At many colleges and universities in the United States, the first day of the fall semester is only weeks away at this point. During August and September, millions of high school graduates undertake a time-honored rite of passage into adulthood: leaving home to live independently for the first time. For the large majority of freshmen living on campus, a dorm room will be their first home away from their parents’ – a boxlike room with two extra-long twin beds, a pair of desks, minimal storage space, and an unknown roommate. Getting ready to move out to college is a big deal, both emotionally, physically, and financially. There is a lot of work to do, and a lot of things to buy. Forget the textbooks and notebooks you’ll need for class – I’m talking about eating utensils, a new computer, flip-flops for the communal shower, and your very own linens. It might be one of the last things that overspent and harried parents think of during the whole exhausting process, but incoming collegians really need renters insurance as well. Not just for apartment dwellers, renters insurance is a must-have for those living in the dorms.
This crucial type of coverage protects the belongings of people who rent their residence. There’s a popular assumption that students are broke, but the average freshman may actually be storing thousands of dollars in electronics, furniture, clothing, and miscellaneous personal items in their shared dorm room. If a fire broke out late at night or while the student was at class, these valuable and beloved items could be gone in a flash… and that’s to say nothing of theft (think fraternity hazing pranks) or natural disasters.
Experts recommend that college students enter dorm life equipped with a decent renters insurance policy to protect their valuables. Anything costly should be included on the policy. Common items that might appear in a dorm room and would qualify include: TV sets, computers and associated equipment like printers, DVD/BluRay players, cell phones and PDAs, furniture, jewelry, and household items. If some crisis were to happen that would destroy some or all of these belongings, renters insurance would cover the losses. It’s likely that the college or university’s insurance policy covers any damage to the residential building itself, but not the belongings of the students living inside.
Renters insurance comes in many different permutations and levels of coverage. Flood and earthquake protection coverage is usually all available from the same insurer, but generally requires separate and more expensive coverage. It’s indispensible if you have relocated to an area known for natural disasters of these sorts. One of the most crucial details to pay attention to when shopping for and comparing policies is whether the plan covers the replacement cost or the actual cash value of your possessions. Actual cash value policies are not as valuable to owners, because the policy will only reimburse you for the depreciated value of the item in question. Let’s say you bought a flat-screen TV for several hundred dollars a few years ago. Your policy would not give you that much money for the TV if it were stolen today – you would get the adjusted value, which is almost never enough to actually buy a replacement. On the other hand, policies with replacement cost actually cover the full value you will need to buy a replacement. You can expect to pay a deductible if you need to file a claim. This kind of policy is more expensive than one with actual cash value reimbursement, but will offer you better value if you ever actually need to file a claim.
Like I discussed with flood and earthquake insurance, you may need to buy a separate rider for any items you own that of are particularly high value, such as jewelry or antiques. Your insurance agent will be able to tell you what your maximum coverage is per item.
As is the case with many other kinds of insurance, the policyholder has several responsibilities to insure that their valuables are properly covered and that everything is on order in the event that a claim ever needs to be filed. The best thing you can do is keep a complete and accurate inventory of all the valuables within your dorm room. Keep a spreadsheet or list at another physical location that is very safe (perhaps a fireproof safe at the student’s parents’ home) that details the item, its purchase price, and the serial number of the item if applicable. Attach the receipts for the items, and scan them into your computer for good measure. The truly best thing to do is to take photos or video of your possessions, also in a separate location.
In addition to paying for lost or stolen possessions, your renters insurance policy will generally pay for your living expenses in the event that your residence becomes unlivable. Some examples of where this might become useful are fire or flooding from a broken water pipe or storm. Reasonable living expenses like a hotel are covered, up to a certain amount that usually depends on the maximum value of your rental insurance policy.
How much you have to pay for renters insurance will depend on many variables, such as where you plan to live, the deductible you would like to have on your policy, which company you decide to go with, and whatever types of insurance you might also need. Hopefully, this article will have demonstrated how important it is for your collegian to get renters insurance along with everything else you need for back to school!
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