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College students should consider all types of insurance such as property coverage before starting school. Date published: 8/20/2006
By KAFIA HOSH Dorm room essentials: check. Textbooks: check. School supplies: check. Insurance: double-check. Most college students have all of their school basics covered, but not all of them include insurance on their checklists. In a busy dormitory swarming with coeds, a laptop in an unlocked room is a sitting duck waiting to be snatched up. "It's incredibly rare for us to have someone break into a room," says Chris Porter, student life director at the University of Mary Washington. "It's always an unlocked door, someone let someone they didn't know into their residence hall." Property insurance can protect expensive electronic equipment such as digital music players, camera phones and sleek computer notebooks. And while students can have their belongings covered under their parents' homeowners insurance, the policies may not extend to all property. As students begin heading off to college, now is the time for parents to review their coverage. "A lot of parents do not think about the issue," said AAA Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman Windy VanCuren. "They just assume their children are covered without double-checking. It may only cover them up to so much money." Parents can add a rider policy to their homeowners insurance to stretch out coverage. "They would probably pay a little more money for the rider policy, but it would extend more coverage to their child in case something happens," VanCuren said. For off-campus dwellers, renter's insurance can protect property. Or undergraduates can opt to get their own personal-property coverage. National Student Services Inc. is an Oklahoma-based insurance company that covers middle school, high school and college students' belongings. The company insures most lost or damaged property including clothing, jewelry, textbooks, electronics, linens and sports equipment. Without adequate property insurance, if students "have a camera or iPod in a book bag that's stolen, they can't file a claim on that," said Aimee McCracken, office manager for National Student Services. The company insures 80,000 students worldwide, of which 85 percent attend college. The average student takes out a $5,000 policy that costs $130 per year and has a $25 deductible, according to McCracken.
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