Introduction

If you’re renting a home or apartment, it’s a good idea to have renters insurance. It covers your belongings, provides protection against liability claims, and helps to pay for living expenses if you need to evacuate your property due to a fire, burst pipes, or sewer backup.

But it’s not just accidental damage or wear and tear that renters need to protect against. According to USA Today, natural disasters are occurring in the United States at record-breaking levels and can be devastating for a city or region and its inhabitants.

As a result, it’s crucial to have coverage for weather and climate disasters included in your renters insurance policy. This is especially true if you live in states like California, Florida, and Texas, which are prone to events like earthquakes, hurricanes, and droughts respectively.

Read on to learn about natural disaster coverage, how to choose the right policy, ways to assess your risk, and more.

Understanding Natural Disasters and Renters' Vulnerability

There are a variety of natural disasters, and being aware of them is crucial if you want to protect yourself as a renter. Here’s a closer look at how they can impact you and your belongings.

• Wildfires , which are often triggered by lightning or equipment failure of some kind, can spread incredibly quickly and wreak havoc on natural areas ranging from forests to prairies and the communities in their vicinity.

Wildfires are difficult to contain, especially in areas with lots of trees or other foliage. Fires can occur all over the country, but according to FEMA’s National Risk Index , they’re generally more common on the west side of the US, in states like California, Oregon, and Arizona.

If a wildfire spreads to your area, it may completely destroy your home and belongings and force you to evacuate to safety. Even if your house doesn’t catch fire, the smoke from nearby fires can still damage the exterior of your home, and smoke odors may permeate fabrics and carpets.

• Hurricanes are a risk for the southwestern states in the US, like Florida, Louisiana, parts of Texas, and many others. They are tropical cyclones with high winds, heavy rain, and thunderstorms. Originating on the water, these storms may be mild at first but escalate as their winds begin to circulate faster and faster.

If a hurricane travels inland, it can cause devastating levels of destruction. This includes wind blowing down buildings, ripping roofs off homes, knocking down power lines, and heavy rain that leads to floods or water damage.

• Tornadoes grow out from the bottom of a strong thunderstorm and feature a narrow column of rotating wind. Some are stationary, while others can move quickly without leaving people much time to prepare. Unlike some disasters that only take place in certain parts of the country, tornadoes can happen almost anywhere.

These can rip through homes if they’re strong enough, as well as turn all types of debris like glass, dirt, and stones into harmful projectiles that can hurt people and damage property.

• Floods take place when an area experiences an overflow of water from a major storm like a hurricane, excessive rain, dam failure, or even rapidly melting snow. While coastal cities are often at a higher risk, flooding can happen anywhere. It can destroy items stored in basements, fill your property with wastewater, ruin carpets and flooring, wreck tech devices, and force you out of your home.

• Earthquakes are the shifting of the Earth’s tectonic plates. There’s no warning before an earthquake, which can shake the ground for anywhere between a few seconds to a few minutes. Earthquakes can happen at any time and anywhere in the country, but are most common on the west coast.

Earthquakes can shatter windows, crack gas and water pipes, cause buildings to collapse, and lead to landslides. Even a short earthquake can cause significant structural damage to building foundations, forcing you out of your home and into temporary accommodations while repairs are made.

• Hail storms occur when raindrops freeze into small ice balls as they fall from a thunderstorm. In some cases, hailstones can be the size of a baseball.

These storms can happen across the country, as long as the weather’s cold enough. Falling hail can damage garden furniture and belongings kept outside, break windows, destroy vehicles, and cause injuries if they hit people.

• Droughts occur when an area experiences a lack of precipitation that leads to incredibly dry conditions for a prolonged period. They’re most common in California, Arizona, Texas, and Nevada but can occur anywhere.

While they may not pose as large or as immediate a threat to renters when compared to natural disasters like fires or hurricanes, droughts can still have a negative impact. For example, they can make it easier for fires to start and can damage the foundations of buildings.

Importance of Additional Coverage for Natural Disasters

Because of the aforementioned gaps, you should consider additional coverage for natural disasters. Many providers offer standalone options that you can add to an existing policy to extend your coverage.

