Renters insurance, also known as tenant insurance helps a person/family cover for unforeseen situations like theft or personal injuries. Situations where one needs coverage for replacing or repairing personal items, paying bills when you accidentally damage someone’s property, etc are where renters insurance kicks in. Geico and Lemonade are two popular companies that offer renters insurance.
Geico Renters Insurance vs Lemonade Renters Insurance
The main difference between Geico Renters Insurance and Lemonade Renters Insurance is that Geico Renters Insurance is not offered by the company itself but by the partner companies across the US. On the other hand, Lemonade Renters Insurance doesn’t have any third-party sales agents and interact with customers directly.
Geico Renters Insurance is one of the many insurance companies in the US that offers renters insurance policies. It offers the policy through partner companies and the agents are allotted to the customers without giving any prior choice. The additional discounts changes for various third-party agents but the base coverages are almost the same.
Lemonade Renters Insurance carries most of their work offline and their policies are straightforward. One can both buy the insurance and make claims either through the company’s website or mobile app. Lemonade has an app for both Android and iOS users.
Comparison Table Between Geico Renters Insurance and Lemonade Renters Insurance
| Parameters of Comparison | Geico Renters Insurance | Lemonade Renters Insurance |
| Availability | Geico Renters services is available in every US state through various partner companies. | It is available in twenty-seven US states plus Washington, DC. |
| Third-party | Geico doesn’t directly sell its renters insurance and carries it out only via third parties. The customers don’t get to choose the partner company. | Lemonade Renters Insurance is directly sold to the customers via the app or website and they do not have any sales agent. |
| Coverage | The exact coverage for Geico Renters Insurance depends on the partner company that a customer is assigned. | There are four types of coverage under Lemonade Renters Insurance and they pay on a replacement cost basis. |
| Consumer Experience | Geico has a better customer rating than Lemonade Renters Insurance. | The number of complaints from consumers is relatively high. |
| Mobile App | Geico’s mobile app is mainly for auto insurance customers. | Lemonade has a very strong online presence and one can also Renters Insurance through the app. |
| Discounts | The types of discounts depend on the third-party agents. | Buying other policies with Lemonade Renters Insurance can save money. |
| Customers | It is best for the Geico auto insurance customers as they can get a multipolicy discount. | For someone who wants simple policies and can get most of the work done online. |
What is Geico Renters Insurance?
Geico Renters Insurance is available in all the states but it functions as an agent so doesn’t write the policies. The existing customers of Geico car insurance get an additional discount on the policy if they buy renters insurance. Since Geico Renters Insurance is sold by the partner companies, the detailed coverages and additional discounts vary for the customers depending on the third-party agent. Currently, Geico has more than twenty renter insurance partners.
The common coverage under the Geico Renters Insurance includes coverage for personal belongings, renters liability coverage, and loss of use coverage. The renters’ liability coverage is applicable when you accidentally injure someone in your property or cause damage to someone else’s property. If your house is damaged due to some disaster and you need to move out and stay in a hotel, the loss of use coverage is helpful. And there are always some additional coverages that change according to the Geico partners. Some of them are water backup coverage, identity fraud coverage, earthquake coverage, etc.
Apart from discounts on the auto insurance policy, additional discounts are provided to people who have smoke alarms, fire extinguishers, or sprinkler systems. Since Geico customers have to buy the insurance policy from a third party, any claims should be directly made to them as well.
What is Lemonade Renters Insurance?
Lemonade Renters Insurance is a very efficient insurance provider and some claims made through online means are paid instantly (almost 30% of the total claims). Since Lemonade Renters Insurance works based on a replacement cost policy, if any belongings are lost or stolen, one will be paid an amount to get a brand new replacement. Since everything in the company is done in online mode, it is hard to engage the agent on a face-to-face conversion even when one needs support.
It covers personal property (clothing, electronics, furniture, etc), loss of use (living cost when the building is undergoing any repair), and medical payments (settles medical bills for injuries of other people). The additional coverage options include if any items such as a camera, fine art, jewelry, etc are lost. It also has water backup coverage if there is a leak of water coming out from the drain. Lemonade also pays if any electronic appliances (TV, phone, etc) break down.
Though Lemonade has some excellent coverage options and the company’s policies are simple, the number of complaints is large in number. One of the reasons behind it might be unsatisfactory customer support. The company is more appropriate for tech-centric people.
Main Differences Between Geico Renters Insurance and Lemonade Renters Insurance
- Geico Renters Insurance services are available in all the US states whereas Lemonade Renters Insurance services are available only in twenty-seven states and Washington, DC.
- Geico doesn’t directly sell its renters insurance and carries it out only via third parties whereas Lemonade doesn’t have any third-party sales agents and sells directly.
- The exact coverage for Geico Renters Insurance depends on the partner company that a customer is assigned whereas Lemonade pays for coverage on a replacement cost basis.
- Geico has a better customer rating than Lemonade Renters Insurance.
- Geico’s mobile app is mainly for auto insurance customers whereas Lemonade has a very strong online presence from where one can buy renters insurance.
- The types of discounts in the case of Geico Renters Insurance depend on the third-party agents whereas Lemonade Renters Insurance offers discounts when you buy another policy with it.
Conclusion
One of the most important things to realize about renters insurance is that it doesn’t cover the building one is inhabiting. For example, if damage takes place to your personal property due to an earthquake and you need to move out. The insurance policy will cover if you are living in a hotel but it will not cover the damaged building. There is different insurance (landlord insurance) for the building.
References
- https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-37955-1_25
- https://journals.flvc.org/edis/article/download/115356/113648