College students may need renters insurance

Ah, living life without the parents. For many college students, leaving home and living on campus - whether in a dorm, a fraternity house or an apartment - is a great way to stretch their independence. Dealing with roommates, rental agreements, landlords and packing boxes are uncharted experiences for freshmen moving away from home.

Unfortunately, some aspects of renting a home aren't as pleasant as the excitement of living alone for the first time. College students can be just as susceptible to home owner issues as their parents - issues like property theft, fire or water damage. Sometimes the parent's homeowner's insurance will cover the damage or theft to the student's belongings, but other times the student is on his own. Before the student leaves home, parents should consider contacting their insurance company and ask about property coverage for their child.

Most college students don't keep a lot of possessions on hand while studying at college, but collectively, victims of property crime on college campuses lost an estimated $17.2 billion in 2007, according to the FBI's Crime in the United States 2008 report.

Renters insurance is an option for college students moving into an apartment, because it allows the student to insure their belongings, even if they don't own the property itself. Renters insurance also can typically provide liability protection for visitors to their home.

For the student's more valuable equipment - say a computer or sound system - it may be a good idea for him to create a separate policy for those items, either through his renter's insurance plan or his parent's home insurance plan.

Renters insurance also may provide coverage for temporary housing if the dorm or apartment were to be significantly damaged by wind, water, fire or vandalism, for example.

Leaving home for the first time and moving cross country, or just to the other side of town, for a college education is a great learning opportunity for students on the ways to keep their property secure and protected.