Do you own your home or rent an apartment? If you own your home, you definitely would have a homeowner policy, but many apartment dwellers don’t carry renters’ insurance. There’s a common misconception that the owner of the building carries the insurance for the building plus the personal belongings of the renters. However, you’re responsible for your stuff—not the landlord.

And it’s probably worth more than you think. Just imagine how much it would cost if you had to replace everything at once. Renters’ insurance protects both you and your possessions from a variety of situations: fire, wind, lightning, explosion, hail, damage by aircraft, weight of ice, damage by vehicles, smoke, riot, vandalism, and theft to name a few. Plus, if you’re forced to move out of your apartment temporarily due to damage caused by a covered loss, your policy will pay for any necessary increase in living expenses so you can maintain your normal standard of living. Be sure the policy includes replacement protection for your property so you can replace any losses with new.

The protection of your belongings is just part of the reason a policy is needed.

Renters’ insurance is a package that provides coverage for your personal property and provides liability protection. If someone other than you or a resident of your household has permission to be on your premises and is injured in an accident on your insured premises, your renters’ insurance provides medical expense coverage. Your policy will pay compensatory damages up to your policy limit if you’re legally liable for bodily injury or property damage covered by the policy and not excluded.

Some examples of bodily injury, property damage, and medical expenses included are sports activities, acts of pets, liability due to unpaid volunteer services, negligent acts of children, and medical payments to others (regardless of liability). Supplementary liability coverage includes claim and defense expenses, damage to property of others, and emergency first aid.

There are discounts for having your auto and home/renters’ policy with the same company. It actually can be enough to pay for the policy, so call your agent and check it out. TPW