Will My Homeowners Insurance Cover A College Student?

In most cases, your homeowners insurance policy will cover your child while they attend university. They must be under the age of 24 and need to be full time students living in on-campus housing. If your son or daughter does not meet these qualifications, more than likely they will need to purchase their own renters insurance policy.

Please keep in mind, the amount of coverage can be limited. To make sure you’re fully covered you may want to look into getting additional coverage so you have adequate protection. A few of the more common ways individuals expand on their coverage is with a renters insurance policy or dorm insurance. Adding extra insurance like these options can help you have the peace of mind in knowing you’re covered if the worst were to happen. 

In what ways does my homeowners insurance cover a college student?

Typically, your homeowners insurance coverage will extend 10% of the policies limits to college students that live away from the insured home. For example, a home insurance policy with $300,000 of personal property protection, covers a college student attending university for $30,000 in personal property protection. The student would have to be under the age of 24 and be living in on-campus housing to qualify. 

Most of you may be thinking, 10% isn’t nearly enough coverage. This is where additional protection comes in. You can either increase your current homeowners insurance policy limits or purchase a separate renters insurance policy. 

You may also decide to attach endorsements to particular items. Something like this can be helpful if the student plans to take expensive valuables to school. They may have an expensive electronics or jewelry. A standard homeowners insurance policy usually has caps and limits to items like these. 

Whats better for college students; homeowners insurance vs renters insurance

We know now that a homeowners insurance policy can cover a college student, but is it the best choice? Homeowners insurance typically comes with higher deductibles and the added coverage can always raise your home insurance rate, so dollar for dollar it may not be the best option when comparing it to renters insurance.

If the student truly wants proper insurance protection they may want to look into a separate renters insurance policy. This will help to extend benefits past the limits of a standard homeowners insurance policy.

Higher deductibles are a great reason using homeowners insurance may not be the best option to use if something happened to your students belongings. For example a renters insurance policy may come with a much lower deductible than the deductible attached to your home insurance. In addition, you can run into issues being able to file a claim. As an example, with a $1,000 deductible on your home insurance policy, you would not be able to claim compensation for theft or damages below that $1,000 amount. 

If you are able to file a claim the increase in premium may outweigh the actual benefits. When we look at the average cost of homeowners insurance and what the potential increase in homeowners insurance premiums may be, it doesn’t make the most sense to go this route. 

Potential benefits of my college student using my homeowners insurance while away at school;

• No additional cost of purchasing another policy
• Extends 10% of your property’s coverage as long as the student lives on campus
• The policy remains useful during summer months

Potential issues of my college student using my homeowners insurance while away at school;

• It would be impossible to make claims on items that cost less than your deductible
• Any claims you make will likely cause your premiums to increase
• Your own insurance score could be negatively affected if your student has to make a claim

Renters insurance may be an affordable alternative for college students

A renters insurance policy will come with significantly lower premiums. Your standard homeowners insurance policy averages $1,200 a year in the United States, whereas your standard renters insurance premium may be around $200 annually. Renters insurance policies can carry additional benefits as well. As long as the student purchases a policy, they may get the full amount of your personal; property and liability insurance coverage.

If you think that renters insurance is a little more than what you need, you can always consider dorm insurance. 

Would it be better to get dorm insurance over renters insurance? 

If the deductibles on a renters insurance policy seem a little excessive or unattainable, then looking into dorm insurance may be a better alternative. Deductibles for dorm insurance will typically run you around $100 or lower. 

Many times with dorm insurance your college student may only receive personal property protection with a standard homeowners insurance policy. You may want to look into buying liability insurance as well. 

With the lower premiums and added flexibility, a dorm insurance policy can be a good alternative. Especially if your student doesn’t have much in terms of personal property. 

At Eugene C Yates Insurance Agency we offer various forms of home insurance and we have amazing agents that can help you find the policy that fits your needs. Give us a call today, we’re nice people & we have great rates! 916 313 6100