Jorge Barrera
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 10/01) - Prudence is the name of the game when it comes to insurance and apartments, according to insurance experts.

Ron Dennill, branch manager for Aon Reed Stenhouse Inc. Insurance Brokers, said tenants should protect themselves when renting an apartment.

"Your contents are your contents. You can't claim your contents under another's insurance coverage," said Dennill.

"If you're a tenant and the building burned down, if you don't have insurance, you're on your own."

Dennill said this applies to people living in apartments or renting a suite in a house.

Tenants can buy a tenant's insurance package to protect property and themselves, but most tenants don't take out insurance.

Dennill doubts that more than 50 per cent of tenants have insurance.

"I'd say in the North there is still not that many (who have tenant insurance)," he said.

Those who don't have insurance leave themselves open to lawsuits if they ever cause a fire that destroys the building.

Dennill said the building owner's insurance company could sue the tenant if it was determined they caused the fire.

Tenant insurance covers that liability, said Dennill.

He also said it's in the best interest of building owners to have tenants take out their own insurance.

"(Owners) have the opportunity to recover what they lost, and if the tenant doesn't have insurance there is a slim possibility of recovery," said Dennill.

An insured tenant also has a better chance of suing the owner of the building if it is determined the owner is responsible for the fire.

Once the insurance company pays for losses to the tenant, it can then sue the owner for those losses.

"It's called subrogation," said Dennill.

"Once they paid you for the loss they can step into your shoes and sue for the damage that they paid for your loss of property."

Dennill said it's important that home owners who open a rental suite inform their insurance companies.

While premiums may increase, they can get insurance to cover loss of rent in case of a disaster. Dennill said rent counts as income.

An uninsured tenant can sue their landlord, but the outcome depends on the courts and varies from case to case, he added.