Renters insurance gives you peace of mind that if your belongings are damaged because of an unexpected event or disaster, you won’t have to pay out of pocket for expensive repairs or replacements. In Oregon, three companies in particular stand out for providing comprehensive and affordable renters insurance plans to fit your needs.
To help renters decide which renters insurance company is best, the This Old House Reviews Team evaluated and ranked the top renters insurance companies in Oregon.
3 Best Renters Insurance Providers in Oregon
To determine the best renters insurance companies in Oregon, our team looked at a variety of factors, including coverage options, pricing, discounts, customer service, and more. The highest rated renters insurance companies in Oregon include:
- State Farm: Best Endorsements
- Allstate: Best Coverage Options
- Nationwide: Most Comprehensive Coverage
State Farm: Best Endorsements
State Farm offers customizable and affordable renters insurance coverage that doesn’t put a limit on personal property or loss of use coverage. State Farm also offers eight additional coverage options to supplement your basic renters insurance coverage.
Pros and Cons of Nationwide Home Insurance
Compare the advantages and disadvantages of a State Farm policy:
To make your plan more comprehensive, you can purchase these additional coverages:
- Earthquake damage
- Jewelry
- Computers
- Waterbed
- Identity restoration
- Additional liability coverage
- Additional business property
- Incidental business liability
Learn More: State Farm Renters Insurance Review
Allstate: Best Coverage Options
As one of the best overall renters insurance providers in the nation, Allstate provides standard coverage while offering up to five options for additional coverage. Allstate also allows some control over your monthly premium through adjustable coverage caps.
Pros and Cons of Nationwide Home Insurance
Take a look at this table to see what an Allstate policy entails:
Here’s the optional coverage provided by Allstate:
- Extended coverage on jewelry, watches, and furs: This increases the amount of personal property coverage you receive with your plan.
- Scheduled personal property: This allows you to receive more coverage for items that have already been appraised, like a diamond ring.
- Identity theft restoration: Identify theft restoration coverage helps pay for the fees associated with a stolen identity.
- Increased coverage on business property: This protection covers your business-related items that are kept inside your home.
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist: This renters insurance covers you when you’re in an accident with an at-fault driver who isn’t covered or whose coverage is too low.
Learn More: Allstate Renters Insurance Review
Nationwide: Most Comprehensive Coverage
Protecting Oregon renters from a variety of events including fire, lightning, hail, and theft, Nationwide goes beyond the basic coverages. Along with personal property, loss of use, liability, and medical payment coverage, Nationwide provides coverage for ordinance or law, building additions and alterations, and credit cards.
Pros and Cons of Nationwide Home Insurance
Here are some benefits and drawbacks to a Nationwide policy:
These discounts may help you save money on your Nationwide renters insurance plan:
- Renters and Auto/Life Insurance Bundle Discount: If you already have an existing auto or life insurance plan with Nationwide, you can save money on your monthly renters insurance premium.
- Safety Equipment Discount: If your home is equipped with safety features like fire alarms, smoke detectors, and burglar alarms, you could be eligible for a discount.
- Claims Free Discount: If you don’t make any renters insurance claims over a certain period, you could save money on your monthly premium.
Learn More: Nationwide Renters Insurance Review
Our Conclusion
We recommend State Farm, Allstate, and Nationwide renters insurance to renters in Oregon who are looking for customizable coverage with a variety of optional add-ons. Before purchasing a renters insurance policy, we encourage you to get quotes from all three companies to help you compare coverage and costs:
Oregon Renters Insurance Coverage
Typically, an Oregon renters insurance policy contains four types of coverage: liability, medical payments to others, personal property, and loss of use. Most providers also provide additional coverage, called endorsements or floaters.
Here’s what’s covered under each type of coverage:
- Liability Coverage: If you cause injury to a neighbor or their property, this coverage pays for the cost of their bills. Typically, landlords require $100,000 in liability coverage.
- Coverage for Medical Payments to Others: This coverage pays for the medical bills of a guest that’s injured in your home.
- Personal Property Coverage: Personal property coverage covers the cost of your belongings if they’re damaged due to an unexpected event, like a fire or burglary.
- Loss of Use Coverage: If a covered incident forces you out of your home, loss of use coverage pays for your living expenses, like a hotel room or food.
