For our purposes here today, a landlord is a landlord is a landlord. Whether it’s a guy renting one unit or a company renting ten thousand units, it doesn’t matter. The question isn’t whether a landlord can require Chicago Renters Insurance, but when and how. Of course they can require you to have insurance – they can require just about anything else they want in the lease, too. But there’s a right way to go about it.
First things first: Your landlord generally can’t unilaterally change the terms and conditions of your lease in the middle of the lease term. That’s pretty standard for any provision of the lease, with a very few exceptions. What they can do is put the requirement in a new lease if you’re just moving in, or in a renewal lease if you’d like to renew. Since those are new leases executed for new terms, that’s perfectly acceptable. If you’d like to move in, or you’d like to stay, you need to get that Chicago renters insurance that they require. Make sure you understand exactly what they want to see on the paperwork, though.
There are two similar-sounding terms in insurance that mean very different things. Your landlord probably wants to be an additional interest on your policy. This means that they would be notified of a change in policy status such as a cancellation or lapse in coverage. That’s because they want to make sure that you remain in compliance and that coverage remains in force, because it protects everyone.
But sometimes, leases are poorly written, or the landlord is poorly advised, or they just copied a boilerplate provision they didn’t understand. Once in a while you’ll see a lease requirement that the landlord be named as additional insured on your renters insurance in Chicago. This is generally not ideal, because it causes problems if the landlord (or his insurance company) needs to make a claim under your liability coverage. Make sure you clarify what the landlord wants – additional interest is normal and just fine, additional insured status requires some further clarification to make sure they understand what they’re asking you to do. Additional insured makes sense in the commercial insurance world, less so on the personal insurance side of things.
Realistically, though, what’s your concern with having Chicago renters insurance? Is it the cost? Policies start at about fifteen dollars a month, which fits in nearly any budget. Is it that you’re being told to do something? You probably should have renters insurance anyway, and spite is not a good reason to avoid having it. Is it the time involved? You can get a policy in three minutes on the phone or sixty seconds online with Effective Coverage! Just call (800)892-4308 or click to get covered - whether you need Chicago renters insurance quotes online or coverage anywhere else!
Effective Coverage offers the nation's only completely mobile platform to quote and purchase renters insurance right from your phone or tablet in just one minute. Get an online renters insurance quote today and protect your family.
What's Your Style?
- Do You Need Coverage ASAP? Check out the fastest way to buy renters insurance online and get covered in just 60 seconds!
- Do You Feel Like Talking About It? Just call Effective Coverage and a renters insurance expert can help you get great coverage in minutes.
- Do You Need Some Time Alone With Your Thoughts? We understand, which is why we created the Illinois Guide To Renters Insurance.
- Just Want To Watch A Movie Together? See our video guide below.