What does renters insurance cover if there is a fire in my apartment? In my building? In my neighbor’s home?

In the event of a fire, the average renters insurance policy will cover “losses” up to a certain threshold.

That fire cannot be ignited on purpose by the policyholder for the goal of collecting money — that is considered insurance fraud, and it’s a crime. But there’s often a clause that allows for “stupidity,” says longtime Philadelphia insurance agent Troast Singley.

That means it doesn’t matter whether you left the stove on too long and the pot burned up and set the curtain on fire, or if a child got ahold of something flammable and caused the fire, or if a careless neighbor lets their own fire get out of control and it burns down or causes damage to your apartment.

Why? Because insurance companies want to avoid what’s known as a “bad faith” claim against them, which essentially means that policyholders can ask regulators to crack down on companies that don’t cover claims detailed in the policy coverage documents.

Does it matter if my landlord’s electrical wiring isn’t up to code? What if my landlord doesn’t provide smoke alarms or the sprinkler system is not up to code?

No, it doesn’t matter for you and your renters insurance policy.

“Renters insurance will pay for the tenant’s contents, regardless if there is a code issue with the building,” wrote McCollum, the insurance broker.

But it does matter for your landlord. That’s because the insurance company will look to file a lawsuit to get reimbursed for expenses with the landlord’s insurance policy picking up the tab, because the landlord was at fault.

So the renters insurance company will file a lawsuit, if necessary, to recoup expenses paid to you, the renter, for reimbursement with the landlord’s insurance company policy on your behalf. That’s one facet of what you are paying for.

What if my smoke alarms are sitting in my kitchen drawer at the time of a fire?

That same concept where companies can’t avoid paying out legal claims even if it’s due to a mistake will apply.

“Renters insurance will pay for the tenants’ contents, if the sprinkler system did not work or malfunctioned. Same for the fire and smoke alarms,” McCollum continued.

What should I do if my renters insurance claim is denied by the company?

You can appeal any denial of insurance coverage claim, whether it’s health, life, auto, renters, home or others. Check your state’s insurance department consumer protection unit for the most accurate information. In Pennsylvania, there’s an agency that can help.

Keep in mind, some Philadelphia landlords are now requiring that tenants have renters insurance.

Philly tenant rights advocate Nicole Lawrence said that renters should read the fine print before signing anything, ever.

“We’ve also had some tenants come to us that thought because they had renters insurance, that their personal property would be covered and their belongings would be covered,” Lawrence said. “And unfortunately, that was not the case. The only thing that was covered was the actual dwelling of their unit in the building, not their personal contents.”

The Philadelphia Tenant Union Representation Network has a free hotline that takes calls and hosts drop-in webinars for renters to better understand their rights in the city. That hotline number is 215-940-3900.

What else does renters insurance often cover?

It depends on the exact policy, but some can include increased protection for electronics like televisions, computers, smartphones or luxury items like jewelry. That wouldn’t likely be standard coverage, though, and might cost extra.

“If you are the policyholder, you are responsible for what you can control and what the policy lists,” said Cook, the Saint Joseph’s University professor.

That could include fire, smoke and water damage due to fire sprinklers turning on. It’s important to know that does not include floods, as in water that arrives from the ground up, not the roof down.

“If there’s a fire in my apartment building a few units down and luckily it didn’t reach my unit, I’m so happy about that, but maybe I have to get fans to blow the smoke out and maybe got some water coming down one side and that hit my TV, my sectional,” Cook said. “Damage to my property would be covered.”

Not everything that causes damage to an apartment is covered by renters insurance.

“Renters insurance does not cover flood. A standard renters insurance policy will cover water damage from a burst pipe, but flood or surface water is excluded. If a tenant desires flood coverage, they would need to purchase flood insurance coverage [separate from renters insurance],” McCollum wrote.

Most renter’s insurance policies include personal liability. That means if your dog bites the child of your neighbor while you’re walking down the street and they file a lawsuit against you, your attorneys fees are covered.

But it won’t cover all animals.

“Most insurance policies have exclusions for exotic pets,” McCollum wrote, meaning they aren’t covered.

More common are issues with dogs. Insurance companies are more likely to cover if the dog is not a restricted breed, does not have a history of biting people and has proof of obedience training.

“[The insurer] may ask questions like, ‘Has your puppy been to puppy school? Do you keep it on a leash?’ You’re out there walking [in your neighborhood]. I see it all the time. Everyone wants to stop and say hello and pet them,” Cook said. “All you need is one dog bite. Everything’s great with your neighbors, you don’t even know their name until they go to the ER or perhaps need multiple surgeries. All of sudden, you’re into a six-figure lawsuit.”

Planning ahead helps save individuals the pain and extra work of begging for money from relatives and strangers on the internet later, Cook said.

“For just a couple hundred bucks a year for renters insurance versus thousands and thousands of dollars that you have to pay out of pocket or begging someone to help you with lawyers fees or [set up] a GoFundMe,” Cook said. “Somebody might say, ‘I fell in your apartment, I had a little too much to drink because I was bumming over that Phillies loss.’ All of a sudden my host liquor liability in my apartment comes into play. These are things that people just don’t think about, understandably, until it happens to you.”