- Endorsements/Floaters: Endorsements or floaters are additional coverage options you can add on to your renters insurance plan. Popular endorsements include coverage for jewelry and earthquakes.
How Much Does a Renters Insurance Policy Cost in Oregon?
According to the Insurance Information Institute, Oregon renters insurance cost an average of $163 for the year, or $13.60 per month, in 2017. That was just under the national average of $15 per month.
Factors to Consider Before Buying Renters Insurance
Before purchasing a renters insurance policy, consider the following factors:
- Coverage Limits: Before purchasing a policy, it’s important to determine the amount of personal property and liability coverage you need. Some companies, like State Farm and Farmers, don’t have a limit on the personal property coverage that you can purchase. Many landlords require at least $100,000 worth of liability coverage, so make sure that’s an option with your provider.
- Cost Factors: Many factors go into the pricing of your renters insurance plan. Some of these factors include cost of living, age of the building, and the likelihood of natural disasters. For example, if you rent in an area where earthquakes are common, the price of your policy could increase.
- Discounts: Before choosing a provider, learn about their discounts. Most companies provide discounts for bundling home and auto insurance, being claims-free, and having safety features in your home.
If you’re not sure which renters insurance policy is best for you, compare the providers below.
| Companies | Allstate | State Farm | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Types Of Coverage | Personal property, loss of use, liability, medical payments to others | Personal property, loss of use, liability, medical payments to others | Personal property, loss of use, liability, medical payments to others, ordinance or law, building additions and alterations, credit card |
| Personal Property Coverage Limits | $25,000–$150,000 | No limit | No limit |
| Liability Coverage Limits | $100,000, $200,000, $300,000, or $500,000 | $100,000, $300,000, $400,000, $500,000, $750,000, or $1,000,000 | $100,000, $200,000, $300,000, $400,000, or $500,000 |
| ACV Or RCV | ACV or RCV | ACV or RCV | ACV or RCV |
| Monthly Price | About $16 | About $12 | About $20 |
| Discounts Available | 5 discounts | 2 discounts | 3 discounts |
| Unique Add-ons | Scheduled personal property, uninsured/underinsured motorist | Waterbed, computer | Limited water backup, additional insureds |
| Customer Service | 24/7 | Hours vary by department | 24/7 for claims; limited for sales and service |
| BBB Rating | A+ | A | A+ |
Frequently Asked Questions
Our Rating Methodology
The This Old House Reviews Team is committed to providing comprehensive and unbiased reviews to our readers. This means earning your trust through transparency and having the data to back up our ratings and recommendations.
With that in mind, we created an objective rating system to score each home insurance company. Here’s what that review process looked like:
- We analyze the information on each company’s website. This allows us to determine what products and services are offered by each home insurance provider.
- We get a sample quote from the companies by either talking to a sales representative or by using the online quote tool. This tells us what a policy looks like and costs.
- We test customer service by talking to a company representative, finding out their hours of operation, and determining what technological features are available for customers.
- We update all of this information on a continuous basis, storing it in a proprietary database that allows us to compare dozens of home insurance companies against each other.
With this data, we created a rating methodology to score each renters insurance company. Our rating system is a weighted, 100-point scale based on the following factors:
- Coverage (30): We rated renter insurance companies higher if they offered the six main types of renter protection—dwelling, other structures, personal property, loss of use, liability, and medical payments to others coverage.
- State availability (7.5): Companies scored higher if they covered more states than their competitors.
- Customer service (15): This factor is based on our communications with the company representatives, as well as the companies’ claims and quotes processes, availability throughout the week, and customer service information found on their websites.
- Technology (12.5): Technology can increase the efficiency of filing and tracking home insurance claims. Companies scored higher if they had technology options like mobile apps and online chat functions.
- Reputation (20): We gauged trustworthiness based on years of experience and Better Business Bureau ratings.
- Additional benefits (15): Companies that offered optional features, like discounts and endorsements, scored higher than competitors that didn’t.
The This Old House Reviews Team has a full-time researcher who collects and regularly updates data points from every company to help us compare them on key factors such as coverage, service, and dependability.
To share feedback or ask a question about this article, send a note to our Reviews Team at reviews@thisoldhousereviews.com.