Many people own classic cars as a hobby and take pleasure in maintaining and looking after them. Classic car owners invest a lot of time and money in their automobiles. Keep in mind that classic cars come with a lot of extra expenses, including classic car insurance. Classic car insurance and antique car insurance policies are specialty insurance policies that offer superior coverage for your classic car coupled with extremely low insurance premiums when compared to your standard auto insurance policy. The classic car insurance niche requires specific high quality policies, particular features and benefits, and high levels of coverage. Though many owners will add their antique or classic rod to their existing policy, you will often receive discounts by buying classic car insurance tailored to your personal needs.
Classic car insurance policies are generally placed into three categories. Classic cars, vintage cars, and veteran cars. Classic cars in general are more than fifteen years old; however some people reserve this category to specifically cars made before 1970. That is somewhat a matter of opinion. Vintage cars generally cover the period between 1903 and 1933, while veteran cars are automobiles with manufacturing dates earlier than 1903.
There are additional subcategories such as antique(cars 25 years or older), collectible cars(15 to 19 years old), and street rods( made before 1949 and mechanically altered for performance). Your coverage options, premiums, and liability coverages will be affected by which category or subcategory you car fits into. In selecting a company to cover your classic car; look for one that defines your car and its subsequent value as close to your own assessment as possible. Generally, this referred to as the “agreed upon value” which tends to differ greatly from the depreciated price book values.
If you can’t agree on the category or the value, your options in coverage might not fit exactly what you are looking for. Additionally, the more exotic or historical your motor vehicle the greater the potential cost in covering it. For insurance purposes exotic cars are defined as cars that are older than 15 years and appreciating in value.
The first step in buying classic car insurance is finding a reputable dealer. Going with a company that is strictly local is sometimes a bad idea. You want a relatively well known company with plenty of references, national exposure, and a wide range of coverage options. You also want them to have been around for a few years or more. As with anything else, experience in the business can go a long way toward providing excellent service to the customer.
You may decide to go with a classic car insurance broker. These professionals are charged with finding the best coverages on your behalf by contacting or working with insurance companies to negotiate or offer a tailored coverage package variant to the situation. However, the less reputable brokers tend to steer their clients toward a specific company over another because of kickbacks are added commissions they are receiving without the clients knowledge.
Classic car insurance in broad terms is for classic cars that meet specific criteria. Normally, there are specific mileage and licensing requirements to qualify for classic car insurance which can vary from underwriter to underwriter or state to state. You may want to contact your states insurance commissioner for more information on that. A bit of advice; be wary of a company that does not have “any” mileage requirement. Typically, you will find the coverage itself is sub-par win examined against other providers. Also, be ware of companies with unreasonable mileage requirements as those companies may be seeking to build loopholes into the coverage so that they can refuse a claim should anything actually happen.
There are many things to consider when choosing a company to insure your classic car. The coverage offered by classic car specialty plans far exceeds what you can expect in a normal automobile policy. However, you will want to research any and everybody you come in contact with along the way. But with the investment that’s already been made in getting the car of your dreams, why would you be any less diligent in protecting it.