Renters insurance: how home insurance works when you rent in Sweden

Renters insurance is called hemförsäkring (home insurance) in Sweden. It protects your own belongings against, for example, fire, water damage and theft, and it usually includes liability cover if you damage the flat or someone else's property. The landlord's building insurance covers the building, not your furniture, your laptop or your liability as a tenant. If you rent on a short-term contract, as a subtenant or as a lodger, you need your own policy.

Renters insurance in Sweden: what home insurance includes

A Swedish hemförsäkring is a package. Contents vary between insurers, but according to Wikipedia's overview of Swedish home insurance it normally includes:

• Property cover for your belongings against fire, damage and theft. Theft is often split by where it happens: in the home, in a storage room or basement, in the laundry room, at work, bicycle theft, and "away cover" when something is stolen outside the home.
• Liability insurance, covering damages if you have to compensate someone else.
• Assault cover, which can pay out if you are the victim of assault or another violent crime.
• Travel cover for a limited period while you are travelling.
• Legal expenses cover, which pays part of your costs in a legal dispute.

There are also add-ons, mainly all-risk cover (often called "drulleförsäkring", clumsiness insurance). It covers things that break "suddenly and unforeseeably", such as a laptop you drop on the floor, which basic cover does not.

Every claim has an excess. The amount is in your policy document and differs between insurers and types of damage.

Why the liability part matters when you rent

The law places duties on you as a tenant. Under Chapter 12, Section 24 of the Land Code (jordabalken) you must take good care of the flat during the tenancy. You must pay for damage caused by your fault or negligence. The same applies to damage caused by members of your household, your guests, anyone you let live with you, or anyone doing work for you.

Leave the tap running and flood the neighbour below, and the claim can be large. The liability part of home insurance exists for exactly that.

The law also says you must tell the landlord straight away about damage that needs urgent repair, such as a leak. If you don't, you can be liable for the damage caused by the delay. That applies whether or not you are insured.

For a fire you did not cause yourself, the same section makes you liable only if you failed to show the care and supervision required.

Renters insurance on short-term contracts, sublets and lodging

This is where short-term renters often get it wrong:

• Your parents' policy usually doesn't cover you. Family members registered at the same address are usually covered by the same policy. Once you move out and register at a new address, it generally no longer applies. Young adults forgetting to take out their own policy is a known problem.
• As a lodger you are normally not covered by your host's home insurance. You need your own, even if you only rent a room.
• A subtenant needs their own. The first-hand tenant's policy covers their belongings and their liability, not yours.
• Unauthorised subletting can cost the first-hand tenant. Under Chapter 12, Section 24 of the Land Code, a tenant who sublets without the required consent or permission is liable for damage the new occupant causes.

Some insurers require everyone covered to be named in the policy document. Check this if several of you live together.

How to get home insurance as a tenant

1. Start cover on day one. The policy should apply from the day you get the keys, not the day you finish unpacking.
2. State the right type of tenancy. First-hand rental, sublet and lodging may be priced differently. Be accurate, or you risk not being paid out.
3. Estimate what your things are worth. Go through what you own. Someone renting furnished for a short time often owns less than someone moving in with all their furniture.
4. Read what travel cover and all-risk include. Compare excess and exclusions, not just the premium.
5. Read your tenancy agreement. If it says you must have home insurance, that is a term you have agreed to.
6. Move the policy when you move. A short-term contract ends. Make sure your insurance follows you to the next address.

In short

Renters insurance in Sweden is hemförsäkring. It covers your belongings and your liability, not the building. As a tenant you are liable under the Land Code for damage you or your guests cause, and that is where insurance makes the biggest difference. If you rent short-term, sublet or lodge, take out your own policy from day one.