comparing insurances

[egchewy79]

Looking for insurance quotes.
I got a quote from my local state farm guy and a competing quote from Robbin at Midwest (he used Hagarty for the best quote).
The Midwest quote is an annual payment, which was cheaper than St Farm's quote. However, the St Farm policy was able to be "turned off", leaving only the comprehensive policy in place for only $50/6mo.
This is also able to be prorated if I decided to drive the car 8mo out of the year instead of just 6mo. I'm in Ohio and will probably garage it from Nov through early March.
With this in mind, the St Farm policy would be cheaper overall annually.

Does anyone have any real world experience working with a specialty company like Hagarty vs a "big box" one like St Farm?
Both offer unlimited miles, an agreed upon value and similar comprehensive/medical/liability coverage.

Robbin noted that if I was working on the car during a period of time that the liability policy was "turned off" and someone got hurt, it might be an issue since a homeowner's policy wouldn't cover the injury/medical expenses.

Should I just go with the cheaper policy?

[Jeff Kleiner]

I’ve had mine insured with State Farm for an agreed value of $35K with all of the same liability coverages as the daily drivers for 13 years. With the premium being less than $200 annually I’ve never felt that I needed to turn it on or off when it’s parked in the garage during the winter months—-and besides when we get nice sunny 40+ degree days during the winter like we’ve had this week I’ve been known to jump in and take it for a romp!

Jeff

[egchewy79]

thanks jeff
i wasn't sure if anyone had issues w/ getting coverage from a state farm or allstate etc vs Hagarty when filing a claim.
i guess this would mean one would have had multiple accidents to compare the service between the different companies.

[Rdone585]

I've had SF for 17+ years. After moving to WI I've taken advantage of the seasonal use feature of the policy. I turn it off Nov/Dec and turn it on Apr/May. When it's turned off there is still insurance, you just can't drive it. My agent says if you want to drive it when turned off, just give them a call. If it's less than 3 days (I think in a row) they don't even turn it back on - but you are insured with the full coverage you normally have. So if there's one or two nice days all I need to do is leave a message on my agents answer machine and I'm covered. Talk with your agent about the details, but I really do enjoy this feature of the policy. I've also used this with my truck since I would only drive it to haul the trailer or pickup of large items.

[Avalanche325]

One thing to make sure of is that the State Farm policy is "Agreed upon value" not "Stated Value". Sounds the same, but way different. Every state is different even if it is the same company.

I use Robbin. It seems going through him and State Farm are the most common.

[ej95Cobra]

These SF insurance discussions always confuse me. I've had State Farm coverage on my homes and cars for almost 50 years. When I went to my agent for Agreed Value on the Cobra, they gave me a great rate under $250/yr. BUT, it was for Collector Car coverage that included limitations of using the car only for "parades, car shows and other club sanctioned events." There was also a limit of 3,000 miles/yr. This was not the way I intended to use my car. When I questioned them on my expected use, I was given the ole "nod-nod-wink-wink" that they probably wouldn't be that strict. I was not about to take the chance of get hit during one of my drives and ended up with Haggerty who actually encouraged driving the car.

What confuses me is if the $200 coverage from SF does have the restrictions noted or if the decision to insure is a local agent decision and my agent didn't want to take the risk of insuring my Cobra. Any added detail on any $200 SF coverage limits, or truly unlimited coverage would be appreciated.

[egchewy79]

according to my SF agent, the classic car policy would be cheaper (like $200 annually) but might come w/ some of the driving restrictions that you talked about. since my state (OH) titled the car as a 2019 (they had to use the date on the COO, not the replica year the car is modeled after) SF can only insure my car as a regular passenger vehicle. This makes my premium of around $440/6mo (for a $50k agreed upon value), but also gives me the opportunity to put the collision/injury insurance on hold when I want (ie winter months) and only keep comprehensive insurance for $50/6mo. They are also able to prorate this as well if I choose to drive 8mo of the year. In OH, my car will likely be garaged from Nov through early March, so no issues there. At the end of the day, with the ability to pause my collision insurance, it'll still be cheaper for me to go with SF as opposed to Hagarty (~$700 annually with a $35k agreed upon value, no milage limits and similar collision/liability coverage as SF, quoted through Robbin at Midwest).

[GoDadGo]

I went with State Farm since we have more Ambulance Chasing Lawyers in Louisiana than most other places in the country.
The only thing worse than dealing with hurricanes and floods is getting sued if you get into a fender bender down here.
Getting in an accident in Louisiana, especially near New Orleans, is like winning a Lotto Scratch Off.

Insure Wisely My Friends, Insure Wisely!

-In A Wreck & Need A Check, Is Often The Motto Heard!

[Jeff Kleiner]

It may depend on where you are located since there are variations state to state and also how your agent is willing to write the policy. In my case the policy declarations are exactly the same for the roadster as they are for all of our daily drivers except for the AGREED VALUE addendum (I'm well aware of the difference between agreed and stated value). No restrictions on usage or miles are stated anywhere in the policy. A few years ago another local owner inquired about insurance with a different State Farm agent in town and was told that they didn't offer any coverage for such a vehicle. I referred him to the agent I use---who writes policies for at least 3 other FFRs that I'm aware of---and he had no problem getting covered. I think sometimes it comes down to whether the agent is willing to do the legwork.

Jeff

[ej95Cobra]

Thanks! This is very helpful to understand the differences in insurance and the impact of state registration policies. In Va. we are registered as 1965 Factory Five Roadster.

[Rdone585]

Mine is an agreed on value. At least with my agent if I want to go past $35K then it needs an appraisal. I have intended on doing just that since mine is a good margin above that, I've just not yet had the opportunity to get an appraisal. Perhaps someone on this site could lead us in the right direction.

[olson_adam]

Hagerty is the company I use... my policy in ND for 55k is around 800 per year ... 34yrs with a cleanish driving record