How do you insure your bus, and for how much?

[Cap10323]

I had an interesting call from my insurance agent this morning.

In his words "The market value of the vehicle has exceeded $20,000" and he suggested I increase my insurance policy to a higher value plan.

I had the Bus insured just with basic comprehensive car insurance, with a pretty low personal vehicle payout rate. (How much money they will pay before totaling the vehicle)

I know these Busses aren't cheap anymore, a running and driving one is easily $10,000 where I live, so it makes sense to insure it accordingly.


My question I guess, is how exactly do you all insure your busses?

Do you use classic car specific insurance? Or just a regular collision/comprehensive plan.
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[richparker]

I have mine insured thought Liberty Mutual. I have full coverage comp/collision regular car insurance, not collector car insurance. With an agreed value of $30,000, a $250 deductible and $0 glass deductible.

To get this coverage I sent pics of my bus to my agent as well as 3 ads from the classifies of the same year and model bus showing current market value.

Good luck!
_________________
__________
’71 Westy build
Adventure thread
’65 Deluxe Build
’71 Double Cab

[Cap10323]

[skills@eurocarsplus]

you want to make sure you have an AGREED value policy, not a STATED VALUE.

i have my 71 westy at 24k, 70 deluxe at 70k and the 71 single cab at 18k thru grundy. it's about 1k/year for all 3

a good "driver" bus is 20k+ all day long imho
_________________

[jakokombi]

I went to agreed valve earlier this year with my American Family guy, he suggested that this is fairly new.
I submitted a couple pictures of the Bus and the Thing, I had to pay in advance for the year for some reason, but my rates actually went down.
_________________
70 Sunroof Kombi
85 Motherfukinvanagon
73 Thing
72 Baja

[Cap10323]

[Mberglo]

I have used Hagerty for the last 20 years for my classic cars. My Mustang was rearended in traffic. The person at fault had All State. All State tried to screw me, but Hagerty stepped in and sent me a reasonable check. They went after All State and collected. I'm a fan.

One thing to remember is to update your agreed value as the vehicle appreciates.

[fes]

[Cap10323]

[TrollFromDownBelow]

[ToolBox]

[camino70]

I've used American Collector, switched to Hagerty then back to American Collector (this time through USAA).

I can't speak to coverage during camping, but both allowed coverage with garage or "lean to". I don't know if this is my area specifically or what, but both offered it.

Both offered considerably less premium when switching from another provider vs new policy with new vehicle...
_________________
Ron
1974 Westfalia
Goal: get the 914 1.7 running

[Globespotter]

My Bug is insured via Hagerty as a collector vehicle at agreed appraised value, and even though the value has increased, it hasn't gone up too much.

My 77 Westy is insured as a regular vehicle through Aviva here in Canada, since Hagerty won't insure campers, plus I use it more.

At the time I bought it in October 2015 I had it appraised and insured at the agreed appraised value of $11,500.

Now that I read this, I realize I need to get it re-appraised as the values have gone way up, and it's worth considerably more than that, so I will be getting it re-appraised and then use that for the new agreed value.
_________________
1977 Westfalia - October 2015 - Current
1971 Super Beetle - May 2012 - Current
1979 Westfalia - 1986-1991
1971 Super Beetle - 1977-1980

1971 SB Survivor Story: https://globespotter.com/
Road Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=511800&highlight=
My 77 Westy Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=647114&highlight=

http://vw-mplate.com/mcode.php?lang=EN&id=30990
https://vw-type2-id.xyz/mplate/72067382

[fes]

[fes]

[Globespotter]

[jtauxe]

I had an appraiser who was familiar with muscle cars, but he was really impressed with the trucks, and examined them for two days, asking about every bolt and piece of trim -- was it "born with", "replaced but original", or "aftermarket"?

He hooked me up with an agent from Hagerty, and I have AGREED VALUE policies on both the trucks, for $50k and $80k. They do not have to be kept indoors, they can be daily drivers and I can take them to the dump, no problem. This is just the policy I was looking for, though it took over a decade to find it.

So, if that sweet double cab ever gets totaled, they pay me $80k AND I get to keep the vehicle under a special rider. If it gets damaged, they will pay to restore it up to that value.
_________________
John
"Travelling in a fried-out Kombi, on a hippie trail, head full of zombie..." - Colin Hay and Ron Strykert
http://vw.tauxe.net
1969 Transporter, 1971 Westfalia, 1976, 1977, 1976, 1977, 1971, 1973, 1977 Westfalias,
1979 Champagne Sunroof, 1974 Westfalia Automatic, 1979 Transporter, 1972 Sportsmobile, 1973 Transporter Wild Westerner, 1974 Westfalia parts bus, 1975 Mexican single cab *FOR SALE*, 1978 Irish 4-door double cab RHD

[Cap10323]

I talked to my agent, and we are in the process of setting up an agreed value policy for $40K.

Those are some words I never thought I'd type.


Thanks for the input guys!
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[CanStan]

The whole thing seems to vary wildly depending on the combination of insurance company, insurance broker, appraiser, adjuster, and the state/province you live in. I've heard people with (theoretically) top notch coverage who felt screwed over with a claim, and others with no special policy who felt they came out ahead.

I daily drive and camp with my air cooled cars 8 months of the year, so none of specialty policies work for me. Daily drive to the point that I took the insurance off my Tiguan last summer because it didn't get used. Limits and rules on mileage, camping, storing, etc. don't work for me. My insurance broker insists I just keep receipts and lots of photos of my cars, and if something were to happen, it would be enough to prove what I had. He tells me appraisals don't always mean anything to the insurance companies, since they will come up with their own value anyway, rather than someone else's opinion. Plus, appraisals expire every few years, so unless you keep up on paying for them, it won't help much. Not that they are a terrible thing, but they are just another bit of evidence you can use (just like comparable classified ads, receipts etc.), not necessarily a guaranteed value of your car.

I basically run the same insurance coverage I keep on the dailies. To be fair, I've been lucky enough to have never made a claim, so my opinion could change one day.

[Mberglo]