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Living full-time in RV requires insurance on another unneeded vehicle?


Mcfly

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Hi Everyone,

 

I'm preparing to live and work full-time in my Winnebago Rialta HD and so far I've talked to 2 insurance agents who told me that I need to have insurance on another vehicle besides the RV, since even with full-timing insurance on my RV, it can't be my only auto insurance because I need to have another car for commuting to work, using a drive-through, etc.

 

I explained that I work remotely, don't need a commuter vehicle, and have a small 21' RV that can go and park almost anywhere, but they said there is no way around this rule. Fortunately, I haven't gotten rid of my car yet.

 

My question is--do I absolutely have to keep, store, and insure another car that I don't need and won't use, just to maintain RV insurance, or is there a way around this?

 

If I have my RV insurance through a different company than the car insurance, can I just sell/donate the car and stop the insurance after securing the RV policy, or will that car insurance cancelation impact my RV policy somehow?

 

I'd really appreciate any insight from anyone who knows about this or has been through this before.

 

Thank you!

 

Calvin

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Good Sam wouldn't cover us for this exact reason... we were floored to learn that some insurance companies mandate a tow vehicle. I know some folks on this message board are adamant about having one, but as you suggested, it isn't always necessary when you work remotely and plan in advance.

 

There are companies out there that will still insure you without a tow vehicle, so I wouldn't get an extra car just to store somewhere. We personally go through Geico, but only because it was the cheapest option we found. I venture a safe guess that there's better coverage out there.

YoungFulltimers.com is dedicated to informing non-retired RVers who live on the road. This news-focused online publication should appeal to fulltimers of all ages.

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Buy a cheap used scooter and leave it at home. Let them insure the scooter.

 

Ken

Amateur radio operator, 2023 Cougar 22MLS, 2022 F150 Lariat 4x4 Off Road, Sport trim <br />Travel with 1 miniature schnauzer, 1 standard schnauzer and one African Gray parrot

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Thanks so much for your reply and for sharing, youngfulltimers. A tow vehicle doesn't make sense for me when my RV is about size of a large van. Great idea TXiceman--I used to have a scooter and the insurance is cheap so that could work if I can't get around this second vehicle requirement. I hope others have idea or suggestions to share.

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When we had only a small RV with no toad Progressive would not insure us but Foremost would. Their thinking appears to be that driving your RV everywhere could lead to higher accident rates in it. The wording on the policy said "vehicle" so many do get a small scooter to get around this requirement. You can hang a scooter on the back (or front) of most motorhomes and it can be fun to ride so do consider that option.

 

Linda Sand

Blog: http://sandcastle.sandsys.org/

Former Rigs: Liesure Travel van, Winnebago View 24H, Winnebago Journey 34Y, Sportsmobile Sprinter conversion van

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What you need is an insurance agent who understands the RV full-time lifestyle and needs. You do need different coverage from the typical automotive insurance offered policy so be sure that you let them know that you want the fulltimer policy. Contact one of these companies.

Miller Insurance

AIS insurance

Explorer Insurance

Foremost Insurance

RV Advantage

 

If it were me, I'd contact at least three different companies. All of these agencies have a very good reputation with people who visit these forums and/or are members of Escapees RV Club.

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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Buy a new Corvette and leave it with me. I will be sure it is driven regularly and taken care of. :)

 

Yeah, that's a good solution. I can even offer heated, underground parking if you want to leave it here. :)

 

Linda Sand

Blog: http://sandcastle.sandsys.org/

Former Rigs: Liesure Travel van, Winnebago View 24H, Winnebago Journey 34Y, Sportsmobile Sprinter conversion van

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Thank you everyone for your comments! The 2 agents I spoke to were from actually from specialty RV insurance companies and about full timer insurance, but plan A is calling a few more RV specialty places like the ones suggested. Plan B is getting and insuring a scooter which would be cheaper and easier to store than my current car. Plan C is getting a Corvette for jayco1 or Linda to take care of for me. :)

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I wanted to give an update that Foremost does provide full timers insurance that DOES NOT require insurance on another vehicle. Thank you Linda for the tip on this and everyone else for their comments and suggestions!

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I wanted to give an update that Foremost does provide full timers insurance that DOES NOT require insurance on another vehicle. Thank you Linda for the tip on this and everyone else for their comments and suggestions!

 

You're welcome. We are all here to learn as much as we can from one another's experiences. I'm glad I was able to help with this issue.

