CROWDSOURCING IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR A TENANT’S POLICY

AAA Insurance Team

Catastrophe is not limited to just those that own homes; it can strike anyone at any time. Apartment fires are devastating, terrifying and sometimes tragic. Under the "best" circumstances, no one loses their lives but those tenants often lose everything and the only source of getting back to some level of normalcy is The American Red Cross and crowdsourcing like GoFundMe.

As an agent, we hear things like, “I’ll get it later” or “I don’t have that much in my apartment anyway” or “I can’t afford it." I believe those that feel they cannot afford it are the ones that need it the most. For about $10-$15 a month, you not only will get coverage for things like replacing your TV, gaming system, clothes, pots and pans, it also pays for things like the added cost of staying in a hotel room while you find another place. That sure beats moving back in with mom and dad or having to stay in a shelter. It also provides coverage if your precious poodle happens to bit your neighbor's kid because junior decided he wanted to grab Fluffy’s favorite chew toy out of her mouth.

You are a responsible tenant; you do not leave space heaters plugged into power strips and you do not leave your stove on. However, is your neighbor in Apartment D as responsible? Let’s say they decided to deep fry their Thanksgiving turkey in the living room because it’s raining outside; I think you can predict the outcome. Just because you might think they are liable does not translate to you getting anything out of it, certainly not in time.

Your landlord does not provide this coverage. In most cases, no one is going to tell you to buy it. You are not required by law like car insurance to have it. The average cost of a tenant policy is $150 per year. In most cases, you are entitled to a discount on your car insurance simply by making that purchase; we here at AAA Insurance have even seen people save more on car insurance than what they spent on the tenant’s policy.

Even if you buy gas station coffee every day, the coverage is still cheaper than that per month. And for those of you that make coffee every morning, that $100 coffee maker that you love so much, yeah, that’s covered too.

For more information regarding all types of insurance, including tenant policies, contact one of our licensed insurance agents here at AAA Northway. We are a nonprofit member organization, but we extend this service to non-members as well. Give us a call today to take a look.