The time is here.
You’re finally ready to fulfill that lifelong dream of cross-country travel. You’re all packed and you’ve purchased or rented a gorgeous RV. But what about the insurance? What kind of insurance do you need? What is agreed value RV insurance anyway? Keep reading to find out all the most important things you need to know about agreed value RV insurance to have the trip of your life…safely!
Do I need Insurance for my RV?
This is a resounding YES! When you are basically driving around in a mobile version of your home, it’s really important that you’ve thought of and covered all of the possible situations that could happen and how they will affect your life and finances.
Whether it’s a large motor home-type vehicle or a smaller tow vehicle, finding the best insurance at the best price is in your best interest.
There are many questions to consider when doing research for agreed value RV insurance. Let’s look at a few.
1. Is your RV something you drive or more a tow vehicle?
If your mobile home or camper is something you hitch to your car or truck and tow, it’s possible that it’s already covered–at least to some extent–by your car insurance. So why should you insure your towable anyway? Well, there’s a loophole (isn’t there always a loophole??). Here it is:
Your travel RV that rides behind your car or truck is only covered under your liability insurance and not by comprehensive or collision insurance. So there is a limitation of how much coverage the attached RV has under your car insurance. Also, this is only true if the RV in question is in motion with the car pulling it along. If something should happen to is when it’s parked, or unhooked from your car, your insurance won’t cover it. This is a great reason to make sure you insure your RV separately.
Alternatively, If your RV is something you are going to drive, like a motor home, it will not be covered by your car insurance. Regular car insurance doesn’t cover your RV, so you need to be sure you get a separate policy for this.
2. Is your RV your full time home?
Are you traveling around and living fulltime in your RV? This would mean that you don’t have a permanent address, and are living fully in your mobile home. If you answered yes to this question, then an RV insurance policy is especially important for you. Here’s why.
If your RV is your full time home, it likely means you have at least some of the things you consider to be very valuable with you in your RV. If something were to happen to the vehicle, you want assurances of a few things:
- That you would be compensated for all material belongings that are probably pretty important to you.
- That if your RV, where you live, is unable to provide you that space, your emergency living expenses will be covered by a specific RV insurance.
3. Do you use your RV for certain time periods and then store it?
If you are not living full time in your RV but use it periodically and then store it for long periods of time after, you may want to look into a different type of policy. You still need to have an RV specific policy, but you’ll want one that is sure to cover your RV if something happens to it while in storage. There are a few different aspects to think about but RV coverage for damage or theft while in storage is important!
4. Are there other people outside of your immediate family around your RV?
If you answered yes to this question, you’ll want to also consider liability insurance. If you will be hosting others in your RV or allowing others to drive and travel with you, you’ll want to make sure your insurance policy covers a wide range of situations in which someone else could get hurt when in or around your RV.
5. Do you have have protection for injury to people and damage to property?
Like any other insurance policy, when you think about RV insurance it’s important to consider both people and property. You’ll want a policy that takes into consideration who might be inside and what could happen if there is an accident. For this you’ll want to have a policy that covers both bodily injury and any property damage that could occur.
Agreed Value RV insurance
There are a few terms when it comes to RV insurance that are really important to do your research on and to talk to you insurance company about. One of these is agreed value RV insurance. Not every insurance company will cover this type of policy, but it’s worth asking your provider.
So what is agreed value RV insurance? Here are 3 helpful things to know about agreed value RV insurance.
- This is a concept that is covered by some companies but not others. You need to ask about it specifically.
- The idea is that you come up with a value ahead of time that you and the policy holder agree on for your RVs worth.
- If you have this agreed value for your RV from your insurance provider, you can rest assured that if something terrible happens to your RV, like an accident or theft, you will be covered for this value you agreed on.
There are some other terms you’ll want to be familiar with as you navigate getting insurance for your RV. Here are two:
- Actual Cash Value (ACV)
- Total Loss Replacement (TLR)
- Roadside Assistance
Let’s dig into these a bit.
Actual Cash Value (ACV)
Actual Cash Value or the ACV of your RV is the actual market value of your RV. This number should come from a third party source such as the National Automobile Dealer’s Association (NADA), or other similar source.
The ACV is a helpful number for you to know going into a conversation about your agreed value RV insurance. This is because if you know the actual cash value of your RV, you can negotiate if necessary to make sure your agreed value is fair for both parties.
Total Loss Replacement (TLR)
While no one likes to think about his type of tragedy, it’s an important part of your insurance journey to think through all the things that could happen and all the ways you might need coverage. Total Loss Replacement or TLR, is part of the policy that agrees to replace your entire vehicle if there is a total loss due to an all encompassing accident or due to theft.
This part of a policy most often only fully covers your RV if it’s under 5 years old, but be sure to ask these important questions when speaking to a provider.
Roadside Assistance
Picture this. You’re on a cross country trip with your family in your new comfortable RV. You’re driving along, making headway in your first long leg and all of a sudden…you have a flat tire. Ugh! You’ve changed a flat on your car before but this RV is a whole different ballgame.
Thankfully, you thought to add roadside assistance insurance to your insurance policy. This means that with one phone call, someone is on their way to keep moving along! It’s something people don’t think about when planning their trip: no one plans for irritating situations when thinking about vacations!
But if you can try to think about all the things that MIGHT happen on a trip like this, you’ll go a long way in making sure you’re as prepared as you possibly can be for whatever comes your way!
Is finding a way to have agreed value RV insurance worth it?
So is agreed value RV insurance worth figuring out for your RV? Here at Insurance Pro AZ, we think yes! Knowing both the Actual Cash Value (ACV) and the Agreed Value of your RV is an important part in making sure you are getting all the coverage you possibly can for both your belongings and your people.
Here at IPA, We Care About You
Our business has over 15 years of insurance experience in the State of Arizona. IPA strives to make your insurance experience as smooth as possible. That is why we offer online and in-person options for you. This allows you to choose what is going to be best for you and your situation.
We want you to feel comfortable about getting insurance. Let us answer any questions you have. We let you choose from over 40 insurance providers. This lets you have control over what matters most to you. We provide both personal and professional insurance options.
Hazard insurance for businesses is a great option that any business owner should look into. Different coverage options can fit within any budget. If you have any questions about hazard insurance or what is best for your business, give us a call.
At IPA, we have insurance specialists that are knowledgeable about all things related to business insurance. Even if you have general questions or do not even know where to start, we can help you out. Let us show you how we can help protect your business. Start today by getting a quote for hazard insurance online.
We’re here to help! Call us today.
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