Do Storage Units Fall Under Renters Insurance?

Oct 15, 2022 By Susan Kelly

As you probably already know, if you rent your property, renters insurance can assist in defending you and your possessions against the expense of an accident. The protection provided by your renter's insurance coverage typically extends beyond your flat door. When you're not at home, for instance, travelling or leaving something in your car, it normally safeguards your belongings.

Commercial self-storage facilities

Personal property, use loss (such as needing to move because of house repairs), and personal liability are all covered by renters insurance. Personal property insurance covers goods at your home and elsewhere, including items maintained in storage. Your renter's insurance may have exclusions for items kept outside your property. Usually, these limitations are covered by your property insurance.

What Does Renters Insurance Cover?

Tenants are protected from financial loss due to specified mishaps by the renter's insurance. It works similarly to homeowners insurance, but your landlord's insurance covers the physical building where you live. A renters policy normally includes the following three main coverage types:

Personal Property: This protection assists in defraying the cost of repairing or replacing your belongings lost in an insured accident. For instance, your renter's insurance should help cover the cost of a replacement TV if a fire damages the one in your flat.

Loss of Utility: If your home requires repairs after a fire and becomes uninhabitable, most renters' insurance policies assist in covering your living costs. It is also known as supplementary living expenses coverage and aids in covering costs such as temporary accommodation or meals while you cannot live in your home.

Personal Liability: This liability insurance will pay for any property damage or medical expenses if someone is injured at your home. It also helps pay the cost of your defence if you are sued due to an accident.

Insurance restrictions for storage unit properties

Renters' insurance policies include restrictions on their coverage for items lost, stolen, or destroyed outside of your rental home. The coverage limit is either a predetermined financial amount or a percentage of your total personal property coverage, whichever is greater.

Coverage for Other Types of Storage

The good news is that renters insurance is often provided worldwide, protecting your belongings. However, you should be prepared for a coverage cap for items kept outside of your home.

If you're storing valuables on-site, such as in a garden shed or the basement of an apartment building, check your policy to see if coverage limits apply. Your policy may treat these areas as part of your dwelling premises—where you live as stated in your policy—to avoid imposing coverage limits.

Does Insurance cover your Storage Unit

Even though many renters insurance policies cover your belongings up to a certain limit, reviewing your coverage is always a good idea. To learn what is covered in terms of the residential premises, insured premises, and personal belongings, read your renter's insurance policy.

Alternative Storage Unit Insurance Options

You have other options if your basic renter's insurance is insufficient to cover your store items. Standard renters insurance normally comes in two forms for storage units:

Self-storage tenants' insurance

greater coverage restrictions

Self-storage tenants' insurance

In contrast to the renter's insurance you already have, these products stand alone. Like with any insurance policy, you should consider the cost and coverage and the deductibles, payments, and types of occurrences covered.

Boost the personal property insurance coverage limits

The simplest approach to ensure your storage unit is to raise the policy limit on your current renter's insurance. If your renter's insurance covers items in storage up to a certain percentage of your limit, increasing your limit also increases the coverage for stored items.

Is Insurance Required for a Storage Unit?

Your renter's insurance should provide a certain level of coverage for your stored belongings. The contents of your storage space may determine whether your tenant's insurance is sufficient. You can determine the value of your stored items by adding them to your home inventory.

You should consider additional coverage if the value of your stored items exceeds what your present insurance will pay out.

What if something goes wrong in my storage unit without insurance?

If you don't have insurance, your stored possessions are probably unsafeRead your leasing contract carefully to see whether you assume all risks related to storing items on the property or if there are any situations in which the storage facility's insurance protects your items.

Related Articles