Contents Insurance for one room

What’s Contents Insurance? 

Before we get into specific scenarios, what’s the go with Contents Insurance, you ask? 

Put simply, Contents Insurance can help you cover the cost of repairing or replacing personal items in your home if they’re lost, damaged, or stolen. Of course, nobody likes to think that their housemates might damage something or steal from them, but what if someone leaves the door unlocked, the tap running, or the oven on? This is where Contents Insurance can step in and help cover the cost of replacing things like clothes, appliances, technology, jewellery, and sports equipment. 

The types of insurance policies can vary depending on whether you’re a landlord living with a renter or a tenant living with a landlord, so let’s dive in a little deeper. 

Can you get Contents Insurance for a single room? 

For tenants 

Your insurance options don’t really change regardless of whether you’re living in a share house or renting from an owner occupier. You can get regular Contents Insurance, but you might find that Renters Insurance is cheaper and better suited to your needs. 

You could talk to your housemates about taking out a joint policy and splitting the cost, otherwise you can take out the policy yourself and tailor it to your own needs – pay for enough cover only to cover your items, and list only your own personal belongings in the policy. 

For landlords 

If you’re a live-in landlord and you’re renting out a room, standard Home and Contents Insurance won’t cover damage to your property caused by flatmates, tenants, or anyone living with you that isn’t family.  

You’d be better off getting Landlord Insurance, which could cover your property against both accidental and deliberate loss or damage caused by tenants or housemates. 

We’d suggest double checking your insurance policies before getting a new tenant in – just to be safe! 

What does Landlord Insurance cover? 

As a landlord, it may be wise to consider Building Insurance, which covers the building and permanent fixtures, Contents Insurance, which covers things like furniture and appliances, or a policy that combines them both. If you own an apartment, you can also get special policies designed for strata buildings, which are useful when the owners corporation insurance covers the building itself. 

Building Insurance (often called Home Insurance) policies will normally covers things like: 

• storm 
• fire 
• flood (often as an optional add on) 
• earthquake 
• vandalism 
• theft 

Some policies will offer optional add-ons to cover loss of rent, tenant default and malicious damage, making them ideal for landlords. 

Building Insurance covers permanent fixtures like kitchen cabinets and fences, but it won’t normally cover things that can be removed from the house, like furniture or appliances. If you’re renting your property out furnished or partly furnished (or if you’re letting a room while you live there yourself), you might want to look into taking out a Contents Insurance Policy as well. You can get your Building and Contents Insurance from different places if you like, but you’ll likely get a discount if you get a combined policy from one place.  

What does Renters Insurance cover? 

Renters Insurance and Contents Insurance are often used interchangeably. As a renter, you can take out a Contents Insurance policy to cover pretty much anything you keep in your home. It won’t cover damage to the home itself, but your landlord should have this covered already. 

Let’s say there’s a hailstorm and the house you’re renting takes some damage to the roof. The landlord should have insurance that covers those repairs (and even if they don’t, they’re still responsible for them). But if water got in and damaged your computer, you’d claim that damage on your own Contents Insurance policy. Clear as mud? 

If you have any extra-special items you want covered, like a great-grandma’s sapphire ring or a one-of-a-kind piece of art, you can also have those items specifically listed on your insurance policy, usually for an additional premium. 

If you list a specific item, it can often be covered away from home too, which makes it a good option for items like cameras, phones, or jewellery. 

Where can I find Home and Contents Insurance? 

Whether you’re a landlord or a tenant, we can help you find an insurance policy that suits your unique needs. Get the ball rolling now.