Personal Property Coverage
The portion of a homeowners or renters policy that covers your belongings—furniture, electronics, clothing—against covered losses.
Personal property coverage (Coverage C in standard homeowners policies) pays to repair or replace your personal belongings—furniture, clothing, electronics, appliances, and similar items—when damaged or stolen. Coverage applies to belongings both inside the home and sometimes away from home (at a hotel, in your car). The coverage limit is typically 50–70% of the dwelling coverage limit.
Personal property can be insured at actual cash value (ACV) or replacement cost value (RCV). ACV pays the depreciated value of items; RCV pays the cost to replace them with new comparable items. For renters insurance, which only provides personal property coverage, RCV is strongly recommended. The upgrade from ACV to RCV typically adds only $10–$20 per year to renters premiums.
Some categories of personal property have sub-limits under standard policies: jewelry (often $1,500), art, silverware, guns, musical instruments, and cash may have low limits. For items worth more than the sub-limit, a scheduled personal property endorsement provides full scheduled coverage without depreciation.
Real-World Example
When their apartment was burglarized, the renters received $6,800 under personal property coverage for the stolen laptop, TV, and bicycle—minus the $500 deductible.