When your child heads off to college, they are probably going to head off with thousands of dollars of personal items. The cost of your child's clothing, bedding, electronics, and other personal items can really add up. When you send your child off to college, in addition to making sure your child is prepared for the experience, you need to make sure that their personal belongings are protected by insurance if something were to happen to them.

The coverage for your child's belongings more than likely is based on where your child is living and where their personal belongings are being stored.

Living on Campus

If your child is living on campus, regardless of if they are living on-campus is the same state your home is based in or not, their personal belongings are more than likely covered. If you have worldwide coverage on your homeowner's insurance policy, it should protect your child's belongings inside a dorm room. As insurance company doesn't really sell dorm room insurance, so it makes sense that most homeowner's insurance policies cover your child's property if it is inside of a dorm room.

Living Off-Campus

If your child is living off-campus in an apartment, they are more than likely not going to be covered by your homeowner's insurance policy anymore. Since they are living in an independent dwelling, you are going to need to purchase your child renter's insurance to protect their belongings. Renter's insurance is affordable; in some states, it only costs you $15 a month for renters insurance.

Your Child's Vehicle

If your child stores some of their belongings inside of their vehicle, their personal property may not be covered by your homeowner's insurance policy. However, their personal belongings should be covered by your auto insurance. Just make sure that you update your auto insurance and let them know the address where your child's vehicle is; that is important information that can invalidate a claim if you don't let them know that your child's vehicle is being parked somewhere away from your home every night.  

Before your child heads off to college, call a company that provides homeowners insurance in your town, and make sure that your child's personal belongings will still be protected while they are at college. Your child's personal belongings would cost thousands of dollars to replace if they were damaged or stolen, which is why you want to make sure that their belongings are protected before they leave home.