You share a lot of things with your roommate – space, rent, furniture, and the list goes on. If you’re renting, you may want to consider purchasing renters insurance to help protect your personal property and liability. In a shared living situation, does it make sense to share a renters insurance policy with your roommate?
Not all renters insurance policies allow you to share a policy with your roommate. There’s good reason for that – for most people, it’s not a practical or wise decision to make, unless you’re part of an unmarried couple that lives together. College roommates would not benefit from sharing a policy.
GradGuard recommends that college roommates purchase their own insurance policies, as a shared policy between roommates does not offer adequate coverage.
- Will it be enough for your belongings combined? If you were to share with your roommate, you’ll want to make sure your limits cover both of your personal property – which can raise your rates quickly. Take an inventory of all of your belongings to determine how much coverage you need, and be honest. If the worth of your belongings differs significantly, you’ll want to consider separate renters plans.
- It doesn’t make sense to share if you don’t share belongings. If you keep to yourselves and have separate lives and things in the apartment, a shared renters insurance plan could be difficult to figure out filing claims for both of your belongings together.
- A claim filed by your roommate may affect you. If your roommate has a riskier lifestyle and is more prone to filing claims, that could affect your premium.
Talk with your roommate and an insurance agent to make sure you’re making the right choice for you. Sharing a policy could save you money on your premium, but could end up costing you long term.
