If your purchase or restoration of a classic car has been a good investment, then you need to make sure you get the proper antique car insurance coverage. All you’re shopping around and tinkering in the garage shouldn't be done in vain. In order to make your time and money worth something, you need to protect your investment. Keep in mind that when it comes to antique car insurance, things are a little different than covering your everyday vehicle. Here are basic guidelines by our experts at Leland West Insurance for asking the right questions and picking the right type of coverage for your classic automobile. Only Pay for What You Need As a general rule, it's always best to speak personally with an insurance provider when shopping around for coverage. Before you make a call, think about when you'll actually be driving your antique car. Are you using it daily? Do you only plan on driving it to car shows? Once you've determined when you're going to use this vehicle, talk with your provider about placing limits on your coverage. This way, you're only paying for the coverage you need. Ask About Restrictions When seeking out antique auto insurance, ask the provider if there are certain storing restrictions. Many companies require that you lock your car in a garage or trailer when not in use. Some providers also require that your vehicle not be left overnight in unattended parking lots or other unfamiliar parking lots such as hotels, restaurants or shopping malls. Stated Value vs. Agreed Value Don't let an insurance company tell you that the stated value and the agreed value are the same. They're not! When it comes to antique car insurance, knowing the difference between the two can be extremely beneficial. The stated value helps providers determine your premium. Stated value means that the insurance company will pay the lesser of: The actual cash value or... The cost to repair the car, as long as the cost does not exceed the stated value or The stated amount The agreed value represents the actual cost of the vehicle at the time the insurance policy is written. Agreed value means that the insurance company will pay you the lesser of: The agreed amount or... The cost to repair the car, as long as the cost does not exceed the agreed value Unfortunately, many antique car insurance providers are oblivious to the difference. Do your research and gain the upper hand. In doing so, you will get the coverage you need should a claim arise. Seek Out Discounts Many antique car insurance providers offer a wide array of insurance discounts. There are discounts for everything nowadays. Many big name (and not-so big name) providers offer discounts to homeowners, military, federal workers, and customers wanting to sign up for multi-coverage package deals. The list goes on and on. It never hurts to ask about what your auto insurance company can do for you. Don't be shy, ask and you shall receive. Compare Antique Car Insurance Quotes Online Whatever paths you choose to follow when it comes to your antique auto insurance, just make sure you don't settle. Your classic car should have the best coverage possible for the best price possible. Take time before making a choice. Doing so will help you protect your investment. Also read: Leland West Classic Insurance - An Investment Worth Protecting
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People who own and drive collector cars have different needs for their collector car insurance than they have for their cars that are driven every day. A collectible car is by definition "special", and so it has special considerations to take into account when it comes to insurance. Your everyday insurance provider that insures the vehicle you drive to work is accustomed to dealing with claims on modern cars that depreciate in value as they age, and the average owner doesn't notice the difference between a $2000 paint job and a $10,000 paint job. A company such as Leland West Insurance that specializes in collector auto insurance has several key benefits to offer the collectible car owner.
1) Lower Premiums - A collector car is normally only driven on a limited basis, stored indoors, not driven in bad weather, and generally leads a "babied" life. Most classic car insurance companies are also somewhat selective in who they will insure. These two factors allow the classic car insurance company to charge much lower premiums than conventional insurance companies, because they know that the collector's car is less likely to be in an accident. 2) Agreed Value Coverage - Most classic car insurance companies offer an Agreed Value policy, which means that you come to an agreement with the insurance company on what your vehicle is worth before the policy is written. If you have a total loss accident or theft, an Agreed Value policy will reimburse the total amount that was agreed upon when the policy was initiated. Very few conventional insurance companies offer a true "Agreed Value" policy. They offer a "Stated Value" or "Stated Amount" policy has a clause that allows them to only pay what they "think" the car was worth, and it makes the assumption that your collector car is depreciating like a typical used car! 3) They Understand Your Needs - Specialty collector car insurance companies understand your needs better than a typical insurance provider does because in many cases the insurance agents and possibly even the owners of the company are car enthusiasts or collectors themselves. They realize how much your collector car means to you, and they understand the importance of the car being repaired correctly so that it retains its value. When presented with a claim they will give you much less argument and more leeway to get your car repaired the right way the first time. 4) Repair Shop Of Choice - Many everyday insurance companies will only pay a set rate for collision repair at a high-volume body shop that does average-quality work on modern cars. If you take your car to a shop that specializes in restoration work, you may be left footing the bill for the difference in cost. Many antique car insurance companies will allow you to take your car to a specialty repair shop, and they will pay what it costs to have the car repaired the right way by a craftsman that is skilled in restoration work. 5) OE Parts - On a similar note, many everyday insurance companies will only pay for less expensive aftermarket repair parts. Using non-original parts can reduce the value of your vintage car considerably, as they may not fit as well as original equipment parts and an all-original car is always worth more. Many specialty insurance providers allow for the higher cost of using original equipment parts. 