ORLANDO, Fla. – College students are heading to school in just a few weeks and for some parents, that means dealing with a lot of last-minute details, including whether or not their child needs to have renters insurance.
According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, it's a good idea to have it whether your child lives on or off campus because their landlord's insurance doesn't cover their personal property.
If your child lives on campus, is under the age of 26 and is enrolled in classes, they may be covered under your homeowners or renters insurance, so check your policy.
If your child is living off campus, they most likely won't be covered by your policy. That means you're probably going to want to look into some options.
There are two basic types of coverage: personal property and liability. Personal property coverage pays to repair or replace personal belongings if they are damaged, destroyed, or stolen. Liability insurance provides coverage against a claim or lawsuit resulting from bodily injury or property damage to others caused by an accident while on the policyholder’s property.
If you have particularly expensive items, you'll want to consider leaving them at home, but if you can't, you may need to purchase additional coverage.
You should also make sure you're looking into whether the policy will allow for you to be reimbursed for the actual cash value of an item, or its replacement cost. Actual cash value means it will take into account any depreciation on the item, while replacement cost is what it sounds like -- what it will cost to replace it.
When you move in, be sure to take photos and make a list of all important items and include purchase prices, model and/or serial numbers. Documenting that information makes it easier if something happens to any of your items because you'll have everything the insurance company needs handy.
Another option worth looking into is, if your student has roommates, seeing if they can purchase a policy together.