properly insured.
Protect Your Rental Property with Landlord Insurance
We provide important coverage for property owners who rent their property out to others, whether it’s their house, condo, or townhome. Landlord insurance is often referred to as rental property insurance in BC, and as a landlord, you should always be prepared for the unexpected.
While renting out your property to others can be a useful source of income, it is important that landlords protect this revenue source by ensuring they have an insurance policy designed to protect their property and their rental income, should they be confronted with a sudden loss.
Certain homeowner insurance policies provide coverage for renting out a portion of your home but they will usually only do so if the homeowner occupies a portion of that same property. If a landlord decides to rent out the entire property, insurance companies require a Rented Property insurance policy.
What Does Landlord Insurance Cover?
Landlord insurance covers a variety of items depending on whether the property in question is a detached home or a stratified condo. Here’s a summary of standard coverages included in a landlord insurance policy that will help protect you and your rented home as well as a few optional add-ons for extra peace of mind.
Property
For those renting out their condo, this part of the coverage provides protection, up to $500,000 for improvements and betterments conducted on their condo unit, should they experience a claim. For those renting out their entire home, this part of the coverage protects the dwelling, up to $1,200,000 on a Replacement Cost basis, as well as any detached private structures up to 10% of the dwelling limit.
Landlord’s Contents
Whether you’re renting out your Condo or your Home, you need coverage for the possessions you leave in the residence you rent out. This could be anything from the appliances that come with the home, like a washer, dryer, refrigerator, and stove, to a fully furnished house, that comes with numerous couches, tables, beds, dressers, and more. This portion of your Landlord policy provides coverage for those elements.
Rental Income
Arguably the most important reason why people own a rental property, is to earn additional income from it. But what if your home experiences a flood or a fire, and requires your tenants to be displaced, causing you to lose the rental income? Your Landlord Insurance policy will provide coverage, to a predetermined limit, for the loss of rental income due to a covered loss.
Premises Liability
Premises liability insurance protects landlords against potential lawsuits that may arise from injuries sustained by visitors to your rental home. Some simple examples may include friends or acquaintances who slip and fall on your stairs. Landlord’s owe a duty of care to their tenants and maintain the come and protect anyone who sets foot on the premises.
Types of Landlord Insurance in BC
There are different types of Landlord insurance and each tends to have a different degree of risk associated with it. As a result, different coverages are recommended depending on the specific situation.
Rental Home Property
Primarily designed to protect a detached single (family) home or a building that’s set up to accommodate more than one family living separately, this type of Landlord insurance is typically meant for long-term leases or predetermined rental agreements.
Rented Condo Insurance
Another common form of landlord insurance, which is quite similar to Rented Home Insurance coverage is Rented Condo Insurance. This is where the landlord owns a condo that he/she rents out to tenants, most often on a longer-term basis.
Insurance for Airbnb Rentals
Due to the increasing number of people renting parts of their home out, often on a short-term basis via Airbnb, this policy offers short-term rental coverage for places booked through Airbnb and requires a slightly different policy to be in place, compared to the previous two.
Our Online Landlord Coverage Details
Our online landlord insurance policy offers comprehensive landlord insurance offering that our BC customers love. It features a series of industry-leading coverages, elevated coverage limits, and it’s backed by superior, locally operated claims service. We have featured some of the key components of our online landlord policy below:
| Rented Condo Coverage Type | Limit of Coverage |
|---|---|
| Condo All-Inclusive Protection |
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| Condo Deductible Protection |
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| Landlord Contents |
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| Premises Liability |
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| And More! |
| Rented Home Coverage Type | Limit of Coverage |
|---|---|
| Dwelling |
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| Detached Private Structure |
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| Landlord Contents |
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| Fair Rental Value |
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| Premises Liability |
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| And More! |
- Coverages subject to eligibility and may change at any time.
Get your online landlord insurance quote!
