Update...Insuring your truck...a note of caution.

[BluTrukker]

My wife works for state farm, and you would not believe the horror stories she hears about so called collector car insurance companies. The only reason to go with them is if you are like Jay leno and have a huge garage full of cars that you NEVER drive. If you drive your truck on the street at all for any reason, its worth a little extra $ to go with a normal insurance company.

[70cst]

Originally Posted by BluTrukker

My wife works for state farm, and you would not believe the horror stories she hears about so called collector car insurance companies. The only reason to go with them is if you are like Jay leno and have a huge garage full of cars that you NEVER drive. If you drive your truck on the street at all for any reason, its worth a little extra $ to go with a normal insurance company.

One of the advantages of specialty insurance companies is they will insure your truck for a " Stated Value". If you wreck your truck your insurance will pay the value of the truck that you insured it for. If you insured your truck for $20,000 then you will get $20,000 if it is totaled. Many insurance companies including my own will pay what the going value is as compared to other vehicles similiar to yours. Also as the truck gets older the insurance value drops. With Grundy for example-the value is automatically increased by 4% to adjust for growth value. Another issue is my insurance will only insure my truck for $24,000 and when I get the Circuit Rider back in about a month...there is no way that I could replace it for $24,000.
The above is why Grundy & Haggerty Insurance companies and others exisit. They will cover these special cars and truck in a way that others will not.
Again all the feedback is appreciated as this is valuable information which we all can learn from. Thanks again.

[Tx Firefighter]

I have had Haggerty since 03. They have never once asked me for an odometer reading since day one. If I ever get in a wreck, I was taking my truck over to someone's shop to do some maintenance. Everyone repeat after me..." I was driving it to my friend's shop. I was not on my way to work. I was not running an errand."

I run antique plates too. Again, no odometer reading ever since issuance. Again, I don't drive it daily. It just happens that I work on it a lot at the fire station on the days I'm on shift.

Haggerty has a stellar reputation for paying without issue. I frequent a lot of old car boards and hear stories of their good service and payment on the spot for full agreed value. Never heard of any bad experiences with them.

[scottrod71]

Originally Posted by 70cst

One of the advantages of specialty insurance companies is they will insure your truck for a " Stated Value". If you wreck your truck your insurance will pay the value of the truck that you insured it for. If you insured your truck for $20,000 then you will get $20,000 if it is totaled. Many insurance companies including my own will pay what the going value is as compared to other vehicles similiar to yours. Also as the truck gets older the insurance value drops. With Grundy for example-the value is automatically increased by 4% to adjust for growth value. Another issue is my insurance will only insure my truck for $24,000 and when I get the Circuit Rider back in about a month...there is no way that I could replace it for $24,000.
The above is why Grundy & Haggerty Insurance companies and others exisit. They will cover these special cars and truck in a way that others will not.
Again all the feedback is appreciated as this is valuable information which we all can learn from. Thanks again.

Not to beat a dead horse but "stated value" is not the same as "agreed value". The specialty (AGREED VALUE) companies put those rules on because they are paying out the value named in the policy. Not so with regular (STATED VALUE) companies. They will pay up to the value but there is nothing in their contracts that says they will pay that full amount. They don't have all the rules because they can protect themselves on the back end. You just have to pick your poison and decide which way is best for you.

[Mixup]

My neighbor has Haggerty and rolled his 48 F--d flatbed. The adjuster was there the next day. Never asked him where he was going or anything. Just sent him a check in the mail.

[70cst]

Originally Posted by Mixup

My neighbor has Haggerty and rolled his 48 F--d flatbed. The adjuster was there the next day. Never asked him where he was going or anything. Just sent him a check in the mail.

Now that is how it should work...

[LEEVON]

I changed from Hagerty to American Colllectors since my last post. The Hagerty premium went up to almost $400 without explanation, I even called and asked why they just said "do you want it or not" (not exact quote). I sent the exact coverages to American and they matched it for around $180. Agreed value $20K.

I have to say they are all squirrely on the vehicle use. I understand no hauling or DD's and all that but the errands is where I get confused. I mean 95% of the time when I go on a pleasure cruise it's an errand. Why drive to the store on a nice day in your DD? Both companies assured me it would be covered but I bet if you read the print that's not true. HOWEVER, they are good about paying claims like the OP said and it's worth piece of mind if you do wreck to have a check in hand for the full amount. This is why I won't carry regular insurance, regardless of any agreed value coverage.

[70cst]

Originally Posted by LEEVON

I changed from Hagerty to American Colllectors since my last post. The Hagerty premium went up to almost $400 without explanation, I even called and asked why they just said "do you want it or not" (not exact quote). I sent the exact coverages to American and they matched it for around $180. Agreed value $20K.

