Think your landlord's house insurance covers you? Here's the truth

Business Standard

a day ago

In 2022, Ravi Mehta, a tech professional in Whitefield, Bengaluru, suffered a setback when a short circuit led to
a fire in his rented house. He lost electronics, furniture, and clothes worth Rs 5-6 lakh. Mehta had thought the landlord's insurance would cover it. It didn't.
'A content policy costing just Rs 207/year could have covered it,' says Ashwini Dubey, business head-home insurance at Policybazaar.com.
Many of us living in rented accommodations assume that their landlord's home insurance will cover them during an unfortunate event. But as several such incidents show, this misconception could leave tenants vulnerable to financial losses running into lakhs.
What landlord insurance does and doesn't cover
'Landlord insurance typically covers the building's structure, walls, roof, fixtures, and fittings, for risks such as fire, earthquake, flood, short circuits, or riots,' says Ashwini Dubey, business head-home insurance at Policybazaar.com.
If the property becomes uninhabitable, it may also cover the landlord's loss of rent. Some plans even include terrorism-related damages. But the crucial gap is this, tenant possessions are not covered.
'These policies won't protect the tenant's personal items like electronics, furniture or jewellery. Nor do they include liability for accidental damage caused by the tenant,' Dubey adds.
Why tenants need contents insurance, even for a rented house
A fire, flood, or burglary can wipe out everything a tenant owns. And replacing it all from scratch isn't cheap.
'Contents insurance protects tenants' valuables, furniture, clothes, electronics, appliances, from risks like fire, theft, or water leakage,' explains Pankaj Verma, chief technical officer, products & underwriting at Zurich Kotak General Insurance.
Verma also highlights the value of tenant liability cover.
'It helps if a tenant unintentionally damages the landlord's property. It's an often-overlooked but crucial protection,' he said.
Some policies even offer temporary accommodation costs if your rented home becomes unlivable.
Coverage and cost: Surprisingly affordable
Dubey notes that tenant policies, often called 'contents-only insurance' can cover up to ~5 lakh worth of items for as little as ~200–300 annually. The process is largely digital, requires no inspections, and offers instant coverage.
Common exclusions include:
Wear and tear or depreciation
Damage due to war, nuclear risks
Unoccupied homes for long periods
Undeclared high-value jewellery
Bottom line: Landlord insurance covers the building, not your belongings. For tenants, a low-cost home content policy is a smart move to avoid big surprises during life's unexpected turns.