great things about your college years with as few potential downsides as possible.