I once had a soldier who had to move to a new unit a few hours away in Germany. It was considered a local, “door to door”, move by the military. The move should have been an easy one. The moving company picked up his household goods (furniture and belongings in military speak) in the morning and was scheduled to drop them off at his new house in the evening. But, the moving truck at an accident on the German Autobahn and caught fire. The driver was relatively unharmed, thank goodness, but every single one of my Soldier’s belongings was ruined in the fire. It was a total loss.
The military paid for a very small portion of the claim months latter, and to make matters worse, my young private and his young family had hardly a dime to their name in their bank account. And, of course, the family did not have renter’s insurance to cover their loss. For months, all he had were the cloths on his back and the generosity of his co-workers.
Homeowners are covered by their homeowners’ insurance policy that every mortgage company requires before lending a dime to buy a house, but Soldiers living in the barracks on the base or renting outside the gates needs to have renters’ insurance. For as little as $20 a month 100% of your furniture and possessions can be covered at replacement cost. Warehouses storing your goods while you move will also be covered by renters’ insurance. Soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan can focus on more important tasks and rest assured that their household stored long term while they are away will be covered. It is a very small price to pay for a lot of piece of mind.
Stories like these are not solely military. This situation could have been any young person who rents a house or apartment. Thirty-seven million Americans rent the roof over their heads.
There are some things to consider with respect to renters’ insurance. . . .
- Pay the dollar or two extra a month for full replacement cost
- Consider additional insurance floaters if you have expensive things like jewelry or high dollar items like electronics, plasma television, or computer gear
- Know exactly what your policy covers for you
- Remember to update your policy each time you move
- Do not file frivolous claims. Wait for the big ones and keep your premiums low.
Insurance is to cover you in the case of a catastrophic loss. You need to have it if you do not own your own home. It is very cheap price for peace of mind that hopefully you will never need, but if one day your moving truck burns down or you drop your TV down a flight of stars, you will be glad you have renters’ insurance.
Share and Enjoy: 
{ 4 comments }
That story is tragic, and especially when it happens to someone who is serving abroad, which leads to even more difficult circumstances. Renters insurance has saved our bacon already several times within my own family, and we cannot recommend it highly enough! Thanks for pointing this out…
Jerry
Most Marines I speak to assume incorrectly that if something happens in the barracks they are covered. Hopefully some will read this and realize they need coverage.
I agree 100%. My BIL recently had a flood in his kitchen sink and had renter’s insurance to pay for the huge damage to the downstairs apartment! I shudder what would have happened otherwise.
Renter’s Insurance brings peace of mind, especially if you ever have to make a claim. Do your homework and research renter’s insurance cost and coverage. You deserve the best insurance at the lowest price! Here’s a link for a good start to your research on Renter’s Insurance: Renter’s Insurance
Comments on this entry are closed.
{ 2 trackbacks }