“I’ve already had all my stuff stolen twice and would hate for it to happen again, especially now”, laments Andreas Hansson, my housemate from Lund University, Sweden, who is presently carrying out his internship in the Netherlands.
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In his treatise ‘Motivation and Personality’, renowned psychologist Abraham H. Maslow cites the need to feel safe as a very primary requirement for humankind. Being far away from home, a feeling of insecurity can very easily threaten the peace of mind for an international student. Invariably, in testimony to Murphy’s Law, disaster strikes at the worst possible moment.
Andreas happened to be referring to his Master’s thesis deadline. Our neighbor had just come over to warn us that she had spotted a prowler in our backyard. Staying in temporary student housing, we neither can write off the risks as negligible as tourists could, nor does it make sense to invest in our safety like a permanent resident. So what’s the ‘safety net’ to sojourners like we international students? The obvious solution seems to be insurance . which is mandatory as per student visa regulations. But besides health insurance, how many of us are even aware of our entitled coverage in event of burglary? As is, our jam-packed hours prevent us from taking note of such details until the worst happens. Most student houses are vacant during the daytime, making us soft targets for routine break-ins. Getting burgled at a crucial time in our study period leaves us gasping for air, for the red-tape is thick and tawny.
In my recent experience, the customer service of insurance companies leaves a lot to be desired. Two months after having drawn out a policy with IAK, I had to go to their office to check if I was in fact insured, as I wasn’t being billed my premiums. The good gentleman at the counter was service-oriented enough to tell me, “…this is a busy period for us with many drawing out policies. I’m not able to give your problem my attention now…but in all likelihood, you should be insured”. Needless to say, I wasn’t any more reassured. I couldn’t help but wonder: would the insurance companies that derive substantial revenue from bulk student policyholders be too busy even if I were to submit a claim on account of having been robbed off all my belongings?
What can a student do to minimize damage in the event of burglary? Firstly, make oneself fully aware of one’s insurance coverage entitlement. It even makes sense to take a separate property insurance policy in case your coverage wouldn’t compensate for the value of your belongings. Another precaution would be to keep photocopies of irreplaceable documents, like your passport, under lock and key at your workplace. Although paranoia is unnecessary, precautionary measures are significantly better than damage control. The TU Delft and Duwo can also help out by making sure student accommodation isn’t vulnerable to burglary, as are the space-boxes on the Leeghwaterstraat which, for example, have no peep-holes nor door-chains. The lessons learnt at Roland Holstlaan must be applied at Leeghwaterstraat…or else!
Ramesh Chidambaram (23)uit India is MSc-student micro-elektronica.
“I’ve already had all my stuff stolen twice and would hate for it to happen again, especially now”, laments Andreas Hansson, my housemate from Lund University, Sweden, who is presently carrying out his internship in the Netherlands.
In his treatise ‘Motivation and Personality’, renowned psychologist Abraham H. Maslow cites the need to feel safe as a very primary requirement for humankind. Being far away from home, a feeling of insecurity can very easily threaten the peace of mind for an international student. Invariably, in testimony to Murphy’s Law, disaster strikes at the worst possible moment.
Andreas happened to be referring to his Master’s thesis deadline. Our neighbor had just come over to warn us that she had spotted a prowler in our backyard. Staying in temporary student housing, we neither can write off the risks as negligible as tourists could, nor does it make sense to invest in our safety like a permanent resident. So what’s the ‘safety net’ to sojourners like we international students? The obvious solution seems to be insurance . which is mandatory as per student visa regulations. But besides health insurance, how many of us are even aware of our entitled coverage in event of burglary? As is, our jam-packed hours prevent us from taking note of such details until the worst happens. Most student houses are vacant during the daytime, making us soft targets for routine break-ins. Getting burgled at a crucial time in our study period leaves us gasping for air, for the red-tape is thick and tawny.
In my recent experience, the customer service of insurance companies leaves a lot to be desired. Two months after having drawn out a policy with IAK, I had to go to their office to check if I was in fact insured, as I wasn’t being billed my premiums. The good gentleman at the counter was service-oriented enough to tell me, “…this is a busy period for us with many drawing out policies. I’m not able to give your problem my attention now…but in all likelihood, you should be insured”. Needless to say, I wasn’t any more reassured. I couldn’t help but wonder: would the insurance companies that derive substantial revenue from bulk student policyholders be too busy even if I were to submit a claim on account of having been robbed off all my belongings?
What can a student do to minimize damage in the event of burglary? Firstly, make oneself fully aware of one’s insurance coverage entitlement. It even makes sense to take a separate property insurance policy in case your coverage wouldn’t compensate for the value of your belongings. Another precaution would be to keep photocopies of irreplaceable documents, like your passport, under lock and key at your workplace. Although paranoia is unnecessary, precautionary measures are significantly better than damage control. The TU Delft and Duwo can also help out by making sure student accommodation isn’t vulnerable to burglary, as are the space-boxes on the Leeghwaterstraat which, for example, have no peep-holes nor door-chains. The lessons learnt at Roland Holstlaan must be applied at Leeghwaterstraat…or else!
Ramesh Chidambaram (23)uit India is MSc-student micro-elektronica.
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