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Assurant Renters Insurance Review 2020
Assurant renters insurance comes with two types of coverage: personal property coverage and personal liability coverage. It also offers extra protection from pet damage, identity fraud expense, earthquakes (only in Washington State and California) and involuntary unemployment if you lose your job.
Assurant is known for below-average customer service, and there aren’t many discounts available, like from some of its competitors. That said, if you have car insurance through Geico, you can bundle your Geico policy with your Assurant renters insurance and get a 3% discount on your car insurance policy. Still, your monthly premium on your car insurance would need to be over $400 for this discount to offset the price you’ll pay for your Assurant policy.
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The specs
Assurant offers two renters insurance policies: “Protect your belongings” or “Just cover the basics.” Pricing below is based on coverage for an apartment in California with specialized coverage for an earthquake.
| Price | Rates include: $12.67/month; $50,000 liability; $250 deductible
$13.00/month; $14.34/month; Replacement cost is included in quotes. You can pay monthly, quarterly or annually (best |
| Best for | Someone who wants specialty coverage |
| Not for | Someone who picks insurance based on customer reviews |
| States served | All 50 states and Washington, DC |
| Discounts | Multi-policy |
| AM Best Rating | A |
| Standout features | Long list of specialty coverages |
The claim
Assurant makes a few standout statements concerning its renters insurance.
You can add your roommate to your policy. That way, you share the cost of your coverage for personal belongings and liability.
Assurant includes several types of coverage that you’d probably pay extra for, and it also offers options you won’t usually find from competitors.
Is it true?
1. Yes. Your roommates are covered by Assurant renters insurance at no additional cost. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) gives Assurant Group an A+ rating.
2. Yes. Assurant renters insurance includes coverage for:
- Fire
- Theft
- Smoke
- Aircraft
- Vehicles
- Lightning
- Freezing
- Explosion
- Vandalism
- Pipe bursts
- Power surge
- Windstorm or hail
- Riot or civil commotion
- Volcanic eruption
- Ice, snow or sleet
- Cracked AC, water or heating system
- Earthquakes
- Pet damage
- Food spoilage
- Bed bugs
- Floods
- Falling objects
Competitors don’t always consider some of these items.
Our deep dive
Because Assurant’s focus is on rental insurance rather than all other insurance, it can offer inviting optional coverages that few other insurance carriers provide. It also has low deductible plans that are also somewhat uncommon.
Assurant’s renters insurance coverage is in line with competing companies with a few notable add-ons, and it also gives you the flexibility to customize the limits of your policy.
Assurant renters insurance protects your belongings from a standard set of perils:
- Theft
- Smoke
- Burst pipes
- Explosions
- Fire and lightning
- Windstorm and hail
- Vandalism and malicious mischief
Also, renters can supplement their policy with optional coverages for an additional fee:
- Replacement cost coverage that will pay for the full replacement cost of an item.
- Sewer backups that cover damage to your property as a result of a clogged sewer or drain.
- Pet damage coverage to repair or replace any items your furry friend damages
- Rent insurance in case you lose your job and can’t pay your rent for a month or more.
- Identity fraud coverage that will pay all costs you incur as a result of identity theft or fraud.
- Earthquake coverage that pays for damage to your property (only available in Washington State and California).
Cost rundown
Assurant renters insurance has lower-than average deductible options, ranging from $250 to $500. The coverages come with options between $5,000 and $95,000, which are equally as flexible. Renters can get personal liability coverage for up to $300,000. Renters who choose to take advantage of Assurant’s unemployment insurance option can receive a maximum of $500 a month for up to two months.
The main discounts you get with Assurant is through the payment plan you choose. But you will get the best rate by paying for your coverage in full, making four quarterly payments or bundling with your Geico car insurance policy.
Cheaper alternatives
When compared to other companies that offer renters insurance, Assurant was consistently higher. For example, this are rates for coverage for a single 32-year old female, living in an apartment in Chicago with one pet.
| Allstate | Assurant | State Farm | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deductible | $500 | $500 | $500 |
| Coverage | 30,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 |
| Yearly cost | $212 | $307 | $136 |
Both State Farm and Allstate offer a discount to bundle your renters and your car insurance policies. Assurant offers a discount if you bundle your Geico car insurance with your renters insurance. Read more about affordable renters insurance.