I have to say they are all squirrely on the vehicle use. I understand no hauling or DD's and all that but the errands is where I get confused. I mean 95% of the time when I go on a pleasure cruise it's an errand. Why drive to the store on a nice day in your DD? Both companies assured me it would be covered but I bet if you read the print that's not true. HOWEVER, they are good about paying claims like the OP said and it's worth piece of mind if you do wreck to have a check in hand for the full amount. This is why I won't carry regular insurance, regardless of any agreed value coverage.

I was told by Grundy if you run an errand once in a while its no big deal but...if it become your DD and your hauling rocks...now you got a problem. Pleasure driving, going to parades, meets and shows is no big deal. But like has been said...driving our classics is always a pleasure except for snow and ice.

[howard_m18]

I will turn 63 on Saturday & started this insurance search yesterday. I applied yesterday to Haggerty & got a phone call from them. When they asked about drivers in the house I added my wife even when she probaly only drives 1 times out of 10. When they called, I was asked abut what each of us drove. The caller informed me that in reality, I need another D/D for them to insure my 67. They also stated the limitationI got hold of & awaiting a quote from my regular ins. co. They did say that they need a pic. of the front,rear & side of my 67 for settlement amount. They also asked about modification - which I have as I have dropped the frame 2 1/2 front & 4 in the rear. I will call again tomorrow to my regular ins.company. Howard

[70cst]

Originally Posted by howard_m18

I will turn 63 on Saturday & started this insurance search yesterday. I applied yesterday to Haggerty & got a phone call from them. When they asked about drivers in the house I added my wife even when she probaly only drives 1 times out of 10. When they called, I was asked abut what each of us drove. The caller informed me that in reality, I need another D/D for them to insure my 67. They also stated the limitationI got hold of & awaiting a quote from my regular ins. co. They did say that they need a pic. of the front,rear & side of my 67 for settlement amount. They also asked about modification - which I have as I have dropped the frame 2 1/2 front & 4 in the rear. I will call again tomorrow to my regular ins.company. Howard

http://www2.zhome.com:81/Classic/CCInsur.htm Good info...

http://www.classiccarinsurances.com/ More interesting reading...

Thanks for your info Howard...
Since my truck isn't ready for the road I will to get a final quote when it is road worthy. I am going to have American Collector Insurance, Grundy, Hagerty, Heacock Classic Insurance, Classic Collectors Insurane and quote others if I feel they qualify.

[unclewatts]

Thanks for the info 70CST.

[HuggerCST]

I just insured mine with Grundy. I asked for $20k worth of coverage and got a quote of $315 a year. I decided that wasn't enough coverage, so I asked for a price on $25k worth of coverage and got a quote of $195 a year. Same insurance, just cheaper because it puts you in a different "bracket". Crazy, but true.

[70cst]

Originally Posted by HuggerCST

I just insured mine with Grundy. I asked for $20k worth of coverage and got a quote of $315 a year. I decided that wasn't enough coverage, so I asked for a price on $25k worth of coverage and got a quote of $195 a year. Same insurance, just cheaper because it puts you in a different "bracket". Crazy, but true.

I think they verbally quoted me $210-228 (?) a year for $30,000 coverage. Hey...HuggerCST how did you come up with the initial $20,000 for coverage? I was thinking of covering mine for $30K once it gets completed?

[HuggerCST]

Originally Posted by 70cst

I think they verbally quoted me $210-228 (?) a year for $30,000 coverage. Hey...HuggerCST how did you come up with the initial $20,000 for coverage? I was thinking of covering mine for $30K once it gets completed?

I quit counting how much I had in my truck a long time ago, but I'm guessing that I have less than 20k in it. I just figured that if I were to sell it today I wouldn't be able to get more than $20k for it, but after thinking about it, I still wouldn't sell it for any less than $25k.

[chevy_mike]

Originally Posted by HuggerCST

I quit counting how much I had in my truck a long time ago, but I'm guessing that I have less than 20k in it. I just figured that if I were to sell it today I wouldn't be able to get more than $20k for it, but after thinking about it, I still wouldn't sell it for any less than $25k.

Don't think of it as how much you would sell it for, think of it as how much would it cost to replace it. Many times what you would sell it for versus what it would cost to replace, is a very different value.

When I had my '69 Camaro, I had taken a loan out to buy it and to build it from the ground up. I ended up insuring it with Grundy's for the amount of the loan, so if it was a total write off, it would cover the loan cost. My time was not factored into the value but if you are paying someone else to do the work, make sure you factor in that cost into the total replacement cost.

[HuggerCST]

I probably should increase it to $30k, but I really think that I could replace it much cheaper. I see some nice trucks sell for less than $20k these days.

[70cst]

Originally Posted by chevy_mike

Don't think of it as how much you would sell it for, think of it as how much would it cost to replace it. Many times what you would sell it for versus what it would cost to replace, is a very different value.

When I had my '69 Camaro, I had taken a loan out to buy it and to build it from the ground up. I ended up insuring it with Grundy's for the amount of the loan, so if it was a total write off, it would cover the loan cost. My time was not factored into the value but if you are paying someone else to do the work, make sure you factor in that cost into the total replacement cost.

