Imagine your apartment burning in flames...

Getting insurance for your Apartment

At the last PA Training Seminar we heard news of a JET in another prefecture who accidently set fire to their apartment while cooking.  Thankfully no one was injured; however, not only did this ruin a great deal of the JET's personal possessions, the fire spread to the surrounding apartments.  Under Japanese law the JET was liable for the damages caused in the other apartments and was forced to pay out of pocket.  Add to that the huge amount of stress, confusion and embarrassment the legalities caused between the apartment agency/owner, board of education, PA and the JET, this situation was an ABSOLUTE NIGHTMARE!!!

”But that won't happen to me; I signed and paid for an extra insurance policy," I hear you reassuring yourself.

 That you did, and so did I.  If you remember doing so, and you're a first year ALT, you're probably still okay.  But just to double-check, I went to my own apartment agency only to discover that my policy expired at the end of my first year!  I'd been without insurance for 2.5 years and hadn't even known!  My insurance company had sent a renewal notice, but not knowing I needed to do anything, my policy was not renewed.  My new policy is now in place, and I want you to have the same peace of mind as me, so here are all the details you'll need to check for yourself:

How to check if you have disaster insurance:

It's easy!  Ask you coordinator to call your apartment agency and ask if you have supplementary disaster insurance policy in place (if your coordinator doesn't speak English, ask him ‘私のアパートについて、災害保険は付いてますか？ Watashi no apaato ni tsuite, saigai hoken wa tsuitemasuka?)  If you want to get it, kindly ask your coordinator to make arrangements.  You will contract through an independent insurance company for your service, but it can all be done through your apartment agency.  You'll probably need to visit your agency to sign the contract so grab your inkan just in case.

Price:

My insurance was about 5,000 - 6,000 yen for 1 year, or double that for a 2 year contract.  Considering you could be out half your yearly salary if something happened, insurance at that price is a bargain!  Not all companies offer a 1 year contract, but if you leave Okinawa and need to cancel your policy you might get some money back.