The competition
Both State Farm and Allstate are competitors of Assurant, and both offer lower rates for the same coverage as Assurant. Lemonade also provides renters insurance for as little as $5 per month. Assurant does offer a deductible as low as $100. The lowest deductible offered by Lemonade is $250.
State Farm’s lowest deductible is $1,000. A low deductible provides a few advantages to renters. First, if you make a claim, you typically get a bigger check. For instance, if you had a fire in your apartment and you lose $3000 worth of your belongings, Assurant will pay you $2,900, whereas State Farm will only pay $2,000.
Discounts can also add up. Like all three insurance carriers, American Family offers one of the highest discounts on renters insurance–30% if you bundle your policy with other insurance plans from the company.
J.D. Power & Associates gives State Farm five stars for overall satisfaction, policy offerings, price, the billing process and interaction. It gives Allstate two stars for overall satisfaction, cost, billing process and interaction, three stars for policy offerings and five stars for claims. American Family gets five stars across the board, as does USAA insurance. Assurant isn’t listed.
AM gives Assurant it’s Best “A” rating for an insurer’s ability to meet its financial obligations to its customers.
What others are saying
For customer service, Assurant has mixed reviews for making a claim or contacting a provider. Renters also said they had trouble canceling a policy, which can’t be done online. According to Consumer Affairs, Assurant renters insurance has an overall satisfaction rating of 1 ½ stars based on 112 ratings submitted in the last year.
On the Better Business Bureau, Assurant receives 1 star based on 114 customer reviews.
Too long, didn’t read?
Assurant has affordable basic and add-on coverage in all 50 states and Washington, DC. It offers a usable and comprehensive website with a great deal of information. Coverage and pricing meet most every renters needs with specialty coverage available for a price. Assurant doesn’t offer any discounts other than the small discount for bundling your renters insurance with Geico car insurance. Compared to the 30% discount given by American Family, the 3% bundling discount is small.
Assurant also falls short when it comes to pleasing its customers, with more complaints than praises across the board. It’s also more expensive than the companies we compared. But if you want extra coverage in case your pet eats your sofa or unemployment protection in case you lose your job, Assurant can help, whereas its competitors may leave you hanging.
Keep Reading
Methodology
The SimpleScore is a proprietary scoring metric we use to objectively compare products and services at The Simple Dollar.
For every review, our editorial team:
- Identifies five measurable aspects to compare across each brand
- Determines the rating criteria for each aspect score
- Averages the five aspect scores to produce a single SimpleScore™
Here’s a breakdown of the five aspect scores and their rating criteria for our renters insurance reviews.
Why do some brands have different SimpleScores on different pages?
To ensure the SimpleScore is as helpful and accurate as possible, we developed unique criteria for every category we compare at The Simple Dollar. Since most brands offer a variety of financial solutions, their products and services will score differently depending on what we’re scoring on a given page.
However, it’s also possible for the same product from the same brand to have multiple SimpleScores. For instance, if we compare State Farm’s home insurance according to our criteria for the best home insurance, it scores a 3.8 out of 5. But when we compare State Farm according to the criteria for the best auto insurance, it scores higher, since the features the company offers can vary by the type of insurance.
Discounts
We awarded higher scores to insurance providers with more discounts available on their website.
Coverage Options
We gave providers with more renter insurance coverage options a higher score because they’re more likely to have a policy that best meets your needs.
Support
We awarded higher scores to renters insurance providers with the most channels for customer support.
Customer Satisfaction
We leveraged the J.D. Power Home Insurance Satisfaction Study℠ to see how customers rated their experience with each insurance provider. (If a provider wasn’t included in J.D. Power’s study, we skipped this aspect and averaged the four remaining aspect scores.)
Accessibility
We awarded higher scores to insurance providers that have more online and mobile features to easily manage your policy and claims.
