There is the insurance that we buy because a lien holder or mortgage lender requires it. Then there is the insurance that we should buy whether it is required or not. Almost every leased property will have a paragraph in the lease devoted to the advisability and request of the lessor, whether an individual or a company, that you get content insurance. You are not, however, required to do so.
While apartment complexes and individual homeowners maintain insurance on their properties covering the structure and built-in interior portions of a property, in the case of theft, fire or flooding, your own personal possessions are not covered by anything. Unless you have obtained insurance for your contents, the entirety of your personal possessions may be stolen or destroyed and you have absolutely no recourse.
Homeowners will want, and their lender will require them, to carry a certain amount of insurance on the property. This should include liability insurance for any accidents or mishaps that may occur on the property, whether owner occupied or leased out. If the property is located in a flood zone, flood insurance is required. You should carry this type of insurance even if you are not required to.
Look at what happened in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, though that is an extreme example. What you don’t hear about unless it has already happened to you, are the places and homes that have been flooded due to excessive rainfall, tropical storms and other natural disasters that are not in the areas where these things normally occur.
With changing weather patterns and flooding rampant in many areas that have never before seen water penetration, property owners need to be vigilant. Lives have been devastated when there is not adequate insurance to allow people to rebuild and recover when disaster does strike.
Minimum automobile liability insurance is required by most states. If your vehicle has a lien on it, then you are required to have collision and various other amounts of liability in excess of the minimum required. It is also a good idea to have personal injury protection (PIP) which covers medical payments and lost wages in case of an accident. Car accidents and collisions happen in almost unbelievable amounts every day in every conceivable location. A smart person will carry more than the minimum even when not required to do so.
Do you really need life insurance on top of everything else? If you are married with joint obligations or children, then the answer is yes. Both husband and wife should have life insurance if there are minor children. Even if you have considerable assets, they will dwindle over time. Life insurance is the only sure thing that will keep your family from future, possibly devastating, financial hardship.
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