An awful lot of tenants mistakenly think that they are covered under their landlords insurance for their own belongings and liability. This isn’t the case, and it’s important that tenants take out their own household insurance. This covers their belongings when living in a rented home, in case anything happens.
So what is tenant’s contents insurance? What does it cover? What doesn’t it cover? Why is it important? Read on for the answers to all these common questions.
What is contents insurance and why do you need it?
Content insurance is exactly what it says on the tin – it insures the contents within your home. When you own a home, you’re likely to have insurance with the building, which isn’t the case if you are only renting a property. Therefore, you need an insurance that only covers your belongings. It allows you to insure your products to a value that you estimate, in case of theft or damages.
Whether you choose to take out insurance is completely up to you, but you must be aware that it’s your obligation to insure your stuff and not the landlord. It’s easy to set up and could prove to be a life saver for you down the road.
What kind of things does your insurance cover you again?
Most tenants’ insurance content will cover you for things such as fires, theft or accidental damage. It doesn’t matter if you or someone else is the cause of the damage, as long as it’s genuinely an accident – you’ll be covered.
How do you know how much to value your items from?
It will be your job to value your own items, as the insurance company is unlikely to ask for a list of everything that you own. You need to put together an accurate cost of what your belongings collectively cost, including electronics, clothing and furniture. If a fire was to damage everything in your house, how much would it cost to replace it all? This should be the value you give.
You may be asked to declare expensive items such as laptops and phones separately, and it’s extremely important that you follow the rules correctly. You don’t want something to happen to your expensive laptop to only realise it isn’t covered.
It’s always worth checking the terms and agreements with your insurance company, as things can slightly differ from one to the other.
If you’re looking for houses to rent in Sutton Coldfield, don’t hesitate to contact us here at Belvoir. We are a leading letting agency with an extensive list of houses and flats in the Sutton Coldfield area. Just give us a call on 0121 321 3388 and a member of our team will be happy to help.
