Renters insurance that fits your lease.

The named perils on a renters form

A standard HO-4 renters form is written on named perils: a loss counts only if its cause is on the list. North Carolina's Department of Insurance lists 16:

• Fire or lightning; windstorm or hail; explosion; riot or civil commotion
• Aircraft; vehicles; smoke; vandalism or malicious mischief
• Theft; volcanic eruption; falling objects; weight of ice, snow or sleet
• Accidental discharge or overflow of water or steam from plumbing, heating, air conditioning, fire sprinklers or a household appliance
• Sudden and accidental tearing apart, cracking, burning or bulging of a steam or hot water heating system, air conditioning, fire sprinklers or a water heater
• Freezing of plumbing, heating, air conditioning, fire sprinklers or a household appliance
• Sudden and accidental damage from artificially generated electrical current

The California Department of Insurance's guide lists flood, earthquake, earth movement, insects, rats or mice, seepage or leaks, mold, and wear and tear among perils generally not covered by a homeowners policy, and says flood is generally not covered by homeowners or renters policies. Note the line between a sudden discharge, which is on the list above, and seepage, which is not. Carriers write their own versions, so I compare the peril and exclusion sections side by side.

Who counts as an insured in your household

"Insured" is a defined term that decides whose belongings and liability a policy answers for. NY DFS says an insured is often any relative or dependent person in your care who lives in your household. The filed Shelter HO-4 lists you, your relatives, and anyone else under 21 living in your household who is in your care or a relative's care. It defines a relative as someone related by blood, marriage or adoption who primarily lives in your household, including your unmarried, unemancipated child away at school.

An unrelated adult roommate fits none of those categories in that form. The Insurance Information Institute says a dorm student who is still part of the parents' household falls under the parents' homeowners or renters policy, an off-campus student will probably need their own, and policies vary.

Before two people share one policy, read the exclusions. The Shelter form excludes bodily injury to any insured, and to any resident of the insured premises, under both personal liability and medical payments. CDI likewise says medical payments don't apply to people who live in your household. More: does renters insurance cover roommates.

Displaced in California: loss of use for renters

CDI lists renters loss of use as generally 20% of the personal property limit. After a covered loss tied to a declared state of emergency, California adds:

• Time. Insurance Code 2060 sets ALE at no less than 24 months, with extensions for reconstruction delays, subject to other policy provisions. CDI warns that most renters policies pay only until you can move back or for a reasonable time to find another rental, whichever is less, and dollar limits can run out first.
• Evacuation. When a civil authority order restricts access to the home because of a covered peril, Section 2060 requires at least two weeks of ALE, with two-week extensions for good cause. Keep every receipt.
• Unlivable without damage. CDI says ALE can apply when a covered peril cuts off water, sewer or electricity, even with no damage to the unit, and should continue while a county health department finds smoke or ash makes the area unsafe. An insurer may offer a reasonable alternative, such as a generator, and a utility's public safety power shutoff doesn't count.
• Total loss. Insurance Code 2061, written for a "residential property insurance policy," lets you request at least four months of ALE in advance after a total loss, and requires insurers to accept a contents inventory grouped by category after a total loss of a primary residence. Ask your adjuster in writing whether the insurer applies it to your renters claim.

Official sources

• California Department of Insurance, Residential Insurance: Homeowners and Renters
• California Department of Insurance, Insurance coverage for additional living expenses if the home is not habitable due to a wildfire
• North Carolina Department of Insurance, Renters
• New York DFS, Homeowners & Tenants Insurance: What Consumers Need to Know
• Shelter Insurance HO-4 (01-07) policy form, posted by the Oklahoma Insurance Department
• Insurance Information Institute, Renters Insurance (consumer guide)
• NAIC, Home Sharing: Insurance Options and Limitations
• California Insurance Code section 2060 (additional living expenses)
• California Insurance Code section 2061 (state of emergency advances and inventories)
• California Insurance Code section 2051.5 (replacement cost; time to collect)