New York Subscriber

When a landlord rents an apartment to someone, he is renting just the apartment, not the common areas too. As such, the lights in question were not “rented” to the insured. Although there may be landlords who inspect common areas for damage prior to returning a tenant's security deposit, we have yet to hear of them. The AAIS policy gives credence to this position when it defines an “insured premises” as “the parts of the described location which are used or occupied exclusively by your household for residential purposes.” “Insured premises” also includes, for liability purposes, “approaches and access ways immediately adjoining the insured premises.” Should someone trip and fall immediately outside the insured's door, and the insured be found in some way negligent, the liability portion of the policy would respond.

The AAIS policy contains an additional coverage that ISO's homeowners does not, “contracts and agreements.” If the insured signed a lease on the apartment and if that lease holds her responsible for damage to the common areas, then the AAIS policy would pay for the damage under that coverage. Also, that coverage does not contain the $500 limit as does “damage to property of others.” It is conceivable that the insurer might be “on the hook” for much more than $500.

Finally, since the lights cannot be considered to be “rented to the insured,” we believe that the entire limit of section II should be available to pay the claim. An insured under the policy (the named insured's son) negligently, but not, apparently, intentionally, caused damage to someone else's property. The policy should respond with its entire limit.