Is home damage covered by my Renters Insurance?

[Harling78]

We are renting a home now and trying to wrap out heads around renters insurance. I have the following tentative coverage as the following:

Personal Belongings: $XXXX
Personal Liability: $XXXX
Medical Payments to Others: $XXXX
Other Perils Deductibles: If you have to make a claim, you'll pay the first $250 out of pocket. We'll cover the rest up to $20,000.

My question is does any of this cover the actual physical home structure if something was caused by us or anyone else, fire, etc? I am specifically talking about a situation where the actual physical home was damaged, possibly beyond repair. What is this type of coverage I am referring to call? The personal liability is the largest dollar amount and it seems like this is but it I can't understand the language clearly enough. It seems the personal liability only goes towards "costs" related to suits or claims made against you, so if the house was damaged and it was our fault, this money pays for protecting us, not actually fixing the physical structure. If my thinking is correct, what type of insurance pays for the physical structure?

This is what the personal liability coverage says" "This coverage provides protection if someone makes a claim or files a suit against you (or someone covered by the policy) for accidental bodily injury or property damage and the cost to defend any such claims or suits against you."

Thank you!
Harling

 

[fed up]

First, you are a tenant and you have a Landlord who should be carrying Landlord coverage for the structure. You have a renters policy for your belongings and a certain (usually 100,000) in liability coverage and your insurance company has an obligation to defend you for any lawsuit brought against you for up to the limit of your coverage (the 100K). Don't know what you think you will do that would cause a repair estimate to be considered a total loss (don't play with matches, candles, or leave a heat source on) It would also need to be a covered loss (you burned the place down by discarding grill ashes). You would not be covered for any deliberate acts (you got pissed and started smashing things)

 

[Markthebroker]

Your liability will cover damage that you are liable for. If you don't have enough coverage, the landlord or the landlord's insurance company can come after you for the remainder.

I'm curious, why aren't you asking your agent about this?

 

[InsCommentary]

Most renters policies' liability coverage extends to damage to rented premises, but coverage is usually limited to the perils of fire, smoke and explosion.

 

[adjusterjack]

If you don't have enough coverage, the landlord or the landlord's insurance company can come after you for the remainder.

That's actually not an absolute. Some states allow it, some don't, and some have specific requirements.

This guide by state may interest you as reference material.

https://www.mwl-law.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/landlord-tenant-subrogation-in-all-50-states.pdf

 

[InsCommentary]

That's actually not an absolute. Some states allow it, some don't, and some have specific requirements.

This guide by state may interest you as reference material.

https://www.mwl-law.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/landlord-tenant-subrogation-in-all-50-states.pdf

Adjusterjack is right. Some states consider the tenant a co-insured and insurers usually can't recover from the parties to an insurance contract (unlike bonds). Usually, the best and fairest way to draft a lease is to include a mutual waiver of subrogation, though the landlord is usually the one in the best bargaining position and may only want to waive the right of subrogation against itself.