Shopping for insurance questions

[Graycat1]

Was there a major company that stopped insuring RVs lately?  Seems like I read it on this or another RV forum in the past month of two but I can't remember which company.  I want to switch insurance this week.  We're with Safeco on RV and truck now and it's a little over $160 per month.  Before we sold the last truck, I called a few companies, Progressive, rvinsurance.com and Good Sam and decided to wait until we had all our car trading done before moving insurance. 

Edited to change title so I didn't have to start a new thread.

 

[Ghostman]

I carry all my insurance with State Farm but in my Motorhome they were twice as much. I shopped around and Progressive was the cheapest.

 

[ro1459]

We found that Progressive through USAA was the cheapest for us. Hope we never need it.

 

[Graycat1]

I just got off the phone with RVinsurance.com.  Their online quote form didn't have our manufacturer so I had to talk to a real person.  Informative but pushy.  He said he shopped around and National General was the best quote and then started asking me to commit to the policy.  I told him twice I wanted to see the numbers but he really didn't want to get off the phone without signing me up.  Now I have questions.

From reading here, replacement cost is the way to go with comprehensive.  This guy said that National General doesn't do replacement cost with a trailer over 5 years old.  I don't understand why not.  We're not asking to replace it with a brand new one, just to replace it with the same year.

Also, he said they only do personal property at 20% of the cost of the trailer, no matter what we have in the trailer.  That's $4K for us.  That's not enough to replace 2 laptops, 2 iphones, and a few small appliances, much less all the stuff in the basement, clothes, dishes, etc.  What gives with that?

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Replacement Cost has a specific meaning in the vehicle insurance business and basically means "new one just like it".  For used rigs, many companies offer coverage labeled "purchase price protection" or similar wording.  That gives you the price you originally paid for a used rig, even if it is several years later.


If all you want is to replace it with one the same age and model, that is standard collision & comp coverage, i.e. ACV (Actual Cash Value).  That's the market value at the time of the loss and presumably enough to buy another just like it at that time. However, it may be less than what you owe on the old one.

20% of value for Personal Property is probably just a way to set an arbitrary limit.  A common insurance scam is to claim loss of personal gear that wasn't onboard or maybe never existed.  If the scammer buys a $2500 trailer and buys $5000 worth of Personal Property coverage, he can set it on fire and still make a nice profit. Limiting the coverage is a way of avoiding that.  20% is fine for more expensive rigs, so not a problem there.  Most insurers provide a $2000 minimum coverage for PP, but I don't know about National General.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I told him twice I wanted to see the numbers but he really didn't want to get off the phone without signing me up.

RVinsurance.com is a brokerage, so they don't make a dime if you later call another agency or go direct to the company.  I suspect the phone rep  you spoke with is strictly on commission as well. Still, I don't like to do business with high pressure sales guys and would have rejected him as well.

I've found Miller RV Insurance agency easy to work with, and they will email you full particulars to review before you commit.http://www.millerrvinsurance.com/

 

[Graycat1]

Thanks Gary.  I filled out an online quote form with Miller as well.

It would be hard to replace our RV with a similar used one.  It was used 6 times before we got it and had been garage kept.  We've used it once and also have it in the garage.  It's pretty much like new except for a couple of scrapes that we plan on getting repaired. 

I asked the RVinsurance.com guy to send me his quote in an email and he did.  However, the comp and collision numbers are not what we discussed at all.  I told him 250/500/250 and he put in 50/100/50.  There were several things like that.

My current policy doesn't have RV Emergency Expense or RV Vacation Liability coverage and I'm not sure what the value of those are to compare them to other quotes.  The guy said that the vacation liability was to cover things at a campground, like if someone cut through our campsite and tripped over the fire pit and got hurt.  Wouldn't the campground be liable for something like that?

I got a quote from Progressive also, at least on the RV.  Since there was no way to get a combined pickup and RV quote online, it's hard to compare.  I'll call them Monday.

