I agree. One of my insureds just packed up his Apt. to a storage unit to leave on a 2 week trek to Europe. I insisted he keep his policy in force for the same reason you stated.

I received call late afternoon Jul 3rd from one of my insureds who does havea renters policy with my Agency. Her friend was there and they called me for advice. There was a sewage back-up covering several bottom Apts. where her friend rented. It was pretty horrific as you can imagine everything from the sewer lines covering the carpets and flooring in the Apt. Affecting the furniture sitting in the stinky goo. The gal thought the Apt. owner was responsible for her personal belongings and furniture. Without having a renters policy, the owner may be responsible for maintaining habitable conditions and have certain responsibilities according to the Law. But being held responsible for a renters personal belongings due to a loss beyond his control, is a pretty far stretch.  Having a renters policy could have given her immediate funds to relocate while the owner of the Apt. did the clean-up. The best I could do was suggest she contact the Health Dept. to see if they can offer her any remedy to the situation. The lady was afraid they would evict her for calling. What a mess.

Having a Renters Policy offers so many benefits including Liability. I also recommend Apt. Owners and Owners of Older properties to have sewer back-up added to their policy's. Sewers are very costly to repair. Ripping out concrete, and repair. Sending cameras down filming the cause to the street. Hiring Professional Plumbing Companies. Repairs are the owners responsibility to the City Hook-up including connection. Sewer back-up repairs can easily cost up to 50K, not including other property damage affected. If it seems I know first hand, I do. We have a client who put in a major overhaul and complete remodel on an older building with all new plumbing. When the new Tenants started using the new system, the downstairs Apts. were completely flooded through every opening in the toilets, tubs and sinks with raw sewage.  

More and More Apartment Owners insist on their Renters providing proof of Insurance as part of their Leasing agreement. I always ask my Apt. owners if they have this requirement as part of their Lease. It certainly helps regulate and clearly defines the Owners and Renters Obligations in a loss. This is also a good point for the Realtor to recommend to protect their buyers.