A Word of Caution for Floriduh FFR Owners

[JOE A]

I was recently notified by the Florida Dept of Motor Vehicles that my Coupe was uninsured and my Drivers License would be suspended. I sent in proof of my insurance but it was rejected as invalid.
All this was done by mail due to many current restrictions on visits, etc. The problem was, that I insured my Coupe during the build and described it as an "FFR Type 65 Replica" and used the FFR issued ID #. This Insurance policy was acceptable for the Title and Registration process, but the vehicle description changed.
When I got it registered, it became a "2020ASPT" with a state issued Vin #. Sooooo, when the state contacts my insurance company and inquires about my policy, they don't find my car in their data base.
A search with my name would clearly solve the issue, but that may be too much logic to expect from DMV. The lesson learned is to notify your Insurance carrier to be sure all information is consistent with DMV info ASAP.
I will say that my insurer, Hagerty, responded quickly and effectively to the States requirements and got it cleared up. Although Florida usually sends renewal information before expiration, I had to monitor my vehicle status and once it showed up as insured, i could renew on line.

[DSR-3]

I had almost exactly the same experience here in California. Nothing like a nasty DMV letter that you don't deserve, only to have them reject the facts. It took me a couple tries too, but finally all good. Good tip on getting the insurance company started early. They were really challenged by a kit car.

[edwardb]

I would suggest what happened would be an issue in any state. They all live and die off the VIN. So if everything doesn't match up, you're going to have a problem. The minute you received your Florida VIN, you should have notified your insurance company. That VIN needs to be on your policy.

Michigan is the same way. They don't care about the Factory Five description or chassis number. They make up their own Assembled Vehicle VIN when it's titled, and you have to have proof of insurance with that number on it for the annual registration and plates.

[John Dol]

I never insured my car during the build as I thought it should be covered by the home owners insurance. Never had to find out fortunately.
Glad you got it figured out!

John

[AC Bill]

Catch 22.. In my Province you can't insure a car under construction, and my homeowners insurance would only cover up ti $1500, in what they classify as parts. I couldn't even get a rider policy to cover it. Just had to grin and bear it, until I had passed inspection, and rec'd the Provincial VIN tag, so I could insure it completely.

[Papa]

Good grief I'm glad I live in Colorado. Listening to all the horror stories of those in other states makes me really appreciate how easy the whole process was here in Colorado, including getting insurance during and after the build, getting a VIN, titling and registering the car, and being 100% emissions exempt.

[Chris @ Forma]

Thankfully Ohio has been very easy to deal with or maybe we've just been lucky. I will keep this in mind, however, as the DMV guys probably vacation in FL and might discover a new way to make our collective lives more challenging.