California Landlord Insurance

A landlord may be liable to the tenant or others for injuries caused by dangerous or defective conditions on the rental property, as well as criminal activity and environmental hazards such as lead. A tenant can file a personal injury lawsuit for unlawful eviction, medical bills, lost earnings, pain and another physical suffering, permanent physical disability and disfigurement, and emotional distress.

Not all insurance policies are the same. Coverage and methods of settling your claims can be drastically different from one insurance policy to another. So, give us a call to discuss your particular situation.

Know what your policy covers. Determine what you want your policy to do for you in the event of a claim. Landlords who want minimal coverage to protect their property from major causes of loss, such as fire, wind, or explosion, should consider a named peril policy, which actually names the types of losses that will be covered in the policy. For those landlords who want the broadest coverage available, a comprehensive policy is an answer. It covers all types of accidental losses, except those that are specifically excluded in your policy. Besides the base coverage within your policy, you will need to decide what optional coverage needs to be included. These can include but are not limited to liability, loss of rents, other structures, theft, personal property, vandalism or malicious mischief (sometimes included in the policy), and earthquake.

Make sure that besides physical injury, your policy also covers libel, slander, discrimination, unlawful and retaliatory eviction, as well as invasion of privacy suffered by tenants and guests. It is important to carry liability insurance on all the motor vehicles used in the business, including the car/truck driven by the manager if he/she uses it to do the job.