If you’re looking for cheap renters insurance in Pennsylvania, consider getting quotes from Chubb, Penn National and Selective Insurance. In our evaluation, these companies offer the cheapest renters insurance in Pennsylvania for a typical coverage amount of $15,000, among the companies we analyzed.
Here are average Pennsylvania renters insurance costs for three levels of coverage.
Average Pennsylvania Renters Insurance Costs
| Company | Average annual cost for $15,000 in personal property coverage | Average annual cost for $30,000 in personal property coverage | Average annual cost for $50,000 in personal property coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
|
$59
|
$98
|
$154
|
|
|
Penn National
|
$63
|
$96
|
$142
|
|
Selective Insurance
|
$77
|
$115
|
$161
|
|
$77
|
$101
|
$138
|
|
|
Cumberland
|
$100
|
$106
|
$131
|
|
Donegal Mutual
|
$100
|
$108
|
$140
|
|
$108
|
$150
|
$202
|
|
|
$119
|
$155
|
$190
|
|
|
$124
|
$192
|
$263
|
|
|
Westfield
|
$137
|
$151
|
$170
|
|
American National P&C
|
$150
|
$150
|
$154
|
|
$208
|
$258
|
$329
|
|
|
State average
|
$110
|
$140
|
$181
|
More: Best renters insurance
What Does Renters Insurance Cover?
If your belongings are stolen, or damaged by an event listed in your policy, you can file a renters insurance claim and be reimbursed up to the limits in your policy. Renters insurance also protects you from injuries and damage you accidentally cause to others. Here’s how the types of renters insurance coverage work together to protect you and what you own:
- Personal property insurance covers your personal belongings and possessions such as furniture, electronics, clothing and jewelry and even pots and pans.
- Liability insurance pays for injuries and property damage you accidentally cause to others. For instance, if a visitor slips on a wet floor in your apartment, or a poorly thrown baseball breaks a neighbor’s window, your liability insurance can cover costs. If you’re sued, liability insurance can pay for judgements or settlements and your legal defense.
- Additional living expenses (ALE) coverage pays extra costs such as hotel bills and restaurant meals when you are temporarily living elsewhere while your rental’s damage is being repaired.
Looking for some additional liability protection? Consider buying an umbrella insurance policy. An umbrella insurance policy offers liability protection beyond the limits of a renters insurance policy and an auto insurance policy. Umbrella insurance would help to protect your assets if you are sued in a major lawsuit.
Compare Renters Insurance Quotes
1
Lemonade
$160
28 states + DC
Related: What does renters insurance cover?
When Can You Be Evicted in Pennsylvania?
A landlord can evict you from an apartment in Pennsylvania if you:
- Do not pay rent
- Do not move out at the end of the lease term
- Violate terms of the leasing agreement
Here are some examples of lease violations that could bring eviction actions from a landlord:
- Late payment of rent
- Causing damage to the apartment beyond normal wear and tear
- Operating a business or allowing unauthorized people to live in the apartment
- Keeping a pet, which is not a service animal, when pets are not permitted in the lease
- Noise violations that disturb other renters
- Breaking the law by engaging in criminal actions
- Failure to maintain the lawn if that is part of your lease
- Improper disposal of garbage, including the storage of garbage
- Failing to follow the rules of the lease
The eviction process begins with a landlord giving the renter a notice. This notice may be posted on the renter’s door or given to an adult in the rental unit. But the notice may not be sent through the mail.
The amount of time a landlord may give you to vacate your apartment should be written in your lease. Here’s how much notice a landlord must give if evicting you from an apartment for various reasons.
10-days notice for:
- Not paying rent
- Illegal drug activities
15-days notice for:
- Breach or expiration of month-to-month lease
- Breach or expiration of a lease that is a year or less
30-days notice for:
- Breach or expiration of a lease that is longer than one year
The eviction notice must include the reason for the notice and the date the landlord wants you to move out of the apartment. If you don’t move out of the apartment by the date listed in the eviction notice, the landlord must go to court to file a complaint. A court hearing will be scheduled for seven to 15 days after the complaint was filed. You will receive a copy of the complaint by first class mail and a copy of the complaint also will be served by a sheriff.
The court hearing gives you the opportunity to present your defense. After the hearing is over, the judge will make a decision on that day or within three days. If the judge sides with your landlord, you will need to move out of your apartment by the eviction date.
Rules on Security Deposits in Pennsylvania
All or part of your apartmet’s security deposit may be kept by your landlord at the end of a lease if you:
- Damage your apartment
- Don’t clean your apartment
- Don’t pay your last month’s rent or any month’s rent
- Don’t give proper notice that you are moving out of the apartment
In Pennsylvania during the first year of a lease, a security deposit cannot be greater than two months’ rent. If a landlord is asking for last month’s rent, this amount must be included in the security deposit and not added on to it. In the second year, the security deposit on an apartment in Pennsylvania cannot be greater than one month’s rent.
If rent on the apartment increases, the landlord may increase the security deposit to equal to one month’s rent for the first five years of the lease. After five years, a landlord is not able to increase the security deposit even if the rent increases.
If greater than a $100 security deposit is collected by the landlord, the money must be placed in a separate bank account and the landlord must notify you with the name and address of the bank and the amount of the deposit.
After the second year, interest earned on the money must be paid to you, minus a 1% administrative fee paid to the landlord. The interest is paid to you each year on the month and day that your lease first took effect.
Within 30 days after the lease ends, your landlord must give you a written notice of damages in your apartment or a check for the full amount of the security deposit.
If your landlord does not do either of these things within 30 days of the lease terminating, your landlord gives up the right to withhold any of the security deposit and gives up the right to sue in court for damages to your apartment. On the 31st day, you may sue the landlord for double the amount of the security deposit.
Rules on Rent Increases in Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, there are no rent control laws. Landlords may increase rents as much as they wish. But any rent changes must be made according to your lease.
Your landlord may not increase the rent:
- In the middle of a lease, unless you agree to the increase in rent
- In retaliation of you exercising a legal right
- Because you filed a discrimination complaint
- Because you contacted code enforcement
- Because you filed a housing discrimination complaint
When Can a Landlord Enter Your Apartment?
In Pennsylvania, a landlord is usually permitted to enter an apartment at reasonable times for repairs, inspections or to show the apartment to prospective renters, as long as the landlord gives you prior notice.
If there is an emergency, a landlord has the right to enter an apartment immediately without prior notice.
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