6) Perks and Special Situations - Some collector car insurance companies like Leland West Insurance offer many other types of benefits, such as coverage for spare parts, memorabilia, tools, car trailers, coverage for overseas transport, etc. Some even offer medical coverage for personal injuries that occur at car shows, and "event disruption" insurance that reimburse car show entry fees and non-refundable hotel deposits if you miss an event due to a mechanical breakdown on the way there! All in all, specialty collector car insurance companies like Leland West Insurance have a lot of advantages for the classic car owner. If you own and drive a collector vehicle, you will find that an everyday insurance policy from an everyday insurance company is severely lacking in comparison. When you restore your little beauty and metal child, you want only the best insurance coverage. The best coverage doesn't necessarily mean the most expensive coverage for classic cars. In order to find the best coverage at the most reasonable price you need to compare rates. Before you do, make certain that you have specific information ready for that task. Whether you have a rebuilt muscle car, restored Mustang or an Aston Martin, you need to have an appraisal for the insurance value. When you secure an appraisal, also make certain that you take several pictures of the vehicle both on the inside and the outside of the car to demonstrate even further the quality of the restoration or maintenance. Since there's no one universal definition for a classic car, you need to make certain that your car fits into the insurance company's definition of the classic car before you even request a quote. Some companies consider all older restored cars including antiques, as classics. These companies may also include rebuilt street rods and tricked out vehicles in their definition. Other companies stick to the standard definition of a car that is at least 20 years old and still maintains its value or increases in value. Some of the classic car policies stipulate that there must be a regular vehicle for each licensed driver before they offer a classic car policy. This way, they know that you're not using the vehicle for an everyday car. Of course, almost all insurance companies require that you have adequate storage for your vehicle. Even though you might never consider leaving your classic out in the elements, they just need to be sure. Since the value of classic cars vary dramatically and change as the models become scarcer, make certain that you look for a policy that allows you to insure your car for a stated amount. The appraisal you secured before you began checking for prices and your pictures make this task easier and more precise. You will find that the more prepared you enter into the hunt for the best price for your car insurance, the easier it is to find the cheapest classic car insurance. Find out the limits of coverage for your classic vehicle. If you know that you'll never take it out on the road for a joy ride and only remove it from its housing for parades and shows, you don't have to hunt as hard to find cheap classic car insurance. If however, you're going to take your classic car on the road for an occasional joy ride, make certain that your policy allows that privilege and you still have coverage. If you know ahead of time the exact type of coverage you want and the amount of coverage, it won't take you long to find cheap classic car insurance, consider Leland West Insurance for this job. Once you avail Leland West services, you'll know what to look for to insure your pride and joy. One way to find cheap car insurance is to drive round your local area, collect documents, quotes and information, carry it home and search through it all. That is time consuming and won't be the simplest option to locate the perfect offers. Looking on-line for cheap car insurance is the fastest and handiest way to examine quotes and offers. Don't leap in and accept the first cheap car insurance quote as with just a little bit of guidance, you will be able to lower your premiums. Many car insurance companies will provide you with a discount simply for buying on line, without any other bargaining requiring to be done. Nevertheless, irrespective of that, there's still a vast variation in premium quotes between different providers, and cheap online car insurance will entail shopping around at what additional discounts each insurer provides. Should you ask any firm for a free quote, they are not going to volunteer their cheapest policy, but rather their typical rates. That can be decreased if you do it the best way. You can also reduce your policy quotes by having safety features fitted to your vehicle, for example air bags, ABS braking as well as anti-theft devices. Cheap cover may also be negotiated when you have advanced driver training or have a good claims track record, with no claims for a minimum of the previous 3 years - the longer the better. You must request these though, just as you would need to do off line. If you are in search of under 21 car insurance, perhaps your son or daughter, then get them placed on your own car insurance policy to start with. That should lead to them being given a less expensive policy than if they had been insured independently. This is very true if you are a long standing customer with a good history of no claims. It also helps if you and your spouse are insured with the same firm. That may typically clinch the cheapest online policy you can get your hands on. One of the great benefits of looking for a free online cheap car insurance quote is you can compare many differences between each firm. Attempting to do this off line would cost you quite a lot of money and time, either in telephone calls along with in gas. Most providers are glad to provide you with their normal car insurance charges, but you must work hard to get these further reduced. Auto insurance plan for girl is certainly less expensive than automobile insurance coverage for their counterpart male drivers. But do adult females definitely make better drivers? Insurance plan providers appear to be to believe so. But Why? Merely since they are a lot additional watchful as opposed to guys! They have fewer accidents according to data, and even if they do have accidents they are mostly small. As a result, they file lesser amount of claims and when they do, it is for decrease quantities. Adult females generate lesser miles and so, their automobiles have lesser mileage. Gals also typically never drink and push. Therefore the need to have for special female vehicle insurance coverage, which is at decreased expenditures in contrast to typical auto insurance plan policies. There are insurance plan providers like Leland West Insurance that specialize in automobile insurance policy policies for girls. Also read: How to Calculate Your Car Insurance Estimate? When it comes to vehicles, classic cars are absolutely at the top of the pyramid, with their amazing features setting them far apart from the rest of the crowd. Unfortunately, as is typical for anything that attracts attention, classic cars tend to attract a decent share of thieves and vandals. Additionally, because classic cars are rare and tend to be expensive, many large "major player" insurance companies and agents will not even offer insurance for them. But just because it can be mildly difficult to find the right kind of insurance for your classic car, that does not mean that you can simply drive around without any insurance. Many states require that your vehicle be insured, and you can face serious fines if you are caught driving without adequate insurance coverage.