This is the way I am thinkimg. I will have much more in my truck than I could ever sell it for...but if something happened to it I would have some good cash to purchase another truck close to what I have now.

[BluTrukker]

The Value that State Farm placed on my truck for replacement cost was $5k more than what I had asked for. Maybe I am just lucky, maybe I undervalue my truck, either way I am more than happy with the service they provide and I know if I ever have a claim I can walk into a real office and talk to a real person. Over the phone and over the net is not the way I like to do business.

[fastom]

I just received quotes from Grundy, Hagerty, and American Collector. They were all about the same. I contacted Barrett-Jackson and they came in at about half of the other three. Same amount on all four.




http://www.barrett-jackson.com/appli...ancequote.aspx

[chevyboy55]

I have State Farm. I just picked up my truck Friday from the shop. The bill was just under $11,000.00 (they had to repaint everything but the roof) they never even batted an eye they said fix it. I did not have any kind of classic,stated value,agreed value policy, just insured as a 1972. (Much to my horror, as I thought I had a stated value policy of $12,000) I about fainted when I found that out! My agent said "don't worry you will get replacement value if it's totaled" they sent an adjuster out who thank goodness was into hot rods & has a 68 GTO. I don't know if being insured with them for 35 years,currently we have 4 vehicles with them & have only had 2 claims(1 fender bender-1 total,my son not me) had anything to do with it. Heck they even payed 80% of the rental car for the 40 days the truck was in the shop.

[70cst]

Originally Posted by fastom

I just received quotes from Grundy, Hagerty, and American Collector. They were all about the same. I contacted Barrett-Jackson and they came in at about half of the other three. Same amount on all four.

http://www.barrett-jackson.com/appli...ancequote.aspx

Good info...Thanks.

[westofb]

Originally Posted by 67ChevyRedneck

I have a stated value policy with state farm. I can drive it whenever, wherever, and it has collision, etc for $400/year. What good is a classic insurance policy if I can only drive it to car shows?

I had a 72 insured with them about 10 years ago for stated amount of $5000 grand. Truck was awesome slightly modified stocker with nice paint job. Truck got keyed up on Halloween all the tires slashed, they SF told me to get new tires so I could move it and they would cover the tires for a percentage of tread left, which I figured was fair, and told me to get estimates for the paint. I took it to the shop that had painted it for the PO and two others, original shop that did the paint job about 1 1/2 years prior was the low bid. They told to come by the office and meet the adjuster, he would not look at the estimates and just pulled a figure out of his a$$, about 1/2 the low estimate. He told me it was an old truck and that was all they would pay, so I asked what they wouldve paid had the vandals burnt it to the ground, he said whatever it booked out at. I then said I had it insured for 5k and was being charged extra to have it that way, he basically said that did not mean crap to them.....I dropped state farm immmediately after that!

[70cst]

Originally Posted by westofb

I had a 72 insured with them about 10 years ago for stated amount of $5000 grand. Truck was awesome slightly modified stocker with nice paint job. Truck got keyed up on Halloween all the tires slashed, they SF told me to get new tires so I could move it and they would cover the tires for a percentage of tread left, which I figured was fair, and told me to get estimates for the paint. I took it to the shop that had painted it for the PO and two others, original shop that did the paint job about 1 1/2 years prior was the low bid. They told to come by the office and meet the adjuster, he would not look at the estimates and just pulled a figure out of his a$$, about 1/2 the low estimate. He told me it was an old truck and that was all they would pay, so I asked what they wouldve paid had the vandals burnt it to the ground, he said whatever it booked out at. I then said I had it insured for 5k and was being charged extra to have it that way, he basically said that did not mean crap to them.....I dropped state farm immmediately after that!

Now thats how its not suppose to be. My concern with standard insurance companies are that they see classic vehicles and such as just old vehicles and not for what they are...classics. Specialty Insurance companies insure specialty cars and trucks.

[diggertodd]

My State Farm agent is pretty good to me, he told me to get an appraisal on the truck (cost me $40 to have a local collector car guy put it on his letterhead) and give him 2 photos of the truck, front and rear 3/4 view. So for $160/year, I have FULL COVERAGE on a $22,000 value and zero driving/storage restrictions.

I also have "key off" insurance on my
<<< dragster for $35k and full coverage of my Freightliner/racing rig with a blanket policy of $225 per year. The only stipulation is a notice I received that said "No Wal-Mart camping" for the race car hauler. They said all motorhomes were getting that. Other than that - drive the wheels off of everything.

[diggertodd]

This thread also made me think to call my agent yesterday, since I am starting a body-off rehash of my truck, I asked about just fire and theft on the truck and told him i was re-building it. He gave me a 6 month "storage" policy, on my property with locked doors at 22k value for $44 for 6 months. Basically fire and theft. I didn't think that was a bad deal.