HIXSON, Tenn. — When lightning set an apartment building on fire in Hixson, Angela Thapetta’s first thought wasn’t about her belongings.
It was getting her son out alive.
“I just rushed. I was panicked. I just wanted to save my son and myself and my baby, so I was in shock,” Thapetta said.
Thapetta, who is 20 weeks pregnant, says her autistic son, Isaac, was watching television inside their first-floor apartment when lightning struck Building 188 at Integra Vistas.
Her husband was out of town.
She says instinct took over.
Despite being pregnant, she rushed to get herself and her son safely out of the building as flames spread overhead.
“Everything is displaced for him, but he’s trying to cope up,” Thapetta said. “It’s been very difficult for him because he didn’t have a shelter. He didn’t have his usual room to eat.”
Now comes the hard part: Starting over.
Thapetta says she believed she had renters insurance through her apartment complex.
Instead, she learned the policy only covered the apartment’s liability waiver during the lease and did not insure her family’s personal belongings.
Photo via Angela Thapetta
It’s a mistake experts say many renters don’t realize until after disaster strikes.
“Moving forward, I wish they actually specify more about for the residents about what they are offering actually,” said Avinash Vemuri, Thapetta’s husband.
We reached out to a renters insurance expert, Chad Wolford with Rise Insurance Company.
“It’s more of a liability protection to help cover the landlord and and the community itself rather than the tenant’s personal property,” Wolford says.
Wolford says it’s important to read your policy closely.
“You’ve got to read the declarations page and see what’s covered,” Wolford says.
Wolford added that state law does not require that a complex cover tenant’s belongings
“It’s typically only required that you have the liability coverage. So that’s where these other types of coverages come in, or other types of policies from the landlord.”
The fire at Integra Vistas damaged 42 apartments and displaced about 70 people.
Remarkably, no one was hurt.
Friends have created a GoFundMe to help Thapetta and her family recover as they begin rebuilding their lives.
Depend on us to keep you posted.
MORE COVERAGE:
Alice J. Roden started working for Trending Insurance News at the end of 2021. Alice grew up in Salt Lake City, UT. A writer with a vast insurance industry background Alice has help with several of the biggest insurance companies. Before joining Trending Insurance News, Alice briefly worked as a freelance journalist for several radio stations. She covers home, renters and other property insurance stories.