"Collector" insurance

[Don66bus]

I was thinking of changing my insurer today so I spoke to an agent who represents Hagerty (among others). "Sure", she said, "I can help you with this." She asked what type of VW it was and whether it had seats or a camper interior. I told her that I do camp in it, but the interior is rustic and can be removed if I were to haul furniture or go to the dump. That is when she stopped me. "That is not a "collector" vehicle. We cannot insure you." From our further conversation, she informed me that "collector vehicles" are essentially only driven to shows. If you use it like a normal vehicle, you have to insure it like a normal vehicle (which is what I have always done). Apparently it is the use of a vehicle and not its age or rarity that makes it a "collector vehicle".

I understand the reasoning but the insurance name is deceptive. Maybe if they just called it "Show car insurance" that would make it more clear.

[mykillcykill]

Hagerty is very limiting but, If you were camping with another collector vehicle, it's a show. I do understand Grundy is less restrictive. Also AAA is supposed to have classic insurance to tag along with your regular insurance.

[peecee69]

[BonTonRoulet]

Typically with a "collector car insurance" with an agreed value policy, the vehicle can't be your primary vehicle. you can't use it to run errands or perhaps use it to commute to work, and more than likely you'll need to store it in an enclosed garage. My neighbor has a vintage MG with a collector car policy and they let him slide with a carport. "Pleasure use only" is what you are up against. And you'll probably have a mileage cap per year, 2500, 5000, etc.

Bottom line is yeah, you could probably drive it when and where you want to do anything, but, would the policy cover you if you were in a situation of a claim. Look at it this way: On one hand, your "regular vehicle insurance" will gladly write you a policy for whatever you want. Of course if you opt for a policy with a "comprehensive coverage", the value of your vintage VW bus is going to be very little, probably on the order of a few hundred dollars, should you be involved in a claim where it is damaged. The insurer isn't going to look at past recent auction values or the asking price of rotten VW's here on The Samba. It's just another old ancient vehicle that has depreciated to near nothing. The good news is that even a damaged rotten VW might be worth a whole lot more to someone perusing the classifieds here at The Samba for their project. On the other hand, with a "collector policy" that is very limited to what you can use the vehicle to do, you might have an "agreed value" of the policy so that when something does happen to your $40,000 rotten VW bus, IF the insurer agrees that's what it's worth by recent past auction results of similar vehicles, you might be compensated accordingly by agreement through the policy.

So how would the BonTonRoulet approach the situation today since his vintage rotten VW bus he's owned since 1989 has been off the road and inoperable for the last 15 years but soon to be back on the road? I'd insure it with my regular insurance IF I wanted to drive it and enjoy it freely, knowing that other like vehicles have astronomical (at least in my opinion) asking prices here in the classifieds on the Samba.

I've got a couple of vehicles on a collector policy, and Hagerty wasn't in the ballpark comparing like coverage costs with others. At least as of 18 months ago, USAA had a tie-in with American Collectors Insurance and I found them reasonable and easy to work with. Good Luck.

[widehatch]

[Almanor23]

I just got a new policy for my Bus and a muscle car I own.

Bus is insured for $65K and the car for $125K, costs me about $1100/year for both vehicles. I had to take pictures of both cars to prove the condition is as stated, including a pic of the muscle car in my garage to prove I did have a garage and that the car was inside.

I did not have to provide current miles on either car, so there is no baseline there, and he looked for recent sales for similar cars on auction sites and was easily able to verify my stated values (Bus is a 23 window, and car is factory big block Mustang with desirable powertrain options).

It was all done via email and a couple phone calls. See link below for the company I used. Not saying they are better or worse than anyone else, just the one I chose.

Only true way to test how good an insurance policy is, is to make a claim. I use AAA for all my normal cars, but AAA had zero interest in insuring my collector vehicles for anywhere near the true values.

https://americancollectors.com/

[BonTonRoulet]

[Don66bus]

I'm not complaining about the price of my current insurance. I just had the bus re-appraised and now my current insurer has to accept (or reject) that value in calculating what my adjusted costs will be.

It was the appraiser who suggested that I look at alternate insurance for collector vehicles. In any dealings with insurance, I tell the truth. Hate to be hit while doing a dump run or carrying stuff to a storage locker, and find out that I was contravening my policy and they refuse to pay. If I have records of our transactions, that makes it more certain they have to honor the policy.

[BonTonRoulet]

[Braukuche]

I looked into a while back, they required a garage and you had to have a real car.
I tried AAA but they won’t insure my house because it’s too close to a hill side (320 yards!) which means I wouldn’t get a discount.
So, I’m stuck with Farmers which will only give me a low mileage, senior (!) and good driver discounts. Still ends up costing me about 400 per car per year and I have 9 cars. Ouch.
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[Don66bus]

BonTonRoulet said: "However, should you have a not at fault incident with someone who IS insured, what is the true value of your vehicle, resulting in compensation from the other drivers insurance, from their insurers standpoint?"

Ontario has no-fault insurance. Your insurance company pays you for the accident, even if it is the fault of another, and then they go collect from the other insurer. So, if you are on your insurer's books for $24K, that is what they would pay.

[c21darrel]

I have AAA collector car ins on my ghia, need a daily driver and garage. Its not a special ghia, its just a 68, insured for $30K @ $240/yr. They dont have a mileage limit. A camper is more complicated as i recall. Worth a call to AAA.
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[Don66bus]

The Canadian equivalent of AAA, called CAA, has a 3000 mile limit for its classic or antique insurance. If we go to BC this year (waiting on various provincial COVID restrictions), that would blow that limit just on the way out.

I will just insure it with my regular automobile insurance, if they accept the appraisal. I just flirted with collector insurance on the advice of others. I don't use the bus as an antique but as transportation (albeit rolling sculpture).

[earlywesty]

[earlywesty]

[David Raistrick]

EDIT: reading deeper into this, the original poster is in Canada, so US insurance discussions DO NOT apply to him. I'll leave my comments up for those who may be looking at this from a US perspective.

my grundy MVP policy has zero restrictions. I have agreed value on my daily drivers, trailers, and my bus. I had my 40,000lb Class A on the policy.

zero restrictions. hell, my bucket truck is even on the same policy with agreed value coverage (I dont use it for commercial use).

that said - MVP (multi-vehicle program) may not be the same as their "collector car" only policies. but the "collector" cars (like my bus) don't have built in depreciation every year (which I can ask to increase yearly) like the other cars.

It does require you having cars in at least two classes (trucks, rv, daily drviers, collector, exotics, etc) to qualify. but I love having agreed value coverage on everything.
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...david - '66 SO-44 #231

[David Raistrick]

[VWAdam]

That's funny. I talked to Hagerty and asked if I occasionally drove my Bus to work would that null the insurance and I was told that was totally fine so long as it wasn't my daily driver. They did require it to be in a garage and that I have a daily driver car.
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[Malokin Martin]

This has been covered a lot here in multiple multiple separate threads.

Below is also a good read.

https://www.acarplace.com/2016/03/insurance/amp/

Off topic, but I always wondered if there was a way to just drive your collector car however you want and have it covered properly by a policy. Like f it I drive it to work daily in the summer and the grocery store and I want it covered as it should be.

[porscheforu]

When I talked to Hagerty about insuring my '66 Westy they asked if I camped in it. I told them, occasionally, and they said they wouldn't insure it because of the danger of fire from cooking in it. I went to American Modern, and they gave me a policy with agreed value. I'm happy with them, but I have not had to file a claim at this point.