RV Insurance

[Skeeterslayer]

My wife and I recently purchased a 5'er through a lender who explained that being on the road over 159 days is considered full time RV living. We are retired and are residents of Florida but do not own a home at this time. Our plan is to remain residents of Florida, spending 6 months of the year here and the other 6 months elsewhere visiting family, friends and many National Parks.

 

My auto insurance covers the RV and contents as long as the RV is attached to the tow vehicle. The extended warranty covers everything installed on the RV bumper to bumper etc.. I have rental insurance that covers the RV when in storage. There appears to be a lack of insurance coverage for damage/theft/wind/water when parked at an RV site and not attached to the tow vehicle.

 

Question: What kind of insurance do we need other than "Full time" insurance to cover the RV while parked at a site and not attached to the tow vehicle? Can someone offer any advice concerning our situation.

 

[dartmouth01]

I chose full-timer RV insurance with Progressive. Now, I'm not sure how everything would have gone if we had had an incident, but since it was "full-time" rv insurance and also had my TV insurance with them, I felt comfortable. I believe I was also able to apply and get it online, without having to talk to anyone.

 

I believe Escapees also has a list of recommended vendors, though I can't locate that at this time. You may want to check with them, I know if came with my welcome packet.

 

https://www.progressive.com/rv/rv-insurance-coverages-full-timers/

[lb311]

When I moved to Florida last December I discovered an excellent insurance broker who specializes in RV insurance. They educated me on the various options available from various companies and got me a great Progressive policy that was priced even less than Progressive would sell directly to me. Here's my blog post on the details if you're interested.

[RV Vagabond Jerry]

I found that The Hartford, which offers an AARP discount, does not charge extra for fulltimers, and I recently got a much better rate from them compared to 3 others.

[Kirk W]

Question: What kind of insurance do we need other than "Full time" insurance to cover the RV while parked at a site and not attached to the tow vehicle? Can someone offer any advice concerning our situation.

It is very important to make sure that whatever insurance company you select provides you with a full-time RV clause which is usually an attached rider but could be part of the policy if specifically listed. The reason for this is that nearly all automotive insurance carriers leave many things to your home owner's policy, which you won't have now that you do not have a home. In particular the issue is liability for things like a visitor to your RV or RV site being injured in some way that a court might hold you liable for. There are a number of other factors that are added by fulltimer insurance and many of the RV policies by an automobile insurance underwriter are voided by fulltime living, which is supported with such a clause. I strongly suggest that you contact two or three of the known good insurance agencies for the RV fulltimer and I'll list links to several of them below. While I've not used all of them, each one of them have been used and recommended by numerous members of both the Escapees RV Club and of these forums.

 

Miller Insurance AIS Recreation Insurance Explorer Insurance RV Advantage Insurance

 

Foremost Insurance Thum Insurance

[Skeeterslayer]

When I moved to Florida last December I discovered an excellent insurance broker who specializes in RV insurance. They educated me on the various options available from various companies and got me a great Progressive policy that was priced even less than Progressive would sell directly to me. Here's my blog post on the details if you're interested.

 

Great! Thanks for the info Lynne.

[Skeeterslayer]

It is very important to make sure that whatever insurance company you select provides you with a full-time RV clause which is usually an attached rider but could be part of the policy if specifically listed. The reason for this is that nearly all automotive insurance carriers leave many things to your home owner's policy, which you won't have now that you do not have a home. In particular the issue is liability for things like a visitor to your RV or RV site being injured in some way that a court might hold you liable for. There are a number of other factors that are added by fulltimer insurance and many of the RV policies by an automobile insurance underwriter are voided by fulltime living, which is supported with such a clause. I strongly suggest that you contact two or three of the known good insurance agencies for the RV fulltimer and I'll list links to several of them below. While I've not used all of them, each one of them have been used and recommended by numerous members of both the Escapees RV Club and of these forums.

 

Miller Insurance AIS Recreation Insurance Explorer Insurance RV Advantage Insurance

 

Foremost Insurance Thum Insurance

 

Thanks Kirk... I will definitely check out the fulltime option. I also heard through others that it's a good idea to insure both the tow vehicle and RV as a package. Thanks again for the advice. I'll make contact with someone tomorrow.