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Enhance Your Coverage with Optional Add-Ons & Customizations
Water protection
This coverage provides broader water damage protection in the case of loss or damage caused by and happening at the same time as surface water, groundwater or sewer back up event. The coverage limits are the same as those available for Sewer Backup but may not be available to all BC residents, and is subject to the policy deductible.
Earthquake
Earthquakes are common in BC, with an average of 3,000 reported each year. To cover any damage caused to your home as a direct result of a seismic event, you can add earthquake coverage to your landlord insurance policy.
Other Customizations
In addition to a number of important add-ons, our online landlord policy provides you with a number of flexible and customizable coverage options. For example, you can select your policy deductible, home deductible protection limit, personal property limit, and even schedule special items such as jewelry, bicycles, and other items.
How Much Does Landlord Insurance Cost in BC?
Unlike Tenants insurance or Condo insurance, landlord insurance requires a more investigative and individualized approach as it considers more than simply the value of the property or the contents included within the property. The cost of landlord insurance varies, depending on the coverages that are selected. Typical landlord insurance policies can fluctuate between $30-$75/month.
Using our website, you can get a quote, purchase, and manage your policy online. Our online landlord insurance product is one of the most competitive ones in the industry and carries limits higher than the industry average. If you would like to know how much your landlord insurance policy will cost you, you can get a free quote using our system today.
If you do prefer to deal with one of our advisors, you can always give us a call and we would be happy to assist you. Alternatively, if you prefer to deal with our advisors face-to-face, all of our offices are well-equipped to provide you with an accurate landlord Insurance quote through one of the reputable insurance carriers we deal with.
Online Landlord insurance that meets your needs
Whether you’re looking for a basic Landlord policy for the Condo you rent out on an annual basis, or your Rented property insurance needs are a bit more complex, we have coverage options tailored to your unique rental needs.
Choose from a number of recommended options, designed for most landlords in BC. Or, take advantage of some flexibility in coverage options available to you, by customizing various parts of your insurance policy, such as:
• Increasing liability limit
• Increasing your deductible, therefore lowering your premium
• Scheduling special items such as bicycles, fine arts, jewellry, etc.
• Or adding a number of optional coverages, such as earthquake or enhanced water damage protection
Frequently Asked Questions
Landlord insurance is complicated. Below are a few answers to frequently asked questions about landlord insurance coverage, deductibles and premiums.
Please remember that your possessions are not covered for theft while your cottage is being rented out to others, and the belongings of any tenants, roomers or boarders are also not covered. They are required to have their own policy in place.
Should that happen, your landlord insurance may cover the damage they cause, depending on your landlord policy, the type and the extent of the damage caused. Keep in mind, the easiest way to differentiate between what is and isn’t covered is as follows: the property owner’s landlord insurance policy typically covers the structure of the building and the tenant's renters insurance covers the tenant’s personal belongings.
And don’t forget, landlord insurance does not provide any coverage for the tenant’s personal belongings, regardless of how the property was damaged.
Each of these situations presents its own set of unique risk exposures and therefore requires a unique landlord insurance policy to protect it. If you’re not sure what’s best for you, talk to one of our advisors.
- Landlord insurance typically also includes coverage for loss of rental income in case your tenants have to move out following a covered claim (such as a fire)
- With landlord insurance, coverage for personal belongings only applies to items you own, such as major appliances and furniture you’re including with the unit. This means damage to your tenants’ belongings doesn’t hit your insurance policy
- Other aspects, such as Liability coverages are also included in your Landlord Insurance policy, but coverage for enhanced water protection or Earthquake, are optional and are not standard included in most Landlord insurance policies.
Asking your tenants to carry renters insurance can also act as a good screening tool. If potential renter complaints about the cost or tenants insurance, it could be an indication that the potential tenant may not be able to afford the rent either.
Finally, rental insurance also protects the tenants in the event of a claim that gives way to them losing their possessions. Should that happen, renters insurance also provides them with coverage for additional living expenses so they can find alternative accommodation.