Will My Renters Insurance Cover Hotel Expenses?

I have renters insurance. The homeowner decided to have a new roof put on the house. The homeowner hired her friend who is not reliable and knows he is not reliable and now only half of the house has a roof. Her friend stripped everything off the roof and it is exposed and we had thunderstorms and a lot of water leaked in which is a fire hazard. I want to immediately move out as I feel the house is unsafe. Will my renters insurance cover my hotel expenses while I took for a better place to live? The landlord has negligence as she new her friend is unreliable and he is probably not a licensed contractor. This situation is really affecting me. I have the Additional Living Expenses coverage on my renters insurance.

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Jim Winkler
CEO/Owner, Winkler Financial Group, Houston, Texas
That is a great question! I am sorry to hear you have been put into this situation, I know how hard it is to try to live life when things are so unbalanced; but remember "this too shall pass", just be strong in your faith that this too will get resolved. That said, your policy may very well cover a hotel stay, but it may not cover it for as long as it sounds like you might need. Unfortunately, without seeing what your policy says, I really can not tell you what it covers. My advice would be to contact your agent that you got the policy from, and find out exactly what the policy will and won't cover. Once you know that, then you will know better what your options are.
I hope that helps, be strong and gracious, your landlord might have been misled on how "handy" her handyman was also...Thanks for asking such a great question!
Answered on August 25, 2016
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Darald Novak AAI
Retired Agent and Broker, Self Employed, Albany NY USA
Contact renters insurance carrier, agent, or broker and file a claim after gathering all the facts you can about the occurrence: dates, names, addresses, etc. You might also want to get a legal opinion from an attorney about incurring expenses (your damages) to relocate and then commencing legal action against the 'friend.' Small claims court (if your 'damages' are within your state's small claims court maximum limit) may be the way to go if your carrier denies the claim and you cannot afford to hire a lawyer. Remember, small claims court is a civil action and a preponderance of good, specific, factual evidence will most often win the case.
Answered on October 12, 2016
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Scott W Johnson
Manager, Marindependent Insurance Services LLC, California
Your policy may cover you under Loss of Use coverage, which most renters and homeowners policies will have. However to be certain you would have to contact your insurance carrier and inquire with them.

The other things that renters insurance typically covers are: Personal Property and Liability coverage.

Thanks for the question.
Answered on January 5, 2017
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