GALION, Ohio — A recent national study reveals Galion among the highest ranking Ohio cities in renter’s insurance, with an average of $336 per year, which is 5.7 percent higher than the state’s average.
The study was done by ValuePenguin, a research firm from New York City.
Neighboring Bucyrus was drastically different, averaging $298 per month, a difference of 6.3 percent from the state’s average.
The study surveyed 132 Ohio cities by examining renter’s insurance quotes for a 1,000-square-foot residence with at least $25,000 in personal property coverage and $100,000 in liability coverage.
“We then collected quotes for that benchmark home from five of the major carriers that offer a renter’s insurance product in the state of Ohio. To show which cities are relatively cheaper or more expensive, we averaged rates for the sample home in each city as a benchmark, highlighting comparative values which are not indicative of what tenants can expect their renters insurance premiums to be,” wrote ValuePenguin Research Analyst Nikki Cheng.
The five major insurance companies they drew from were State Farm, Allstate, Farmer’s Insurance, Liberty Mutual and USAA Insurance Group.
Galion’s average renter’s insurance fell short by only $49 of the highest ranking city in the state, Toledo. The top five are pictured below.
Do these higher premiums for renter’s insurance reflect a crime-ridden town teeming with burglars?
Click here to for a breakdown of Galion’s overall crime numbers from 2014 to 2015.
According to Galion insurance agents, there are many different factors that are considered when drawing up a premium for renter’s insurance. American Family Insurance agent Heath Watkins even questions the validity of the study.
“That would have to be an insane mathematical formula. You would have to know the analytics with every single credit score,” Watkins said.
Watkins said the range in renter’s insurance policies he writes are from $8 to $40 per month. His firm carries an average of $240 annually for their policies. And around 80 percent of those policies are for Galion residents, Watkins said.
He said premiums are determined based on the individual’s claims history, credit history, payments history — not on the area’s vulnerability to crime.
“Yeah, crimes relating to substance abuse is high, but theft … I don’t know if Galion is up there like other neighboring communities. I can’t even tell you the last time I had a theft claim,” Watkins said.
Farmer’s Insurance agent Dennis Long agrees, but admits that premiums can reflect a town’s bad side.
“If there are more fires, more crimes, premiums can reflect that,” Long said.
Drawing up premiums for renter’s insurance is complicated, convoluted even, ValuePenguin insurance reporter Michael Thrasher said.
“It’s a very convoluted product that a lot of people fundamentally don’t understand. And a lot of people think they don’t need it,” he said. “We published the story to raise awareness of renter’s insurance. Many have it because they might think it’s a requirement. There are no requirements by law, though.”
Despite it being a complicated product for renters to understand, Thrasher advocates investing the income.
“It’s a no-brainer. The coverage you’re getting is a lot of bang for your buck,” Thrasher said.
