need help and advice

Erinna - posted on 05/31/2012

I agree with what everyone else has said, only want to add. If the property was faulty, and that was the reason your things were damaged then it is their responsibility.

Tracy - posted on 05/31/2012

You need to carry renter's and don't forget the liability insurance in case of somebody getting hurt on your property also which is not structurally related.

Veronika - posted on 05/31/2012

I am a landlord and the laws here are that the landlord is liable for damages to his or her property (i.e. building, walls, floors, etc.) The tenant is solely responsible to obtain renters' insurance to cover their personal belongings.

Jill - posted on 05/30/2012

This is the kind of thing that renter's insurance covers. Unless the flood happened because your landlord was negligent, he's not legally responsible for your belongings.

Renter's insurance is cheap, around $10-$20 per month depending on the value of your belongings.

You can look at quotes on the State Farm page, or see if your auto insurance carrier also covers things like this. http://www.statefarm.com/insurance/rente...

I'm so sorry that you lost a bunch of stuff. That really bites, no matter how it happened.

Marissa - posted on 05/30/2012

The landlord has insurance to cover the building if it is damaged, unfortunatley it does not cover your personal belongings. You would have had to purchase rental insurance seperatley to cover your belongings. I, unfortunatley, learned the same way.

Amanda - posted on 05/30/2012

My answer is the same as everyone else's. In the entire United States, your landlord is only responsible for the structure you are living in, not the belongings. You need to get renter's insurance. My sister is an insurance agent here and she says one of the biggest mistakes people make is not having enough insurance. We carried renter's the whole time we rented and lived on military bases and it's really cheap. We used State Farm and since we had car policies through them, we got a major discount and ended up paying about $16 a month for $75,000 in coverage. Learn from your mistake and get some renters insurance asap.

Tatiana - posted on 05/30/2012

Don't know. My apartment complex requires that all renters carry their own renter's insurance

Maren - posted on 05/30/2012

I would reread your contract, most rental agreements clearly state that they are not responsiable for property damage in the event of fires or floods. The only way they would have to cover it is if they were neglant, ie a problem was reported and they did not take care of it and it ended up causing damage. Most of the time if that happend then you would have to sue to get the money.
I am really sorry for the problems you are having.

Niki - posted on 05/30/2012

I work in the legal industry and can assure you that anywhere in the US, renter's insurance is the only coverage that will replace renter's belongings. Your stuff = your responsibility.

Zacha - posted on 05/30/2012

As a renter, you are responsible to have your own "Renter's Insurance" that covers your personal belongings. This type of insurance is normally very low in cost, we pay around 33 dollars a month if I am not mistaken (it is probably much lower). A landlord has to have what they call "Fire Insurance", and "Flood Insurance" which protects the landlord property, the building, from flooding and fire. Anything that gets damage during a flood or a broken pipe that is not part of the building is not covered under the landlord's insurance. I am sorry for the loss of your items but your landlord is correct. Your property is your responsibility unless you make a specific request in the rental contract stating that the landlord will be responsible to provide insurance for your family's personal belongings which that is actually not the norm unless requested by the renter.

Lisa - posted on 05/30/2012

Yes, it is. A landlord is not responsible for your personal belongings.

Pamela - posted on 05/29/2012

These days, yes. But just to be sure check with a local attorney's office. If you cannot find one whose receptionist or assistant is unwilling to answer a simple question, look for pro bono services through the local bar association.

Most big cities have volunteer legal services of some kind where these kinds of questions can be answered without cost.

Kathryn - posted on 05/29/2012

Same laws here in Canada. A rental has to have rental insurance in order to have personal contents covered in such a case... Just like my home insurance, I pay a portion for structure and a portion for contents. The landlord has the structure portion, the contents was up to you. It's unfortunate that this was not explained to you atthe lease signing.

Ashley - posted on 05/29/2012

Yes - that is why they have renters. A homeowners policy only covers the house and their property, not their renters.

I live in N. Ca and I have a renters policy with State Farm - only costs $10 a month for about $10k in coverage

Louise - posted on 05/29/2012

I can only quote English law which is the tennant is responsible for their own insurance unless stated in the contract. It is up to you I am afraid.

Sally - posted on 05/29/2012

A landlord's insurance is to protect them if their building is damaged. The renter is responsible for protecting anything they bring into that building. That's what renter's insurance is for. I'm sorry you didn't find out that was your responsibility until after you lost some things, but your ignorance is not your landlord's responsibility.

