Contrary to how some might expect a man in his industry to react, Henry Blumenthal shudders when he sees headlines like those coming out of Slave Lake.
“It makes me very sad,” Blumenthal, a VP and Chief Underwriter for TD Insurance, says of the Alberta town, which was levelled by a runaway wildfire last month. Many apartment units, housing hundreds of residents, were also destroyed by the inferno.
“It’s very difficult for those people, who will have to go back to mom’s place or get some help financially. It’s a disaster not only emotionally but financially, too.”
Blumenthal can see this perspective because, sadly, he knows the stats. The apartment buildings lost in the Slave Lake fires are comprised mainly of renters, and renters, the TD exec knows, are uninsured more often that not.
According to the latest Statistics Canada estimate, using 2009 data, only about 44 per cent of renters in Canada hold renters’ insurance, which covers tenants from perils like theft and damage caused by fire and water.
Where uninsured residents exposed to the Slave Lake fires are concerned, many may have lost everything, with little recourse to recover the value of their destroyed possessions.
Such tragedies are of no consolation to TD’s Blumenthal, even though his industry may stand to profit from burned tenants reaching out for help. Instead, the Slave Lake fires may become the latest chapter in Blumenthal’s crusade to get every Canadian renter covered.
Because home insurance is not regulated in Canada – coverage isn’t legally mandatory in the same line as auto insurance, for instance – many Canadian renters never seriously consider taking out a policy, Blumenthal notes.
Yet while it is not considered with the same seriousness as auto insurance, renters’ insurance is often lumped in the same pricing classification as car coverage – which is to say, people think it costs an arm and a leg. The reality couldn’t be more different.
As one industry rep told MSN recently, renters’ insurance can be had for “about the cost of a pizza a month” in most cases, a characterization Blumenthal signs off on.
According to Blumenthal, just 10-15 minutes on the phone with a representative can land many Canadian renters with coverage for as little as $20-$30 a month. If you happen to have a car, bundling your auto and renters’ insurance with TD can lower the cost of tenant coverage to as little as $10-$15 a month.
And don’t sneeze at what these low-cost plans can bring. Most TD renters’ insurance plans start with $25,000-$30,000 worth of contents protection – coverage to your material assets in the face of fire, floods and theft – as well as million-dollar liability coverage, which is what may matter most should misfortune strike.
“People think about their possessions, but they forget about their liability,” Blumenthal says.
This isn’t something Canadians should be shamed about. It’s natural, in the face of disaster, to consider your personal belongings first. After all, what else is your apartment or condo filled with?
But the liability that comes with “simple negligence,” in the TD underwriter’s words, can be costly, and may be the above-all-else reason to consider renters’ coverage.
Blumenthal offers a hypothetical, though one rooted in years of experience. Let’s say you’re cooking dinner in your unit, which sits in an apartment building surrounded by dozens, if not hundreds, of other tenants.
Maybe the phone rings, and the stove catches fire – “Totally by accident,” Blumenthal interjects – and you set fire to your building, damaging other units. Such a scenario, however grim or unlikely, could lead to a lawsuit. Unless you hold renters’ insurance, like those TD policies that offer million-dollar liability protection, tenants would be alone to incur those legal costs.
This, Blumenthal says, should be a selling point to young Canadians that rent.
“You’re just starting in life, you just got a new job and got out of mom and dad’s place,” the TD exec says, noting the high cost of a tenant liability lawsuit. “That’s not a good experience to start with, having a strong level of debt like that.”
Blumenthal’s advice for renters? Talk to your insurance representative, who should be able to offer inexpensive coverage – even cheaper if you also hold auto insurance with your provider.
In less than 15 minutes, Canadians can have coverage over the phone, or they can log onto TDInsurance.com, where they can view different policy options and find a free quote for what coverage they may need based on their assets, possessions and risk level.
Fortunately, Blumenthal says he sees an uptick in renters taking out coverage, thanks largely to many Canadian landlords now requiring their tenants to have protection before they rent. “The trend is favourable now,” the TD exec says.
But there’s still a long way to go. Blumenthal hopes to promote the affordability of renters’ insurance to as many Canadians as possible, especially younger tenants who may not otherwise consider protection.
Because, as insurers see when tragedies like the Slave Lake fires hit, what remains when misfortune hits isn’t much.
“Sometimes victims are left with nothing,” Blumenthal says.
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