Residents of Houston who skip out on renters insurance often end up regretting the decision. Most who rent don’t realize the benefits of this coverage until it’s too late. Ready to learn more about renters insurance and what it can do for you? Keep reading to discover the answers!
1. Your Texas Landlord’s Coverage Isn’t Enough
In the last decade, more people are renting homes in Houston than ever before. But far too many of these renters skip out on getting their own coverage because they think the landlord’s coverage will protect everything in the event of a theft or catastrophe.
Here’s the blunt truth: The landlord’s coverage will only protect the home and its surrounding structures. In the event that, say, a summer fire burns down the house, the landlord’s coverage will pay to repair or replace the home but won’t do anything to pay for your personal property that gets damaged or destroyed. The only way you can protect your personal property is by getting renters insurance.
2. It’s More Affordable Than You Think
Lack of affordability is one reason many Houston residents skip out on getting a new kind of policy to insure their homes. However, while some pay more or less depending on how much coverage they have, the average cost of insurance in Houston is about $15 a month. In other words, it only costs about 50 cents per day to protect thousands upon thousands of dollars of your personal property. When you think about it that way, the typical renter can’t afford not to get this coverage, and you can always save by bundling different types of coverage.
3. Protection in Case You Are Sued
It’s easy to think about renters insurance mostly in terms of protecting your property from things like fires. And that is important: More than a quarter of all reported fires are home fires each year. But this unique coverage also helps you put out a different kind of fire altogether: legal troubles.
If someone gets injured at your home and thinks it’s your fault (this could happen due to anything from slippery stairs to your dog biting them), they may sue you. Even if you successfully defend yourself in court, the legal costs could sink you into crippling debt. Fortunately, renters insurance helps provide medical care to the injured parties (making them less likely to sue) and helps pay for your legal defense if the matter goes to court.
4. You Can Stop Worrying About Thieves
For Houston residents, we have good news and bad news. The good news is violent crime is going down, but the bad news is property crime is on the rise. That means that more than ever before, you need to worry about what thieves are doing with your personal property when you are at work or maybe just hanging with friends at cool local places like Geronimo Adventure Park.
You can’t stay home all the time, and that means you won’t always be there to introduce thieves to the time-honored tradition of your right to bear arms. But with renters insurance, any of your items that are stolen, damaged, destroyed, or even vandalized can be replaced without you having to break the bank (and trust us: Your personal property is worth way more than you think).
5. You’ll Need an Inventory of Your Property
One rookie mistake that many Houston residents make regarding renters insurance is that they don’t properly inventory their property. It’s important to keep an inventory of your most important items as well as photographs of those items and – ideally -receipts.
If all goes well, you’ll never need to make use of this inventory. However, if your property gets stolen or damaged and you have to file a claim, all of this documentation can help you prove the relative value of your belongings. You deserve to be properly compensated by your insurance carrier.
6. Not All Insurance Carriers Are Created Equal
You can hardly throw a stone in Houston without hitting the sign for an insurance company. For that matter, it’s difficult to turn on the television, radio, or computer without getting an ad for one of these companies. Because of this, you might get the impression that these carriers are more or less the same, but not all insurance carriers are created equal.
Some carriers specialize in avoiding paying you what you’re owed whenever they can weasel out of it. And the last thing you want to deal with on one of the worst days of your life is an insurance carrier that doesn’t care about you.
That’s why it’s important to take the time now to do your homework and find who has the best renters coverage in Houston. The right carrier will provide the price and the service you deserve, and you should never settle for anything less.
Get the Best Renters Insurance in Houston Today!
Now you know everything a resident of Houston, Texas, needs to know about renters insurance. But do you know where you can find the kind of coverage you deserve?
Here at Baja Auto Insurance, we make it easy for you to request a renters insurance quote online. Or if you’d prefer, you can always come into one of our local offices and chat with us, or give us a call at 800-401-6870.
