The tenant of a house that had a car smash into the front wall and cause extensive damage has issued a warning: "renter beware".
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Alison Ritchie had occupied the house for more than six years when a white ute crashed into the lounge room on Sunday leaving the premises deemed unsafe to live in.
Ms Ritchie had to vacate the property near Launceston, Tasmania, while works were undertaken to clear the damage, and a timeframe for the wall to be returned to its former state remained unclear.
In the meantime, Ms Ritchie would need to find another place to live, off her own back. The house's insurance, like many rental properties in Tasmania, did not cover contents. And Ms Ritchie, like many renters in Tasmania, said she could not afford to pay for contents insurance herself.
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Ms Ritchie said about $20,000 worth of belongings were destroyed in the crash, and she now had to lodge quotes with insurance companies to try and recoup what she had lost.
"I lost my iPad and computer, a china cabinet quoted at $2000 and its contents, an antique desk given to me by my grandfather and a massive tv that was a present from my brother," she said.
Ms Ritchie said the situation was a difficult one to be in, made more complicated by the fact she had to find alternative accommodation and move her belongings herself.
Ms Ritchie said terminating the lease and finding a new place also proved to be a challenge when considering the tight rental market for affordable houses in the area.
"How many people could be in this situation, without contents insurance, if it happened to them?" she said.
Tasmanian Tenants Union principal solicitor Ben Bartl said situations like unforeseen accidents or natural disasters happened more often than one might expect.
"The best advice we can give is, if tenants can afford it, get your own contents or rental insurance, because cases like this happen more often than you'd think," he said.
"It's a strong example of the importance of having that insurance. You might just be going about your normal life and suddenly you've got a car sitting in your front room."
Mr Bartl said scenarios like Ms Ritchie's were complicated because, realistically, neither the landlord or the renter were at fault.
"If it's not the landlord's fault, unfortunately in those cases the tenant is often left out of pocket," he said.