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Students assemble furniture in their new dorm room after moving onto campus at the University of Mary Washington in this 2004 file photo. Experts say that now is the time for parents to review their insurance policies to ensure that students' items are covered.
Parents help their daughter move into a dormitory at UMW in 2004. Parents also should look into their children's auto and health coverage to make sure they are adequately protected, industry experts suggest. |
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.
The coverage can come in handy for most college coeds whose dorm desks convert to dining tables when they eat in their rooms.
According to McCracken, most National Student Services claims are made on damaged goods, where a student dropped or spilled something on his property.
Last year the insurance company paid out over $2 million in claims, mostly due to Hurricane Katrina-ravaged universities.
At Dillard University in New Orleans, all of the students received $2,000 from their National Student Services policies after the hurricane, McCracken said.
"Granted it didn't help them cover all their property, but it sure helped them get some of their things back," she said.
Dillard is one of 50 schools nationwide that require all of its students to have property insurance through the company.
While the University of Mary Washington does not make property insurance mandatory for all students, the school does encourage proper health coverage.
It offers a health insurance policy through a contractor.
"If you think about it, a catastrophic accident or illness could totally wipe out a student's chances of finishing college," said Dr. Ilma Overman of the Mary Washington student health center. "We highly recommend that they either be covered by their parent's policy or that they have a supplemental policy of their own."
University students on their parents' car insurance should also update the policies before heading off to school.
Insurance giants like Progressive offer discounts to younger drivers.
Drivers under the age of 23 who attend college at least 100 miles away from home and do not have access to a car may receive a 10 percent break on their parent's policy.
The discount applies because the students are considered less of a liability, according to Progressive spokesman Shawn Fergus.
"The thinking is that these younger drivers, if in they're in college they're driving less," he said.
Also, drivers under the age of 19 who are on their parent's policy can receive a 25 percent discount on the car insurance. The policy must be active for at least two years.
Ultimately, before the start of a new semester, university officials and insurance agents say college students should learn to check off insurance on their to-do lists.
"That's really up to the students to secure," Porter said.
To reach KAFIA HOSH:
Email: khosh@freelancestar.com
