17May
Some leases have a clause in it that requires tenants to obtain renters insurance. Yes, it is legal for landlords to require tenants to get insurance as a condition of the lease. Even if you're forced into getting insurance because it's a requirement, you can see how it will benefit you as a tenant. It can help you recover damages for your personal property, for example. So why do landlords sometimes require it?
When there's a conflict between landlords and tenants, a landlord would typically prefer to deal with an insurance company because they have deeper pockets. Trying to recover money from a loss is much easier if the landlord has to work with a company with financial resources, rather than their tenant. This situation creates a bridge between the landlord and tenant, which enables damages to be recovered. If you're sued by your landlord, your insurance company takes care of it, regardless of if you're at fault.
This is important to the tenant because sometimes the damage could be your fault. Fortunately, most policies cover common damage issues. For instance, if you accidently left a hot pan on the stove, which in turn causes a fire and burns your stove, causing smoke damage. This means that your property is protected with the insurance, but your landlord's main concern is usually liability.
Another reason a landlord would want to require insurance coverage for tenants is that it can keep the landlord out of litigation. If a tenant is involved in a lawsuit, they may try to hold the landlord legally responsible for the issue. With renters insurance providing liability coverage, it helps ward off potential threats.
In the event of a fire or other natural disaster, the landlord is the one responsible for putting up the costs for a tenant relocation. Because many policies offer temporary living costs for the tenant in the event of a fire, it is obvious that the landlord would want to avoid covering these costs when they don't have to.
If the insurance is so helpful to landlords, then why does the tenant have to buy it, instead of the landlord? Typically, due to the structure of the insurance company, you can't purchase policies on behalf of someone else.
Also, landlords already usually have other protection for their property in most cases. When dealing with professional landlords, their insurance policy might mandate that tenants have an insurance policy too. This would mean that the landlord's insurance company has another insurance company to collect against when that party is liable, instead of going after a tenant. Because insurance companies are only able to protect a policy holder's direct interests, including liability, this means that legally only the tenant can pay for it.
Getting renters insurance can help avoid litigation in some cases, but it isn't a panacea for many issues. If you're a tenant who is having difficulties with your landlord and there are damages involved that aren't covered by insurance, then consider talking to a lawyer. At Wolford Wayne, we are committed to helping tenants understand their rights. Contact us today to get more insight for your situation.
Recovered on behalf of a group of 30 tenants living in an SRO in San Francisco who were living with horrendous conditions in their rent controlled apartments, including rodents, bedbugs, mold, water leaks and harassment.Read More
Recovered on behalf of three families living in a building in San Francisco’s SOMA neighborhood who were forced to live with substandard conditions for years as a result of their landlord’s negligence, including issues with lack of heat, lack of hot water and cockroach/rat infestations.Read More
Recovered on behalf of a couple living in a rent-controlled home in the outer Sunset neighborhood. Our clients were forced to vacate after the landlord served them with an Owner Move-In Eviction Notice. After the landlords failed to move into the property, our clients filed suit for wrongful eviction.Read More
Recovered on behalf of a San Francisco tenant in Russian Hill. Tenant was forced to vacate her illegal apartment in retaliation for reporting unlawful rent increases to the San Francisco Rent Board.Read More
Recovered for a single long-term tenant in San Francisco. Our client was forced to move out of his apartment as a result of extreme landlord harassment.Read More
Recovered on behalf of three long-term tenants in San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood who were constructively evicted due to noise and nuisance conditions created by their downstairs neighbors, which the owner refused to address.Read More
Recovered on behalf of elderly, disabled tenant who was forced to move out of her rent-controlled San Francisco apartment of 50 years after landlord/owner failed to resolve numerous building code violations that remained outstanding for over a decade.Read More
Recovered on behalf of seven tenants living in a makeshift boarding house in East Palo Alto.Read More
Recovered on behalf of two former San Francisco tenants who were evicted via an Owner Move-In Eviction and owner failed to occupy the unit as her primary place of residence.Read More
Recovered on behalf of an elderly long-term tenant who was forced to vacate her long San Francisco apartment as a result of her landlord’s refusal to address longstanding defective conditions, including lack of heat, mold, rodent infestations, and defective plumbing. Read More
Recovered on behalf of a San Francisco tenant who was forced to vacate his home as a result of ongoing, disruptive construction and the owners’ refusal to provide him with alternative housing. Read More
Recovered on behalf of a San Francisco family that was constructively evicted from their home in the Richmond District as a result of unlawful rent increases, defective conditions and tenant harassment.Read More
Recovered on behalf of a tenant living in an illegal “in-law” unit. In this case, a new owner purchased the building and then demolished our client’s unit without permits while she was displaced for seismic retrofitting.Read More
Recovered on behalf of two long term San Francisco tenants who were fraudulently evicted from their home of over twenty years under the pretext of an owner move-in eviction.Read More
Recovered for tenant who was injured when their stairway railing collapsed at the tenant’s Mission District apartment building.Read More
Recovered in action for a group of tenants forced to vacate their San Francisco apartment house due to severe habitability defects including mold and water leaks.Read More
For more information or to discuss your legal situation, call us today at (415) 649-6203 for a phone consultation or submit an inquiry below. Please note our firm can only assist tenants residing in San Francisco, Oakland & Berkeley.