whowouldfigga;1216259 said:
Your right about the price difference. With allstate the price difference was just over $100 every 6 months. But now lets consider why the collision is so low. They figure the total payout is only $1.5k or less minus your deductible so if you get into an accident the expensive body shop repairs don't factor in.
Absolutely correct.
The insurance company needs only
one piece of information to properly rate your vehicle for your policy, and that's your car's VIN number. That VIN number tells the company everything they need to know about your car, as that was the number issued to it by the factory.
Now why is this important? Because that's exactly how the insurance company is insuring your vehicle with full coverage: ~ exactly the way that it originally came from the factory. And as you can guess, a 20+ year old car in factory condition (remember, that's how they're insuring it) doesn't hold much value in the eyes of an insurance company.
What about all the "upgrades" you've made? Meaningless, unless you purchase a "stated value" or "agreed value" policy; in which case, both you and your insurance company are agreeing to what your vehicle is actually worth. (Not all companies offer agreed value policies, and all have different requirements; so it's worth calling around for the best deal).
whowouldfigga;1216259 said:
I would guess that your stated value insurance would cost you considerably more.
Maybe not considerably more, but defiantly more than just a regular "market value" policy. After all, you're expecting the insurance company to pay you more than what they normally would for your car; so expect to pay more than you normally would to insure your car. Most companies charge a set amount of $x for every $1,000 worth of coverage you wish to buy.
tsuper92;1216283 said:
I figured that.
tsuper92;1216283 said:
i don't see what difference it should make what's done to the car....
...i would understand an insurance company not wanting to deal with me because it's modified....
Remember what I said earlier about your VIN number telling the insurance company everything about your car to properly rate it? Well, when you alter the vehicle (enhance performance, raise or lower the body or suspension, etc.); you're changing the category of "risk" your vehicle falls under.
Why is this so important? Because once again, they're using your VIN number to insure your car exactly the way it was when it left the factory. By basing their rates from the factory data, they know how the factory vehicle performs, the data obtained during the crash tests, etc. By using that data, they can determine the exact risk category that any factory vehicle falls in; as they will already know that when a collision happens, they can estimate how much damage a car can: absorb, do to others who are hit, and pass onto the passengers inside.
When you alter the performance, handling, or safety equipment of your car from factory; you're also altering the risk category your car falls under, and how it could perform in an accident. Because of this, a lot of companies won't touch a modified vehicle; and will simply void out a policy of any vehicle that's been modified, as they can no longer predict how that vehicle will perform during a collision.
Other companies have no problem with modified vehicles, and only need to be told of the modifications to cover them. My current company is like that, and didn't raise my price at all when I upgraded my GE to the GTE.
tsuper92;1216283 said:
...i mean let's face it ,people have been doing stuff like that forever.
People have also been complaining about not getting what they feel they should have from their insurance company, after they've been in an accident for forever as well.
Too many people treat purchasing insurance like Russian Roulette. They buy the policy, perform mods (or get an already modded vehicle), never tell the insurance company about those mods; then hope for the best whenever there's a loss to the vehicle, and bitch an moan when the company won't cover any mods that they didn't know about.
Insurance is very simple. It's there to restore you to the point you were at before a loss; and the only way an insurance company can do that, is if they know how much you stand to lose BEFORE a loss happens! Basically, you're purchasing insurance to protect you against losses, so I don't understand why anyone would "hope and pray" when a loss happens; instead of taking with their agent, and making absolutely sure that they're protected and know what will happen before a loss happens.
It's your money that you're spending on insurance every month, so make sure that you're spending that money wisely and that you'll be adequately covered should something happen to your vehicle.
ZoomZoomZoom's on the right track. She's getting her car appraised so that there's no question or confusion as to the actual value of her vehicle. If she get's an "agreed value" policy from a company by using that appraisal, then her insurance company is already agreeing to pay that amount BEFORE a loss happens. At that point, she's completely covered for the total value of her vehicle.
