Insurance for tenants: why you need it and what it covers

Updated 05.10.2026.

The owner's policy usually protects the owner. It does not cover your belongings or your liability towards others.

What happens without insurance

A fire in a rented flat. At the end of 2019, a 40 m² flat rented by a tenant in Rīga burnt out in a fire. The fire service gave the cause as a cigarette, a candle or another weak heat source on the bed. The insurer Balta paid the owner 22,785 euros and then claimed 24,148 euros from the tenant. The Rīga district court upheld the claim, and the Vidzeme regional court left the judgment in force (press reports, 2023 and 2025).

A washing machine floods the neighbours. In Šampēteris, a flat owner's washing machine damaged the neighbours' ceiling. The neighbour was insured, and her insurer claimed compensation from the person at fault. That owner had no insurance of her own, so 193 euros had to be paid out of her own pocket (TV3, 27.04.2021). In another case the insurer claimed 1,250 euros a month later (LV portāls, 2019).

On average. For flooding a neighbour, BTA pays out 1,300 euros on average (BTA), and If gives 1,500 to 3,000 euros (If). At Swedbank Apdrošināšana in 2025, water leaks made up 37% of home claims, at 1,195 euros on average, with the largest above 20,000 euros (BB.lv, 29.12.2025).

In Latvia 31% of homes are insured, against an EU average of 62% (Eurobarometer 2025, cited in a BTA opinion piece on ir.lv, 30.03.2026).

Your liability under the law

The tenant must treat the flat with care and must not damage it, must follow fire safety requirements and must inform the landlord of damage without delay (Dzīvojamo telpu īres likums (Residential Tenancy Law), article 17, paragraph 1, points 5 to 7).
Everyone must compensate the losses they cause by their action or failure to act (Civillikums (Civil Law), article 1779). The tenant and the landlord are liable to each other for losses caused by intent or negligence (article 2128). The tenant is not liable for normal wear and tear (article 2150).
If an insurer has paid compensation, it can claim the money from the person at fault (subrogation, Apdrošināšanas līguma likums (Insurance Contract Law), article 45). The law excludes this claim only against the insured person's children, parents or spouse (article 45, paragraph 4); the tenant is not named there. The general limitation period is 10 years (Civil Law, article 1895), so a claim can arrive several years later.

Who is at fault depends on what broke. The building's risers are common property; the pipes and plumbing from the riser to the flat are part of the flat (Dzīvokļa īpašuma likums (Residential Property Law), articles 3 and 4). Insurers explain that if a pipe in the flat bursts because of wear, the owner is usually liable, but if the tenant connected the washing machine incorrectly or forgot to turn off a tap, the tenant is liable (Balta, 26.02.2020; Swedbank blog).

What tenant insurance covers

Usually two parts:

Contents: your belongings against fire, water and theft by break-in.
Civil liability: losses you cause by accident to the neighbours and, if it is in the policy, to the rented flat itself.

Prices published by insurers:

Insurer	Product	Price	Liability limit	Excess
BTA	Tenant insurance "Optimālā"	10.99 / 15.99 / 18.99 euros a month for contents of 5,000 / 10,000 / 15,000 euros	30,000 euros	140 euros
BTA	"Nepieciešamā" (contents only)	7.99 / 11.99 / 14.99 euros a month	none	140 euros
If	Civil liability insurance	from 15 euros a year	not stated	not stated
Swedbank (blog example)	Contents and liability, 30 m² flat	about 7 euros a month	15,000 euros	not stated

Balta, ERGO, Compensa and Gjensidige do not publish prices online; you have to calculate them in a calculator or ask for a quote.

Whether the rented flat itself is covered. In many policies, property handed over for your use is an exclusion, and a rented flat is exactly that kind of property:

The BTA tenant policy covers losses to the rented flat itself, to the owner and to the neighbours, but not the landlord's movable property, such as furniture and appliances (BTA).
If's liability terms exclude rented property, unless tenant liability or general civil liability is insured.
Balta covers rented property and the landlord's belongings in it only if this is stated in the policy.
ERGO covers rented premises only as additional cover, without movable property and equipment.
Compensa covers the fixed parts of the rented premises (walls, floors, windows), not the furniture.

What the owner's insurance does not cover

Your belongings. The owner insures their own contents; the tenant's belongings are not included (Swedbank blog; Balcia, 21.08.2025).
Your liability. If the owner's insurer pays compensation for damage you caused, it can claim the money from you, as in the fire case above. ERGO's owner liability cover does not apply to losses for which the tenant is liable.

Short checklist

Ask the owner whether the flat is insured.
Choose a policy with contents and civil liability. The published liability limits are 15,000 to 30,000 euros; the largest Swedbank Apdrošināšana water leak case in 2025 was above 20,000 euros.
Check in the terms whether the rented flat itself and the landlord's furniture are covered.
Give the address of the rented flat in the policy.
Check the washing machine hose and turn off the tap if you are away for a long time.
If something leaks, inform the owner and the building manager without delay.