Renters Insurance

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In the larger insurance game, renters’ insurance might be the youngest wiper-snapper of the bunch. Prior to the 1950s, one, comprehensive policy that would cover the most common damages didn’t exist. As such, if folks wanted the type of coverage they count on today they would need to take out individual policies to cover said individual occurrences. As you can likely imagine, that was extremely expensive and quite impractical.

Post-50s however gave rise to new policies, allowing renters to purchase personal property coverage at reasonable rates. The two most common policies today are HO-4 and HO-6 policies. These are for tenants of apartments, cooperative units or condominiums where residents are not the owners. The larger renters’ insurance industry has really grown over the last decade as more and more Americans are opting to rent as opposed to buying (as was the trend in previous decades). Total revenue in 2018 exceeded $4 billion in policies with over 1,800 agencies and an average annual growth of 5.3% (2013 to 2018).

While renters’ insurance is now relatively inexpensive, it does pay to shop around. Some of the more notable companies offering renters’ insurance are ASSURANT RENTERS, ESURANCE RENTERS, LIBERTY MUTUAL RENTERS, PROGRESSIVE RENTERS and FARMERS RENTERS. Lemonade is a reputable player, offering great online support and discounts to customers for things like the installation of fire alarms or home security systems. Their “give back” program aligns the financial interests of Lemonade policyholders, offering attractive benefits in return thus keeping a loyal base content and recommending them to friends and family. One of the frequent criticisms mentioned of Lemonade however is they are only present in roughly 25 states. But lucky one if you reside in one of these!

Erie Insurance has an earned industry best A+ financial strength rating, something reserved for only the top dogs in the renters’ insurance game. The online and phone customer service is quite good and while these also garner positive reviews, a frequent negative is there is no online app yet and online tools in general lag the competition. USAA is one we’re sure you’ve heard off, bringing to the table basic policies that cover earthquakes, floods and storms. The app is popular and quite useful, and discounts are plentiful for U.S. military personnel and their families.

There are a host of other providers, but before deciding on a provider the last thing to do is calculate exactly how much renters’ insurance you need and can afford. Regardless of how much you earn or your current financial situation, making the decision to forego renters’ insurance completely should be pondered over extensively. For example, an average policy is roughly $180 per year. We’re talking less than $20 per month. Yes, that $20 could easily be spent on something else, something a heck of a lot more fun than a policy you might never need to tap into. A good first step is to sit down with any of the providers we mentioned here, review the policy, and be transparent with what you can pay monthly. You’d be surprised at the deals they can offer as they want one thing and one thing only – your business!