Almost 25 million U.S. families renting their homes are going bare on insurance coverage, leaving themselves vulnerable to serious property and liability losses. Many renters without coverage own valuable, high-tech equipment and face higher risk related to pets, a national survey conducted by Trusted Choice finds.
The new survey uncovers a persistent lack of awareness or understanding about property and liability risks faced by renters, said Madelyn Flannagan, Trusted Choice spokeswoman. Two-thirds (67 percent) of U.S. families that rent lack coverage.
Some 35 million homes were rented in 2005, or about 31 percent of all American households, according to the National Multi Housing Council.
Among those respondents who said they don’t have renters’ insurance, 26 percent feel that the coverage is too expensive, and another 17 percent said they didn’t know they needed it. Moreover, another 8 percent have never heard of renters’ insurance.
“Insurance protection isn’t a ‘nice-to-have’ for renters,” Flannagan said. “It’s an essential backup for property losses — such as water and fire damage — as well as today’s liability risks faced by Americans: slips and falls, accidents at parties, pet attacks, and lawsuits by landlords, for example.”
Coverage for renters is widely available and affordable in most parts of the country, with the average annual premium about $20 per month for about $20,000 of property coverage and $500,000 of liability coverage, Flannagan said.
Among the results
An overwhelming majority (89 percent) of all renters own one or more valuable electronic devices, such as digital recorder devices, desktop and laptop computers, digital and video cameras and home theater systems. More than half (53 percent) of renters own exercise and/or sports equipment such as a bicycle, exercise equipment or skis. Both groups of owners — electronic devices and exercise equipment — are slightly more likely to own renter’s insurance than non-owners.
The likelihood of owning renters insurance is much lower (26 percent) among pet owners overall than it is among those who don’t own any pets (32 percent).
The likelihood of owning renters insurance is not much higher (31 percent) among those who own and operate a firm out of their rental property than among those who do not (29 percent), the survey found.
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