If you are a property owner, you should be in your resident’s renter’s insurance policy, listed as an “additionally interested” party. If you aren’t in it yet, you need to work on changing that. It’s vital that all your tenants have that list and your name is on it. To say someone has “additional interest” may seem to indicate that they have a financial interest. However, when it comes to renter’s insurance, that is not the case. It actually means that the person has a stake, or interest, in the property. With this definition clarified, it gives us a good picture of why the property owner should be listed as someone with “interest”. Some owners already require their renters to carry a renter’s insurance policy. While this is a step in the right direction, many of them fail to check the policy itself to see if they are properly listed on it. Requiring both a renter’s insurance policy and being correctly included in it are vital steps to guarding your rental home against unforeseen issues.
As the Waco rental property owner, you have all the reasons to be informed with what is happening to your property. This is what is listed as an additionally interested in your tenant’s renter’s insurance policy will do. When a property owner or property management company is properly listed as an “additionally interested” on a renter’s insurance policy, it would help you. If there are changes made to the policy– which includes the failure to renew it– the owner or property manager is notified. It’s critical that the owner or property manager know this valuable information. This is even more important when these policies are paid monthly.
Despite your name being written in a tenant’s renter’s insurance policy, and is being listed as an “additionally interested”, it does not grant the listed party any type of insurance coverage. As the owner, you can’t point to that policy and claim that your property is now protected. Rather, this list only gives access to information. It lets the owner verify coverage; that’s all it gives, nothing more. This distinction is important and must be explained well to a tenant to avoid any misunderstandings.
A tenant must also be notified that if they move, the policy will not automatically be canceled, and the name that’s listed as an “additionally interested” entity will also not be automatically taken off the policy. An owner listed as an “additional interest” does not have the power to make changes to the policy; they are not able to cancel it. The tenant is in charge of updating their policy. This means all necessary changes must be done by them, and if they stopped renting a home, they have to be the one to cancel the policy.
Nearly all insurance companies who offer renters insurance will list an additionally interested in the policy upon request. If your tenant tries to avoid adding you on their policy by claiming their insurance company will not, it may be because they are not asking for the correct action. Placing an additional interest is different from placing the owner or property management company as an additional insured. When you are sure that your tenant fully comprehends the distinction between the two, the process can proceed efficiently.
Explaining all the details of renter’s insurance can take a long time. But it is necessary that your tenants are protected by the right kind of insurance policies and that things have been set up to keep you notified when any changes are being made. As your Temple property manager, we handle all the details of operating a rental property, including working with tenants so that they can comply with the requirements of renter’s insurance in Waco. Insurance is an important part of protecting your valuable investment property; make sure that this is done perfectly with the help of the experts at Real Property Management Talent. To know more about what we can do for you, please contact us online or give us a ring at 254-401-0400.
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