When you leave your apartment for the day, you lock your door and probably don’t give one more thought to your home, your personal belongings or what the weather might do to the walkway during the day while you’re gone.

And you shouldn’t have to worry about those details – especially if you have renter’s insurance.

The benefits of renter’s insurance far outweigh the cost. For example, how much would it cost you to replace all your personal property located in your home? And what if you transport some of that personal property – say a laptop, your DVD collection or your favorite set of golf clubs – and it gets damaged or stolen outside of your home?

Having either actual cash value or replacement cost coverage can help you get back on your feet if your personal property is stolen or destroyed. With actual cash value, your personal property is typically covered for what you might expect to get if you sold it at fair market value – possibly at a garage sale, online auction site or other sales event – as replacement cost minus depreciation. And with replacement cost coverage, your insured personal property items are usually covered for what it costs to replace them brand new at the time of the claim, although premiums for this type of insurance are typically higher than the actual cash value insurance coverage option.

But renter’s insurance benefits go further than that. There’s always the worry of a visitor to your home slipping on the icy sidewalk leading to your front door and potentially hurting himself. With renter’s liability insurance, in the event that you or anyone in your household is accused of accidentally causing injury or damage to property, your insurance coverage can help by providing for legal defense fees and, in the event of a settlement or judgment, can pay damages (up to your policy limit).

This kind of protection not only is great for your property, but also your wages. For example, say a natural disaster hits your apartment. Maybe all your property inside is undamaged, but the landlord needs you out of your unit so he can fix the roof, windows and walls to prevent further damage. If a covered loss puts you out of your home, many renter’s policies will cover the reasonable increases in expenses needed to maintain your normal standard of living. This may include payments for temporary housing, food, rental income (optional coverage for some policies) and other expenses.

So the next time you leave your apartment and lock the door to your house and belongings, you won’t have to give them a second of worry because you have apartment renter’s insurance.