What some people forget to look into is where they live.  If you live in a particular area that is susceptible to damage caused by mother nature, you may need to add to your policy.  Depending on your particular situation, you want to make sure that the necessary coverage is applied.

If you have any questions or concerns, make sure you contact an agent so you can rest assured.

All of the sudden you hear a few loud thuds and you rush to see what happened.  One of your friends slipped on your stairs, causing him to tumble to the bottom.  As you get closer, you realize that he has broken their arm.  Worried about the well being of the individual, you end the party and help him get to the hospital.  The next day you are feeling pretty good about yourself because you stayed at the hospital all night to comfort your friend.  A few weeks pass by before you find out that you are being sued for the cost of the injuries.

At this point, you are confused because you don’t feel that you were liable in any way.  In fact, you feel like you did everything you could have to help the situation.  Well, too bad! If someone is injured on your property, you are liable for costs incurred from the injuries.

While it may be impossible to prevent some of the misfortunes that come with life, being prepared pays off.  Renters insurance not only provides coverage for personal belongings, it also covers personal liability.  With this coverage, lawsuits related to injuries on your property can be much less stressful.

It greats better, renters insurance is very affordable.  Based on a national average, premiums can be as low as $160 a year!

10am: While sitting in chemistry, you hear of a fire back at the dorms.

10:30am: You rush back to the dorms after class to see what all the talk is about.

As you approach the dormitory, you begin to realize that the dorm that has caught fire is your dorm. As people evacuate, you are forced to stand by and watch all of your possessions go up in flames. You begin to panic, price tags start to race through your head. You know that you live on a limited budget that won’t cover the costs of your belongings! As you sit there, you begin to wonder what could have been done.

This situation probably hasn’t played out in your head and hopefully, you will never have to experience it. Unfortunately, situations like these do occur and when they do, they tend to leave behind a trail of devastation. The students of New Jersey’s Seaton Hall College know this agony all too well.

On January 19, 2000, students awoke from bed expecting another normal day at Seaton Hall. Before the day was out a massive fire swept through their dormitory, claiming lives and destroying precious possessions.
The worst part is, Seaton Hall is not unique. Including Seaton, there are twelve schools that have incurred deadly fires within the past few decades.

• Providence College
• University of North Carolina
• University of California
• Ohio State University
• Greenville (Ill.) College
• Texas College
• University of Tennessee .
• Murray State University (Ky.)
• Rutgers University
• Central Missouri State University
• Radford (Va.) University

As surprising as this list may seem, it only reflects deadly fires. Minor fires that destroy possessions and structures occur much more frequently.
On top of fires, college atmospheres like the dorms, increase the likelihood for accidents and crime.

Don’t wait until you are the one on the curb wondering if you could have done something.

Do something today and get yourself renters insurance to protect against the economic losses caused by fire, smoke and many other perils of college life.

With this fast paced growth occuring in this student housing market, it is often hard to stay on top of the lastest news. If you are looking for new developments in your area, StudentHousingPlanet.com is a great resource to get information on student housing projects and developments close to you.

These housing options give students the option of not only living in a comfortable setting but experiencing an enviornment unlike any other. With this enviornment, comes risks that students need to be aware of. By living in a highly populated area, risks like theft and damage of property tend to occur more frequently. With renters insurance offered at CRI, these worries can be alleviated. With the high cost of personal belongings these days, such as laptops, stereos, ipods, televisions, and so on, replacement costs can be detrimental financially.

If you do not want to be left vulnerable, renters insurance is a great option to keep you protected. With the high traffic that occurs in the dorms, you never know what may happen. It may not be your fault but regardless, you will be the one to pay for it if you are not covered. Renters insurance is very affordable and when it is compared to the cost of replacing expensive belongings like laptops and televisions, it looks even better. Depending on your coverage, you will be reimbursed for the depreciated value of your belongings or their replacement cost. At college renters insurance, you can rest assured that if something happens, you will be getting ever penny it takes to replace your belongings because we only offer replacement cost policies. Furthermore, our policy covers accidents that occur within the rented property. This means, if someone gets hurt in your place and they come to after you for money, you will be covered!

It is far too often the headlines read everything lost in apartment fire or thousands in damages to be paid on property damage. In this case, Crista Fischer is fortunate enough to have a renters policy that is expected to reimburse all of her expenses associated with the fire. Since her experience in December, Fischer insisted that “everybody needs to have renter’s insurance.”

