Lease Addendum Pet Agreement: Fill & Download for Free

Which renter's insurance policies cover pet damage liability in California?I would agree with Ingrid Halvorsen’s post at least in part. Generally, pet damage to a home or apartment is not intended to be covered under a Renters Insurance Policy.I’m more interested in coverage for possible damage to a rental home, not personal injury. Most of the advice I can find is about medical payments for dog bites and large dogs or “banned” breeds, but I’m thinking about getting a cat, so that’s not relevant.Though the details of the question are a bit veiled, it seems you are concerned about damage a cat might cause to the apartment/home over time.There are a number of exclusions under the typical Renters Policy that can come into play regarding this type of pet damage to an apartment/home that you might rent.In addition, some companies will put a specific “animal/pet exclusion” on renters insurance policy because of this exposure and others related to liability hazards.For those reasons, it is common for landlords to include a “Pet Addendum” to the lease for the property. An example of that type of lease addendum is below:AnimalHumaneSociety .org - Sample Pet AgreementThose types of addendums also lead to the tenant paying a higher monthly rent and may also require a larger security deposit, because experience has shown that the responsibility falls on the tenant directly for this type of damage to the property.The exclusion language in an HO-4 Rental Insurance contract that can be pertinent to this type of loss includes:Property Damage - to property rented to, occupied or used by or in the care of the insured. (see above)Property Damage - which is “expected or intended” by an insuredContractual Liability - which relates to the use of the insured location (this exclusion would apply to a “Pet Addendum or Agreement” the tenant might enter into as mentioned above).State and individual company’s insurance policies can vary. It is important that you check with your specific agent and company.It can be reasonably suggested however that Renters Insurance does not intend to cover a continuous and repeated type of pet loss like you are seeking.Thanks for the A2A. Best regards.

You should carefully read the addendum. It should make reference to the lease, and have language stating that it modifies or otherwise adds to, the original lease. Obviously, here there is a conflict between the original document and the addendum. If the addendum clearly states that it modifies or adds to the original lease, is signed and dated by both parties, and post-dating the original, and if the parties contemplated that the pets clause would be modified by the addedum, then a strong argument would be possible that the lease addendum has superseded the original in that regard. Per contract law, the addendum must have all the elements of a contract, but must further clearly indicate that it adds to, or otherwise modifies, the original.

I have to ask why you think the police would become involved because you have a tenant who has cats in their apartment? The police do not get involved in such things.If you are willing to allow the cats to remain, why don’t you work out an agreement with the tenant and have them sign an addendum to the lease related to pets? You can ask a lawyer to write one up for you. Seek an additional security deposit if you feel it is appropriate under the circumstances. And in the meanwhile, ask your tenant to clean the stains and to be more careful about cleaning up. Who knows whether the stains are from the cats, from something else, just happened, etc etc.