Flood insurance and earthquake riders are 2 examples of this. Both of these will help you replace items lost in the event, as well as pay for additional living expenses if your home is uninhabitable. These riders cost extra but provide peace of mind if you live somewhere that experiences these disasters from time to time.

Assessing Your Risk and Coverage Needs

A key part of getting the right coverage is to assess your risk and needs. Where you live is a major factor in determining what kind of coverage you should get. Look at historical data about natural disasters in your area to make sure you’re protected against what’s most likely to occur near you.

For example, someone living in California should consider earthquake insurance, whereas someone in North Dakota (where the earthquake risk is much lower) may not find it worthwhile.

However, some disasters can happen nationwide, and every renter should ensure their renters insurance covers them. For example, fires can spread far and wide just about anywhere, and events like high winds, heavy rain, and tornadoes aren't restricted to certain states. If you’re not protected from these, you’re taking a significant risk.

In addition to your state/area, consider the type of building you live in. If you’re in a ground-floor apartment or a basement suite, having flood insurance is smart. On the other hand, someone renting a unit high up in a condo building might not be worried about flooding.

To identify the actual level of coverage you require, make sure to take a detailed inventory of your possessions. Write down everything you have, the condition it’s in, and what it costs. You should have enough coverage to replace all of these possessions if something happens to them.

Ensure you have proof of your belongings, as well. This could be receipts, photos, and other ways to prove you had the items. Insurance companies won’t automatically take your word for it when you make a claim.

Also, keep in mind that you’ll need to adjust your policy and increase your coverage limit as you acquire more items over time. The same goes for if your belongings increase in value. If not, you run the risk of being underinsured and not getting enough to cover your possessions if a natural disaster or other event damages them.

How To Choose the Right Policy and Provider

When looking for insurance options with natural disaster coverage, you’ll see several policies from numerous different providers. It’s difficult to differentiate one from another at first glance, but if you compare certain factors, you’re likely to end up with a policy that fits your needs.

Firstly, look at the price of each policy. Even policies that offer similar coverage and benefits may have different costs. There’s no use paying more for a policy when another offers essentially the same coverage for a lower price. Make sure to consider not only the monthly premium but also the deductible options and any other fees that might be present.

While price is important, there are lots of moving parts within renters insurance (such as coverage limits). As a result, it’s important to look beyond what the insurance costs you every month. A policy might be costlier, but it could have much higher payout limits and more comprehensive coverage.

Think about the type of coverage itself, too. Renters insurance is either replacement cost or actual cash value coverage. Replacement cost coverage reimburses you with enough money to replace your lost items with new ones of similar quality. On the other hand, actual cash value coverage provides you with the amount your items were worth at the time of loss, which is usually less than what you paid, thanks to depreciation.

Replacement cost coverage is the more expensive option but gives you a large enough payout to replace all of your items with new ones. Actual cash value is cheaper each month, but won’t give you as much if you need to file a claim.

Also, don’t hesitate to see if companies have any special offers, perks, or package deals. For example, if you have car insurance through one provider, it could be worthwhile to go with them for renters insurance if it offers a bundle discount.

At some point during your search and comparison, reach out to a few companies to judge customer service quality. The last thing you want is a company that takes forever to respond to a claim or question. Checking out some online reviews can highlight whether or not a provider offers suitable support, too.

It’s also a good idea to check the company's financial rating from organizations like A.M. Best or Fitch. These companies judge insurance providers on their financial health and ability to pay claims on time and in full.

The better a provider’s rating, the better its financial health and creditworthiness. You can feel confident working with a company that has a high rating, as it shows it’s able to meet its obligations and pay claims properly without delay or other issues.

While many insurance companies operate across the US, some may only serve specific regions or states. So make sure you’re considering and comparing companies that will actually work with you. If you have family or friends who have purchased renters insurance in the past, you can also ask them about their experiences with a specific company or policy.

Conclusion

Natural disasters are becoming more common across the country, and they can cause incredible amounts of damage to properties and belongings. As a result, it’s very important to ensure you have renters insurance with proper coverage for such events, particularly if you live in a disaster-prone part of the country.

Start by reading through and reviewing your current renters insurance policy to check if you’re protected. If you’re moving somewhere that poses a risk, you should do your research into suitable coverage and the necessary riders sooner rather than later. You never know when disaster can strike, so make sure you have a policy in place before you need it.