Airmen who sign new leases for privatized housing on base may have to pay for renters insurance, according to the Air Force.
Service members who live in privatized base housing receive Basic Allowance for Housing and then pay rent to privatization companies, which own and operate their homes.
But BAH has not included a "funding component" for renters insurance since Jan. 1, said Robert Moriarty, director of the Air Force Civil Engineer Center's Installations Directorate.
"Project owners were not released from their obligation to continue providing renter's insurance on new tenant leases until the Air Force signed the waiver March 3, 2015," Moriarty said in an email Wednesday to Air Force Times.
Renters insurance, which typically costs between $15 and $30 a month, covers your property in case of damage to your apartment. Residents already living in privatized housing on base will continue to receive renters insurance from their privatization company until they have to renew their leases.
Currently There are 49,730 service members and their families live in privatized housing, Moriarty said. Each project owner decides whether or not to require airmen to pay for renters insurance out of pocket.
"The decision on whether or not renter's insurance will continue to be provided for residents at no charge is an independent business decision each project owner will have to make," he said. "While some may elect to drop free renter's insurance, others may determine it's an incentive they want to continue to provide, for any length of time, to attract and retain occupants."
Although the Air Force does not require airmen to purchase renters insurance, it highly recommends doing so, said Mark Correll, deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for environment, safety and infrastructure.
"Under the Claims Act, the government provides up to $40,000 worth of coverage to all airmen who live in privatized housing situated on government-owned land," Correll said in an Air Force news story on Wednesday. "However, it does not apply at a few projects where some or all of the privatized housing is located on private land.
"Also, that coverage only applies to personal belongings; it does not provide liability coverage and reimbursements may be limited under the Claims Act. Liability coverage is recommended to cover damage you, your pet or your belongings might cause to the house and other property."
