Renters Insurance: What It Protects
Renters insurance (HO-4) covers the tenant's personal belongings, personal liability, and additional living expenses if the rental becomes uninhabitable. It has nothing to do with the building structure itself.
Landlord Insurance: What It Protects
Landlord insurance (a dwelling policy, often DP-3) covers the building structure, the landlord's own liability as a property owner, and often lost rental income if the property becomes uninhabitable due to a covered event. It does not cover the tenant's personal belongings at all.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Coverage | Renters Insurance | Landlord Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Building structure | Not covered | Covered |
| Tenant's belongings | Covered | Not covered |
| Tenant's liability | Covered | Not covered |
| Landlord's liability | Not covered | Covered |
| Lost rental income | Not applicable | Often covered |
Why a Landlord Would Require Renters Insurance
Many landlords now require tenants to carry renters insurance as a lease condition — not to protect the building (that's the landlord's own policy), but because a tenant's liability claim (a guest injured in the unit, for example) could otherwise become a dispute the landlord gets pulled into.
The Coverage Gap Without Both
With only 55% of renters carrying insurance nationally, a large share of tenants have zero protection for their own belongings even in buildings where the landlord is fully insured — the landlord's policy simply was never designed to cover what's inside a tenant's own unit.