News for the ‘Classic Car Insurance Companies’ Category

Which companies offer classic car insurance?

Many auto insurance providers will cover your classic vehicle, but they’ll generally cover it as though it were a regular-use car, expecting a lot of mileage, only covering it in regular-use situations, and valuing it the same way they value any other vehicle: the older it is, the less it’s worth.

However, there are plenty of companies that provide insurance policies tailored to classic vehicles, with much lower premiums, agreed value coverage, and coverage in the variety of situations that apply to classic, vintage, and antique automobiles. This is an introduction to a few of them.

American Collectors Insurance has over 30 years of experience covering collector vehicles. They offer flexible usage plans, aiming to give you the best possible value for your car at the mileage level at which you prefer to use it. Additionally, American Collectors will cover spare parts for your classic vehicle at up to $500 a year. They also offer an inflation guard which increases the value of your vehicle by up to 8% in a year, 30-day new purchase coverage at up to $25,000, and an optional TLC (Towing and Labor for Collectors) package which offers coverage for a wide variety of situations, including towing and roadside assistance, locksmith fees, and more.

CHROME Specialty Vehicle Insurance is part of ANPAC, one of the largest families of insurance providers in the United States. Their policy features for classic vehicle coverage include their “Multi-CHROME Discount,” a volume discount that increases with each additional car you have covered. This discount can go as high as 85%. They cover vehicles used at up to 10,000 miles per year, and offer $1000 in spare parts coverage, 24/7 claims services, and a “common cause of loss deductible,” which means that you pay only one deductible even if multiple items are damaged in the same incident.

Grundy Worldwide will cover your hobby vehicle without any model, year, or mileage limitations. They offer liability limits of up to $1,000,000; an inflation guard of 4% per year; spare parts coverage of up to $500; “Trip Interruption” coverage, up to $600 for expenses incurred as a result of an accident or breakdown such as lodging; and medical coverage for injuries occurring at auto shows.

Hagerty Insurance has offices in the US, Canada, and the UK. Their service features include: an in-house claims department; new purchase coverage of up to $50,000; a business-use endorsement, allowing you to use your classic vehicle for business purposes without having to worry about whether you’ll be covered in the event of an accident or not; foreign touring coverage; coverage for motorcycle safety equipment; memorabilia coverage; a single liability charge; and various information resources and classic car hobbyist community features.

Leland-West Insurance Brokers are backed by the A+-rated American Modern Insurance Group. They offer new purchase coverage at up to $100,000, as well as $750 in accessory theft coverage, windshield repair or replacement coverage, and multi-vehicle discounts.

Edited: August 5th, 2009

How can I get classic car insurance in New Jersey?

Before purchasing an auto insurance policy of any kind in New Jersey, you need to be aware of a couple of fundamental things.  In New Jersey, every auto insurance policy falls into one of two categories: basic and standard.

Basic auto insurance policies in New Jersey are those which meet the state-defined minimum coverage levels for various types of liabilities, while the “standard” category has its own minimums ($15,000 for injury or death to one person, $30,000 for injury or death to more than one person, $15,000 for personal injury protection, $15,000 for injury to uninsured or underinsured drivers, and $5000 for property damage), which can be freely increased through your provider.

These basics hold true for classic car insurance as well.  The vast majority of policies for classic cars will fall under the “standard” category, having greater liability coverages, which only makes sense considering the nature of some of the situations classic cars are meant to be in (shows and so on).

Of course, you’ll want a policy specifically for a classic car, because of the advantages these policies bring: flexible mileage, more extensive coverage, and most importantly (especially in New Jersey, with its notoriously high insurance costs), much lower premiums.  Here are some of the insurers that provide this type of specialized classic car insurance in New Jersey.

There’s American Collectors Insurance, based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, which covers: antique and classic cars, trucks, and motorcycles; antique tractors; custom cars and trucks; exotics and modern limited-production classics; hot rods and street rods; jeeps and military vehicles; kits and replica cars; vehicles undergoing active restoration; and more.

Hagerty Insurance, out of Traverse City, Michigan, covers: antique and classic cars; exotic and special interest cars; classic fire trucks and commercial vehicles; lowriders; vintage military vehicles; modern classics; motorcycles and scooters; muscle cars; high-quality replicas; street rods; classic tractors; trailers for street rods as well as trailers for transporting a classic vehicle; trucks; and vehicles under active restoration.

Leland-West Insurance Brokers, headquartered in Fresno, California, who deal with: exotic autos, muscle cars, antique autos, sports cars from all eras, and rare or collectible vehicles.

Grundy Worldwide, out of Horsham, PA, will cover any vehicle of any make, model or year, provided that it’s used on a limited basis.

These companies and more will provide specialty classic vehicle insurance to owners in New Jersey.  Furthermore, most of them will allow you to get a basic quote via their website.  This process takes just a few minutes, and that’s time well spent, as you’ll see just how much money you can save in comparison to a conventional auto insurance policy for your classic car.  These policies, of course, will include that extended coverage which is so much more appropriate for the classic, vintage, or antique vehicle hobbyist.

Edited: July 26th, 2009

Which car insurance companies insure classic cars?

The basics of car insurance always remain more or less the same.  All insurers look at, primarily, the value of the vehicle being covered, and the risk it faces, which in turn is comprised of factors such as the age of the vehicle, the age and record of all drivers being registered, and the environment and situations in which the vehicle will be placed.

This holds true even for insurance for classic, vintage or antique vehicles.  As such, most providers that offer car insurance will insure – or at least consider insuring – your classic vehicle based on the usual criteria: the book value of the vehicle (which, of course, has already depreciated significantly and will continue to do so), the age of the vehicle, the cost of repairs in the event of an accident or breakdown, your age and driving record, and the likely toll of “normal” mileage on the vehicle.  Even then, standard auto insurance probably won’t cover some of the special situations that apply to classic cars.

Therein lies the problem.  Classic cars aren’t used the same way regular cars are.  Classic, vintage and antique vehicle owners know the value of their vehicle better than the “book” does; they need their insurance coverage to extend to things like shipping, car shows and events (even overseas ones), and damage to spare parts and other classic memorabilia.  Also, classic cars aren’t likely to be driven as much as regular-use vehicles are, so why should the insurance premiums be the same?

There are some insurance providers out there who specialize in classic car insurance, and as such they understand these issues and will generally provide you with a more extensive plan at a significantly lower premium for your classic vehicle than any standard insurer will.  Furthermore, with most classic car insurance policies, you decide the value of your vehicle and, what’s more, that value won’t depreciate.  In fact, in many cases, the value will go up – just like it should!

These companies include: Grundy Worldwide, out of Horsham, Pennsylvania, perhaps the inventor of specialty classic car insurance; Hagerty Insurance, with offices in the US, UK, and Canada, which offers a wide variety of extended services; American Collectors Insurance, based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, known for their flexible mileage plans; CHROME, part of the ANPAC insurance group, headquartered in Springfield, Missouri, offering a significant volume discount on classic car insurance; and Leland-West Insurance Brokers, out of Fresno, California, featuring new purchase coverage for up to $100,000.

Getting a policy through one of these or any other classic car insurance specialist is the only way to get a fair premium.  Standard insurers will treat your classic car the same way as any other vehicle.  Thankfully, companies that provide car insurance specifically tailored to classic, vintage and antique vehicles understand the issues that pertain to your vehicle; they’ll value your car properly, cover you in any situation, and recognize that you use your car for pleasure, not for regular use.

Edited: July 26th, 2009