If you've been putting off purchasing insurance until you make the leap to home ownership - you'll be pleasantly surprised to learn how inexpensive it is to insure your belongings and protect yourself against liability lawsuits with a renter's insurance policy.

Renters insurance provides coverage against fire, lightening and other disasters, vandalism and theft. Liability insurance is also provided in case someone is injured on your property. If there is damage to the building or to your unit forcing you to leave, your policy will cover the additional cost of hotel accommodations as well as increased food expenses.

How much insurance do you need?
Take a moment to go through your apartment or home and complete an inventory of its contents. It's worth noting that standard tenant's policies are for actual cash value. That means in the event of a claim you would receive what the item is worth today - the purchase price less depreciation. Unfortunately, since the cash value may be very small, replacing that item could cost you significantly, even with insurance. It is wise to make sure that your insurance limit will cover your contents at replacement cost.

How to ensure you'll get replacement cost
You can purchase an endorsement. Consider it an upgrade to your basic policy. You may also wish to protect specialty items like jewelry with a scheduled valuable possessions endorsement. That's why working with a good agent is important. A knowledgeable agent will ask all the right questions and inform you about limits on coverage for different categories of belongings to ensure that you have just the right protection.

How do you minimize the cost of tenant's insurance?
Safety features such as smoke alarms, security systems, sprinklers, and dead bolts will often earn discounts on your premium. Discounts are also available for non-smokers and for having multiple lines of insurance with the same company.

Interested in tenant's insurance? Please fill out our quick and easy quote form for a no-obligation assessment. Feel free to contact Ellis Insurance if you have any questions.