is landlord insurance necessary for liability coverage?

[Rohit Naringrekar]

We are renting a condo. The condo association insurance covers the structure and we don't have any expensive items in the condo. The only protection we need is liability coverage- to protect ourselves from the tenants suing us for anything. If the tenant gets renter's insurance for herself, do we still need to get our own landlord insurance? Can we ask the tenant to add any specific coverage that makes our landlord insurance unnecessary?

[Jeff Bridges]

Take a closer look at your building condo policy or call the company to confirm the type of coverage and if you are underinsured. You need to confirm if it covers items studs-in coverage or if it will replace the entire construction of the apartment in case of a catastrophic incident like a fire. My condo building policy only covers items studs in, so they will rebuild the structure around my condo, but I will be responsible for electrical wiring, kitchen, bathroom, drywall - everything from a blank slate. As a result, I have an additional homeowners condo policy for landlord, which is building only coverage to cover these additional construction items that the condo policy is not responsible for (these don't count as contents). Ask to get a copy of the policy if possible. For liability insurance, they usually require you to not only have condo homeowners insurance (even for landlords), but will require a minimum coverage and liability will cover anything above and beyond those limits from the standard policy. first talk to your building manager then call an insurance agent to figure things out. I'm thinking you'll need a condo policy on top of your planned liability policy.