Finding the right kind of insurance for your classic car is going to take a little bit of time, and a lot of research. Even more research will be involved if you are set out to find the cheapest available antique and classic car insurance available. There are car insurance companies out there which specialize in insurance options for antique and classic cars. Additionally, there are large automobile insurance companies which offer specialized insurance including antique and classic car insurance, but you will have to do a decent bit of searching in order to find them. A good place to start is with insurance companies like Leland west, which specialize in antique and classic car insurance. It is important that you weigh a lot of different options, because the costs associated with antique and classic car insurance can vary wildly depending on which automobile insurance provider you go with. It is also important that you determine what each insurance company will value your classic car at, in order to make sure that you are going to be insured for the full value of your car. Traditional car insurance values the car at the cost to replace it, minus any depreciation that it has experienced. This is what sets antique and classic car insurance apart from traditional car insurance. With antique and classic car insurance, the value of your vehicle is typically an agreement made between you and the insurance provider. This way, you will not lose a serious investment in the event that your vehicle is ever totaled in an accident, or stolen and never recovered. The absolute best option for you to pursue when it comes to automobile insurance for your classic car is called an agreed value policy. Before this type of policy is purchased, you are required to sit down with an agent with the insurance company in order to come to a concrete agreement for the value of your vehicle. If your vehicle is ever totaled or lost, this is the amount that will be paid by the insurance company. This is also the point where you will receive a quote for the monthly payment. Another thing that sets antique and classic car insurance apart from traditional car insurance is the fact that antique and classic car insurance premiums are typically significantly smaller than what you will pay for traditional car insurance. However, not just anyone can acquire antique and classic car insurance, so before applying you should make sure you qualify for all of the following criteria: 1) Many antique and classic car insurance policies require that you meet a specific age limit. This is to insure that the driver(s) on the policy have adequate driving experience and are not in jeopardy of causing an accident. This makes it difficult for young and new drivers to acquire automobile insurance, even if they are driving an antique or classic vehicle. 2) Many antique and classic car insurance policies have also imposed a minimum age limit for your vehicle, in order to determine whether or not it can be considered an antique car. The typical limit is fifteen years old, so if your vehicle is less than fifteen years old you may have difficulty securing antique car insurance for it. 3) In order to qualify for classic car insurance, there are certain limits on how your classic car can be used. For example, you must have a garage or some other form of protective storage to park the vehicle in. Additionally, you cannot use your classic car for any business purposes. Finally, there is a limit on the number of miles that you can put on your vehicle every month or year. If you go over the mileage limit you can but your vehicle in danger of losing its protective insurance. Because of the imposed mileage limit, you must also be able to prove that you have another vehicle which is used for normal driving. Antique and classic car insurance is by far the best option if the vehicle that you are driving can be considered a collectible. This form of insurance is designed to protect cars that appreciate in value over time rather than depreciating. Most insurance companies will allow you to insure your classic car traditionally if you cannot find adequate antique car insurance, but you should expect to pay more in monthly premiums, and to receive significantly less in a pay out settlement if your vehicle is ever totaled. What this means is that if you are driving an antique or classic car, and specialized insurance is available to you on a local level, you should absolutely take the offer in order to protect your vehicle inexpensively without losing out on the serious investment that went into your prized possession. We at Leland West Insurance cover exotic cars (new and old), vintage cars, race cars, street rods, muscle cars, race and tow-behind trailers, antique cars, replicas, kit cars, unregistered and specialty vehicles (Porsche did, after all, make a tractor). Contact us at +1 559-431-8282 if you are looking for one. |
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July 2019
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