[Skeeterslayer]

I found that The Hartford, which offers an AARP discount, does not charge extra for fulltimers, and I recently got a much better rate from them compared to 3 others.

 

Hmmmm... Sounds like an option I need to check out. Thanks for the heads up.

[Skeeterslayer]

I chose full-timer RV insurance with Progressive. Now, I'm not sure how everything would have gone if we had had an incident, but since it was "full-time" rv insurance and also had my TV insurance with them, I felt comfortable. I believe I was also able to apply and get it online, without having to talk to anyone.

 

I believe Escapees also has a list of recommended vendors, though I can't locate that at this time. You may want to check with them, I know if came with my welcome packet.

 

https://www.progressive.com/rv/rv-insurance-coverages-full-timers/

 

Wow! Thanks for the response and link dartmouth01. I will check it out.

[sandsys]

I found that The Hartford, which offers an AARP discount, does not charge extra for fulltimers, and I recently got a much better rate from them compared to 3 others.

 

I would worry about this one. If it doesn't charge extra for fulltimers it probably doesn't provide the extra coverage full timers need. Weekend RVers have coverage through their homeowner's policies that fulltimers don't have but still need.

 

Linda Sand

[Kirk W]

Hmmmm... Sounds like an option I need to check out. Thanks for the heads up.

I have to agree with Linda. If you don't pay anything extra for the coverage, you probably don't get the proper coverage as there is cost to the insurance underwriter to provide it. Make sure that you compare the coverage very carefully when you compare prices. Look for things like full replacement coverage, disappearing deductibles, visitor liability coverage, and much more.

[Skeeterslayer]

I have to agree with Linda. If you don't pay anything extra for the coverage, you probably don't get the proper coverage as there is cost to the insurance underwriter to provide it. Make sure that you compare the coverage very carefully when you compare prices. Look for things like full replacement coverage, disappearing deductibles, visitor liability coverage, and much more.

 

Got it.... Thanks

[whj469]

Please keep in mind that I have not heard of an extended warranty that covers delamination or frames for RVs.

It is not realy bumper to bumper coverage.

[RV Vagabond Jerry]

I talked to The Hartford again today, and they do not insure fulltimers at all. The good news is their rates are half the competition's.

[JimK]

I went around and around on this issue and finally took the recommendation from an agent who specialized in RVs. We found that was a mistake when we had a theft claim. We did additional research and the only suitable insurance we could find was from National Interstate. The rates were competitive and coverage included theft. Now that we have a house again, we have combined all of our coverage with State Farm.

[whj469]

National Interstate is what you get

from Good Sam and that is what I have.

[ms60ocb]

I recently bought a Class 5 Tow Vehicle which changed my insurance provider of over 50 years. So getting quotes I compared against Foremost ( My previous RV insurer) which turned out to be an excellent yard stick. I would get quotes which were low and than play 20 questions before I said NOT SATISFACTORY. I had one company which specializing in RV insurance (and not on Kirk's List) which answered this question. Can you send a sample policy or direct me to a site where to read a sample?

The Answer was; You can apply for the insurance and when in force we will send a policy for you to read.

 

Cheapest can be the cheapest only when you write the first payment.

Clay

[jerryneal]

I use National thru Good Sam's. Much different than traditional vehicle insurance. I'll save you the spill, but it's worth the call to check them out. Found the rates competitive and found extra coverage for the "things" in the RV, some expenses covered if you're unable to stay in your RV and one deductible for towing vehicle and RV if something really bad happens. Had to file a claim last Oct. and had a good experience getting the truck fixed.

[Fulltimer51]

National Interstate is what you get

from Good Sam and that is what I have.

The literature from Good Sam states that they use National General not National Interstate.

[Carolaow]

Another vote for National General (through Good Sam). I just renewed with them and, like last year, the premium had gone up. I asked them to remind me what all my coverages were in case I needed them for comparison's sake, and asked if they could help me figure out how to lower the new premium. Last year, we simply increased the collision deductible to bring the premium back in line. This year, they took my two-year good record into consideration, signed me up for automatic payment (which is smart in any case), and tweaked a couple of other things and we ended up with a premium as low as the first year I set out. I highly recommend at least talking to them.