If you own a rental property, or you're a tenant, you may need different insurance products than standard home and contents policies.

For starters, the landlord's insurance policies don't cover the tenants. Insurers such as the NRMA and even Coles Financial Services offer products designed for renters, including low-cost policies.

When you are renting, the owner of the property is accountable for damage or loss to the building and fittings. However, your possessions are your responsibility. Therefore, you need cover for your clothes, furniture, electrical goods, books and other valuables.

Often when a disaster hits, tenants lose the most and because they don’t have insurance cover, miss out on compensation. Therefore, renter’s insurance is a type of contents insurance designed to protect tenants of rental properties.

Renter insurance protects against financial loss from risks such as fire or burglary, or accidental loss or damage. It can also cover tenants for unintentional damage to fixtures and fittings in the rental property and provide some financial cover for legal liability if a visitor is injured in the home. This form of protection may also cover your possessions when you move between properties, At the end of the day, if you're in the market for renter's insurance, it’s worth shopping around to find the most suitable policy to protect you and your belongings.