 

Linda Sand

Blog: http://sandcastle.sandsys.org/

Former Rigs: Liesure Travel van, Winnebago View 24H, Winnebago Journey 34Y, Sportsmobile Sprinter conversion van

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I found the hard way that very few insurance companies truly understand the needs of a fulltimer. The hard way came when I had a theft of property left in a rental vehicle and was not covered. I also found most policies are extremely limited on any sort of theft protection even when the items are stolen from the RV. Check with National Interstate. After very extensive research (several years ago) they were the only company that provided adequate insurance.

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I don't understand your comment."that very few insurance companies truly understand the needs of a fulltimer". I can name at least 5 companies that have fulltimer coverage: Foremost, Allied(Nationwide company), Progressive, National Interstate and Blue Sky. I am sure there are others. We have complete coverage, tweaked some of the coverage just like you do Homeowners.

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I don't understand your comment."that very few insurance companies truly understand the needs of a fulltimer". I can name at least 5 companies that have fulltimer coverage: Foremost, Allied(Nationwide company), Progressive, National Interstate and Blue Sky. I am sure there are others. We have complete coverage, tweaked some of the coverage just like you do Homeowners.

I cannot tell you about each of those, but I can tell you about Allied which I had but did not cover a theft while on the road. I can also tell you about Progressive. Also coverage is limited unless you own a house. One of the issues again is theft insurance. If you are a full time RVer, I strongly suggest you read the fine details of your policy. Find out what sort of coverage you have if the RV is broken into and your property stolen. Find out if you have any coverage for any personal items NOT stolen out of the RV. Find out what sort of liability coverage you have. You will almost certainly need a separate "umbrella" policy. Homeowners insurance provides lots of coverage that is not available for RV insurance. You can read and understand or eventually you might find out the hard way that your coverage is very limited.

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Out of curiosity I queried my agent about my coverage. I have $10,000 of personal property coverage(theft/loss), $500K of liability, total loss replacement and full glass replacement coverage. We of course have an umbrella policy in this day and age. For what we carry in the RV that seems to be plenty of coverage. Big items are the computer and camera+lens(around $2-$3k). I don't see anything wrong with this coverage. By the way I have Allied..........................

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Out of curiosity I queried my agent about my coverage. I have $10,000 of personal property coverage(theft/loss), $500K of liability, total loss replacement and full glass replacement coverage. We of course have an umbrella policy in this day and age. For what we carry in the RV that seems to be plenty of coverage. Big items are the computer and camera+lens(around $2-$3k). I don't see anything wrong with this coverage. By the way I have Allied..........................

If you take that camera gear out of the camper to use it, be aware that you are no longer covered. That is the situation we faced with several thousand dollars worth of camera gear and other items stolen but that items were not stolen out of the camper. They were stolen from a temporary car rental. We were visiting a major metropolitan area and wanted a car instead of driving the RV. This happened in 2012. Policies may have changed. After the incident, I then checked and found Allied does not have a great reputation: http://www.viewpoints.com/Allied-Insurance-reviews

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Sounds like you have good coverage. Again, I recommend others check the details. I found that the default theft coverage was very low. There was no coverage for theft outside of the RV and I also needed a separate umbrella policy. There were lots of other exclusions and limitations. After it was too late I tried to upgrade my policy. In 2012 the only decent policy I could find was from National Interstate.

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I find it interesting that you found National Interstate better. My broker switched me to Allied a couple years ago as it was a better policy than National Interstate. I am not convinced that brokers don't have their own version of policies negotiated with the insurance companies. I think this because the Coach-Net policy we have has a few bells and whistles that the standard doesn't. If you think about other insurance(medical,RX): each is similar but there are differences from one to the other.

 

Example: Our RX plan has vacation refills, my brothers doesn't. Both Express-Scripts.

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When we setup our mailing service and South Dakota address we went next door to an independent agent who specialized in RV insurances. He picked Allied. Later when we had a major theft from a rental car we found we have no coverage for anything not in the RV and minimal coverage for property in the RV. We could not get an appropriate upgrade from Allied so the agent found the National Interstate plan which covered reasonable amounts of property in and out of the RV. Now that we are back to part time RV travel we have a home owners policy which covers our property while traveling. We have now consolidated with State Farm for home, auto, and RV. Without the home owners policy, State Farm RV insurance would not work.

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