Don't expect your landlord to help you replace anything if disaster strikes. Their insurance covers the building - not your things. Buy renters insurance to protect your belongings if they're stolen or damaged. Like home insurance, renters insurance also provides liability coverage if you're held responsible for injuries or damage.

Conduct an inventory to find out how much coverage you need. Check whether your insurance company offers an inventory app, or use the Insurance Information Institute's free online software at KnowYourStuff.org to help catalog everything. Standard home and renters insurance policies place dollar limits on valuables and special collections coverage, so you might need to buy additional coverage for those items. Besides helping you determine how much coverage you need, an inventory helps the claims process go smoothly.

Replacement cost coverage is pricier than actual cash value coverage, and here's why. With replacement cost coverage, the policy reimburses you for buying a new, comparable item to replace the one that was damaged. Actual cash value coverage pays you the current market value of the item that was damaged or destroyed. Say, for instance, a pipe burst and ruined a 5-year-old couch. Replacement cost coverage would pay for a new sofa. Actual cash value coverage would reimburse you for the cost of a new sofa minus five years of depreciation. Standard home insurance includes actual cash value coverage for personal property, but it's well worth the cost to upgrade to replacement cost.

Standard home and renters insurance policies do not cover damage from earthquakes or floods. You need to buy separate insurance policies for coverage in case either of those disasters strikes. Home and renters insurance also excludes coverage for business activities, even when the business is conducted from your home office, and limits coverage for business property.