Katie - posted on 05/28/2012

That's what renter's insurance is for. We were renting a house out to a lady who caught it on fire. If you don't have insurance, whatever personal items that got damaged will NOT be replaced/fixed. The landlords insurance can only cover what is part of their building. If they try and pay for your stuff, we were told that could be considered insurance fraud. We had to wait til she had EVERY SINGLE ITEM of hers was out before they could come and fix our house.

Rebecca - posted on 05/28/2012

I think the rule is Landlords insure structure you insure your stuff. They are not liable for you things. However, if there is negligence from their part where they could have flood could have been avoided then they are liable.

Medic - posted on 05/28/2012

Property owners have to have property insurance....that does not cover any of your crap. It only covers the structures and their appliances. You SHOULD have gotten renters insurance which insures all your crap and nothing that is part of the property. Its like 6 bucks a month.

Amber - posted on 05/28/2012

Renters insurance is cheap...you should always pay the little bit extra for it!

Sarah - posted on 05/28/2012

Yes it is. It's called contents insurance. You absolutely should have it. A landlords insurance will cover the building itself, but not the contents.



I have to say, insurance is the one thing I would NEVER skimp on again. We had a storm sewer backup into our fully finished basement last September. We called the city and they checked the sanitary sewer instead of the storm sewer (which has a right of way along our back property line). We didn't know that they checked the wrong line. We were told it was a fluke thing. THAT flood caused $35 000 in damage to our house and contents ($9500 was contents alone). Then at the end of November 1 week before it was due to be finished the rebuild it flooded again. This time it was groundwater. We were told to put in a sump pump as it could be the weeping tile on the house but we couldn't dig it out to check because of the frozen ground. THAT flood caused $8000 in damage. Then in April we had a big snow melt. 6 weeks after our basement was rebuilt, it flooded again. We dug up the weeping tile and found out it was fine. The original flood clogged the pipe from our weeping tile to the city storm sewer. This clog caused the second and third floods. Because the basement was finished again, we had (estimated because we're still dealing with it) another $22 000 in damages to contents and house. So far this year, my insurance has paid out $65 000 in damages and contents loss. I paid (my rates are going up) $12/month for water insurance. We lived here 2 years when the first flood happened, which means my investments of $288 has saved me $64 712 dollars!



Don't ever skimp on insurance. It's one of those things you should have just in case but hope you never need to use.

Elizabeth - posted on 05/28/2012

It depend on the rental laws for your state. Check them

Sandy - posted on 05/28/2012

I manage an apartment complex and can tell you that there is no landlord I know of that protects your stuff. You need to carry both, liability coverage as well as personal property coverage. Don't underestimate how much you'll need. I guess you learned that lesson in a very expensive way. The landlords insurance normally only covers damage to the structure of the building.

~♥Little Miss - posted on 05/28/2012

Unfortunately I think it is all on you. Renters insurance is an important thing to have for these kinds of situations. Sorry.

Sherri - posted on 05/28/2012

Yes, it is your responsibility to have renters insurance and it is not the landlords responsibility to replace anything that was damaged. Sorry :(



The landlords insurance only covers the structure not for the personal items inside it.

Jessica - posted on 05/28/2012

In our state you have to have insurance yourself for your belongings when renting, the building owners insurance only covers structural damage here not replacing personal items.

Michelle - posted on 05/28/2012

Well if that is true in your area, then I guess you are responsible.

Amy - posted on 05/28/2012

Where we live they have renters insurance and if you want to protect your stuff from a loss we're required to have it, the landlord isn't responsible for our stuff.

Michelle - posted on 05/28/2012

your welcome

Amber - posted on 05/28/2012

thanks

Michelle - posted on 05/28/2012

If a person rents a home or apartment of any such.. they are to have insurance. I rented for years and every place I lived in, the places had insurance. I rented a small mobile home off of an elderly couple...They had insurance for the home. For fire, flood , etc. It is supposed to cover all damages.. You can have insurance yourself, But the couple should have insurance as well. Find out what the law is on renting in your area. It is the same as when you rent and something breaks. The landlord is supposed to replace and fix it.

Amber - posted on 05/28/2012

its like an apartment of four and the landlords are a couple and when i asked her she said your stuff will be replaced if u have insurance

Michelle - posted on 05/28/2012

If you are living in an apartment..Then the landlord should have insurance on the coverage of the damage. If it is an apartment building...Then it must be a company you are renting from. The company carries insurance. I would check this out.