Renters Insurance

Protecting your belongings from the unexpected .

Home is where your keep the things that matter most to you. With renters insurance, you can rest easy knowing your possessions and valuables are protected.

Renters insurance isn’t just for houses either. Anyone renting an apartment, condo, college dorm room, or house can purchase a renters policy. Everyone deserves that feeling of being covered!

Hey, landlords! Just a heads up that you might need a specialized policy for your rental property. Give us a call, and let’s chat about it.

What to Cover

We offer our clients the flexibility to choose the coverage that best fits their needs. Most commonly, these policies cover your belongings, living expenses if your place is damaged, and protection from costly litigation or medical bills if you’re liable for someone’s injuries that happen under your roof.

However, your policy won’t cover any damages to the roof, building/exterior of your residence or the surrounding premises. That’s your landlord’s responsibility. Now let’s dive into the details.

Personal property – If your belongings are stolen or damaged, this policy covers you. This applies to furniture, clothes, electronics, and more. So, if your home is damaged by fire or water (not flood and other various scenarios), your stuff is protected. Phew!

Temporary living expenses – If your home or apartment is damaged to the point where it is unlivable during repairs, your renters insurance will cover hotel stays and meal expenses above what you’d normally pay for groceries, up to your policy’s limits.

Example: You forgot your lasagna was baking in the oven, and it sparked a kitchen fire. You now have to stay in a hotel while your apartment gets repaired. No sweat! Your policy will cover your living expenses while you are displaced.

Personal liability & medical bills – If you’re liable for someone else’s injuries or property damage, this covers any lawsuits and medical bills up to the limits of your policy.

Example: Remember the lasagna incident? Let’s say that fire reached your neighbors’ apartment and damaged their stuff. On top of that, your neighbor is REALLY unhappy and decides to take you to court. Good news! Your policy will cover the neighbors’ damaged goods AND will kick in to pay for the legal fees.

Additional Coverages

If you’re looking for extra protection, you can add any of these coverages to your policy.

Water back-up – If your home or apartment experiences any water damage due to sump pumps or plumbing back-ups, this coverage will pay for the damage to your belongings and the water removal.

Personal injury – This covers any rare but expensive type of lawsuit from slander to libel.

FAQs

If my home was damaged, can I start repairs?
If a natural disaster has caused significant damage to your home, you may be tempted to begin repairs right away. We get it, you just want your life back to normal. But these small repairs can mask a lot of the damage and will make it hard for an adjuster to make a fair estimate of the repair costs.
Temporary fixes that could help prevent any further damage are a good idea, but it’s best to wait until after the insurance adjuster has taken a good solid look at your property to make permanent repairs.
What if my home is burglarized?
Your first step is to ensure that you and your family are safe, and then, call the police. When the police arrive, they will complete a report with all the important info regarding your situation. This report is necessary when you file your claim and will help expedite the whole process. Make sure you also create a detailed list of your lost or damaged items, including their estimated values, and have that ready when you contact your insurance company.
Can I get a damage estimate before filing a claim?
Yes, we recommend obtaining an estimate before filing a claim. Once you have your estimate, give us a call to discuss your options. We’ll also look at your policy with you to see if your estimate is above your deductible.
Visit our Claims page to learn more.
What is a Deductible?
A deductible on your insurance policy is what you pay before the insurance kicks in. This is to prevent extremely small claims from being filed as insurance is for larger emergencies. For example, if your home deductible is $1,000 and you have $10,000 in damages, the insurance company will pay the contractor repairing it $9,000, and you would pay your $1,000 deductible.
Many policies in Hampton Roads have a separate, higher wind deductible for damage done by storms, so be sure to look at your policy carefully to understand your deductible amounts and coverage.
Dog Breeds and Dog Bite Situations
Finding the proper insurance coverage can be difficult if you own a certain breed dog because a large majority of liability claims are dog bite claims. So, most insurance carriers will either not insure you, or if they do, they won’t provide coverage to a dog bite by a “vicious” breed.
This includes but is not limited to: Pitbulls, Rottweilers, Akitas, Wolf Hybrids, Chows, Bull/Staffordsire Terriers, and more.
If you have one of these breeds or any questions about your liability coverage, please call us at 757-448-3820.
How do I cancel a policy?
If you’ve recently sold your home or vehicle, obviously, you don’t want to continue making payments on those policies. We don’t blame you.
Just give us a call at 757-448-3820 and let us know. Please note that we work with over 30 different insurance companies, so if you’re looking for a new policy, we can do the shopping for you as well.

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