 

[Graycat1]

Another question.  Is Good Sam and National General the same?  I went to the Good Sam site and began to get an online quote when I noticed that even though it said GoodSam at the top of the page, the url said NationalGeneral.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Good Sam used to be exclusively an agent for National General, but now they apparently write insurance for several carriers. I don't know how they decide which one to use for any given quote - it appears to be based on your zip code and RV type.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

My current policy doesn't have RV Emergency Expense or RV Vacation Liability coverage and I'm not sure what the value of those are to compare them to other quotes.  The guy said that the vacation liability was to cover things at a campground, like if someone cut through our campsite and tripped over the fire pit and got hurt.  Wouldn't the campground be liable for something like that?

Hard to say who is liable without a specific case to review, but you are responsible for for much of what happens on your rented site, e.g. somebody gets burned at your campfire or bangs their head on your awning support.  The campground would be at fault if the cause was part of their infrastructure, e.g. a picnic table breaks and causes injury.  Many gray areas, to be sure!
If you have home owners or renters insurance, you almost surely already have personal liability coverage that would handle such things, even though away from your primary home.

Emergency expense can be useful if you have a breakdown or accident far from home and need temporary lodging.

 

[Graycat1]

Thanks Gary.  How much emergency expense is usual on a policy?

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

It would be hard to replace our RV with a similar used one.  It was used 6 times before we got it and had been garage kept.  We've used it once and also have it in the garage.  It's pretty much like new except for a couple of scrapes that we plan on getting repaired.

 

Your main problem is that an equally nice used rig will be hard to find at any price. Insurance can only help with money, but can't guarantee what you want/need is available on the used market.  A larger dollar amount will give you a broader selection and would perhaps enable you to buy a newer rig in closer-to-new condition.  If  you buy protection based on your original purchase price, you avoid the cost of further depreciation.  The other possibility is what is called "agreed value", meaning the insurance pays some fixed amount stipulated in the policy when it is written.  Not all companies offer those coverage options, and not all agencies write the contracts even if available. Those are more specialized insurances and mass marketers (sounds like rvinsurance.com is one of those) don't bother with the extra effort and knowledge required.

You need to figure out what you hope to do in the event of a total loss.  Not just "buy another RV", but how much $$ you want to have to go shopping.  The insurer isn't going to deliver another just like it to your driveway.  YOU will need to find and pay for a suitable replacement, hopefully with enough insurance money in your pocket to do so..

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I don't know if there is a usual amount.  The last time I needed to use it (2014), my policy paid up to $750. That kept us in a motel for the week it took to have a scrape on the side re-painted.

 

[Graycat1]

Thank you Gary.  I've gotten two online quotes so far.  One had a $750 each event and one just had $2K in the slot.  Looks like replacement is the way to go then.  We looked for 6 months to find this one and it is a perfect fit for us.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Few, if any, insurers offer full replacement value coverage for RVs over 5 years old.  You may have to request an "agreed value", if you can find an insurer who offers that in a trailer policy. It's available for motorhomes, but not such a popular feature among trailer owners.

You probably need to call the agencies and discuss your needs - online quote forms often don't have all the options available.

 

[Graycat1]

Thank you.  I thought I'd have to talk to a couple once I had it narrowed down.  Cash value is wholesale on NADA, right?

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

No, ACV is generally considered to be Average Retail, i.e. the price you could expect to pay to buy one.  Sometimes the insurer can be persuaded to increase that for rigs in exceptional condition (High Retail) or in higher demand.  Negotiation is tough, though, becasue the claims people tend to equate NADA for RVs to be the same "gospel" that is NADA for Cars.  The RV market price is nowhere near as uniform as cars so the NADA RV price is little more than an estimate, but the claims agents are tough to convince in most cases.  If you can bring in advertisements that show the going market price is higher than what the NADA RV Guide says, you have a strong case, If not, it's a tough sell.

 

[Graycat1]

Thanks again.  I'll see what my current agent can do but RV insurance doesn't seem to be common for them.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Are we talking about a trailer or a motorized RV?  Trailer policies are available from most insurers as an add-on to a vehicle policy.

 

[Graycat1]

It's a 5th wheel.  When we insured it with our current agent, we didn't get to choose anything more than limits.  It was kind of a standard RV policy.  One size fits all.