It seems like just yesterday that your child started grade school and here they are now headed off to college university. You have always been there for your child. You have done your best to teach them the difference between right and wrong. You have taught them how to make good choices. You have also done your best to protect them from harm. Now its time to send them off into the world to find their way on the road to adulthood and success.
It’s time to teach them about how to protect their belongings from fire and theft.
We don’t want to alarm you, but it’s a fact that about 40,000 thefts happen on college campuses each year.
Further over, 300 on-site campus fires occur within a 5 year period.
Since the average student has about $10,000 worth of clothing and belongings, it raises the question:
Will my homeowners policy cover my college student’s belongings while they live away from home?
The answer is that it depends on where your child will be living. The insurance companies want to know whether your young adult will be living on campus or off campus. Let’s talk about these one at a time.
Will my homeowners insurance cover my child’s belongings in an on-campus dorm?
The answer is usually yes as long as your child is still considered as part of your household and they live on site in a dorm room.
How to tell if your child still qualifies as part of your household
You can expect your agent to ask you questions like these:
- Will you claim your student as a dependent on your tax return this year?
- Are you covering their health insurance under your family policy?
- Do you pay your child’s school tuition?
- Will your child be coming home for Christmas and summer break?
If the answer is yes to all of these questions and your student lives on campus then your homeowners policy should cover them. Talk to your agent about your specific home insurance policy.
Will my homeowners policy cover my college students belongings if they live in an apartment off campus?
Unfortunately, the answer is no. What can you do instead? The best thing to do is to invest in a small renters insurance policy or tenants policy.
How does your child benefit from having a renters policy over using your existing homeowners coverage?
- They are very affordable, usually under $20 a month.
- They have deductibles as low as $25! Now compare that to your $1,000 homeowner deductible that you currently may have. What if your child’s $1,000 laptop was stolen? Under your homeowners policy you would have to eat the cost of buying a new one. With a $25 deductible on a renters policy you make a claim for a new one!
- Liability protection. Young people often do and say things that a mature adult normally wouldn’t. A liability policy can be added to your renters policy to protect them from a lawsuit in case one ever arises.
Pro Tips:
- Take the camera out and do a dorm or apartment inventory in case a claim is ever made. The key to settling claims is having all your ducks in a row before they are stolen or destroyed in a fire! Thankfully there are several free ways to do your home inventory for free.
- Teach your young adults now about the importance of planning ahead and being prepared for an emergency.
Your InsuranceHub agent is ready and able to help you answer all of these questions in order to ensure your student’s belongings are protected.