Although most people know the risks they take on without coverage, Mike Shanahan, an Insurance company owner in Fremont, reported to the Fremont Tribune that its common for renters not to carry renter’s insurance.

For $10 a month it saved Crista and some policies are even less that! Look into coverage before your horror story hits the headlines!

Melodye Colucci-Stackpole, a Realtor with William Raveis Real Estate in Stamford discovered a fraudulent scheme last week when a potential customer called her about a rental property. The call raised some suspicion because Melodye did not have any rentals. After some investigation, she discovered the property the individual was calling about was a client’s property that she had listed for sale. Turns out, her craigslist listing fell victim to scammers looking to make a quick dollar.

The ad that she had placed on craigslist had been copied and resubmitted to the website as a rental property. In the new ad, all of the correct information was given regarding the address of the property, the owners name, and even the realtors name and number. The scammers also provided an email address which included the name of the owners as a means for communication.

The asking price for rent is generally much lower the market would allow to draw people in. In this case, this property could be rented for 3,000 but the scammers are only asking for 1,100. Once someone contacts the scammers via email, a intricate background story is given to explain why the “owner” had to leave the country. These stories vary but this particular case, the “owners” were forced to leave town to tend to business they have in Africa. Conveniently, for the scammers, the “owners” also took their keys with them to Africa so a walkthrough of the home is not available prior to renting. The “owners” elaborated further on their story by explaining that the rent amount is not their main concern, they just want someone who will be able to take very good care of their home while they’re away.

At this point, anyone interested is asked to fill out rental application that asks for a list of personal information. Of course, anyone who falls for this is going to be accepted, then comes the security deposit. If someone continues to fall for the act and sends the security deposit overseas, that’s the last time they will ever see that money. The whole purpose of this scam is to accumulate multiple security deposits and then the scammer disappears.

Stamford Police Sgt. Peter di Spagna said scams are as old as the Internet sites on which they appear. Spagna elaborates further on the matter by explaining similar scams he has seen in the past.

“They involve dogs, cars, furniture — there are constant variations of the same scams,”

To stay safe, anything involving anyone or any transaction that is out of the United States should be avoided. There is zero guarantee of what is going to happen to your money once it leaves the States.

In Coppell, TX, 20 people living in an apartment complex are going to be spending the holidays rebuilding their lives. Unfortunately, their apartment complex went up in flames and even worse, none of them had insurance. Many of the residents are still waiting to hear back from a restoration company on whether or not their apartment is salvageable. Some have already found out their apartments were a total loss.

James Banter, a resident at the complex, never bought a policy. Thankfully, he was able to make it out with his wife and dog but there’s no telling what else will be saved.

“We’re still kind of in shock. Being close to the holidays it’s kind of saddening, but this is what you have to go through sometimes I guess,” Banter said.

You may face tragedy at some point in your life as well but you can protect yourself from making a bad situation even worse. Renters insurance is very low cost with a very high reward. Don’t find yourself regretting decisions you should have made in the past, get covered!

The man had recently moved into a rental home in May and in September he came up with a plan. Sattler set his home on fire when his family was out after first removing his expensive belongings such as electronics. He then went forward with a fraudulent insurance claim. After investigators looked into the situation, items that were claimed to be lost in the fire turned up in different spots around town. Sattler is now facing six years in prison and a $15,000 fine.

This just goes to show, it doesn’t pay to take advantage of a system that is in place for protection, not gain.

When living off-campus, you take on a lot of responsibility as the lease holder. Make sure you and your roommates understand that if one person does not come through on there part of the rent or utilities, the remaining roommates will be left with the bill. This is one of the biggest differences between on-campus and off-campus housing.

Another aspect of where you live that should be looked at closely is safety. How safe is the area you want to live in? Is there a high amount of break-ins?

If you overlook these things you could end up in a housing situation you dislike but due to the contractual agreement you signed, you’re stuck!

In the current housing market, you really need to look around before committing. Don’t feel uncomfortable negotiating the price down either. There has been a large amount of housing that has become available in the past few years due to the recession.

“Don’t jump on the first place you find because you’re afraid you’re not going to get another one. If what you want is a reasonable, clean, safe place close to campus — you could go and get it now and be in it in a week. Ten years ago I couldn’t have said that.” (Bill Kirk)