[phillym5]

Well after my miss fortune of a u joint failure(or whatever happened)
AAA Michigan does not like the fact that my car is "highly modded" and is dropping my policy Feb. 10.

Sucks because Ive been AAA since 99. Houses,cars,etc. Usually spend 6-8k a year. Very minimal claims. Any way they will not insure the blue beast.

I need to find a company that will insure it for what it is. Any suggestions?

josh.

 

[boplaw]

One thing is for sure:

Stay the hell away from Allstate.

No matter what.

 

[cosioboy]

I have Geico and am quite happy with them, but then again we are talking about NJ where insurance is likely the highest in the US and until very recently there were barely any coverage providers (Geico came in about a year ago).

Try Progressive (not operating in NJ), heard good things, but not sure how they deal with highly mod-ed beasts.

Is Liberty Mutual operating in your neck of the woods?

 

[boplaw]

Josh, as a trial lawyer here in SC, I deal with auto carriers everyday. Geico has been getting tougher and tougher in their claims handling practices. They are having to pay for all that gekko advertising I guess.

What you need to look for is a carrier that pays claims fairly in an efficient and timely fashion. Most importantly, you need to make sure you have plenty of UM and UIM (uninsured and underinsured) coverage. That way if some drunk hits you and either has no coverage or very little coverage, your carrier steps in to cover the damages over and above the other guy's coverage. This is especially important when it comes to an expensive car like the beast. Also, make sure to get some PIP/MEDPAY (personal injury protection/medical payments) coverage too.

I have Farm Bureau here in SC and they are very good in all the areas outlined above.

Most carriers have to be put on notice of any additions/modifications to vehicle or else they will only pay FMV (fair market value) of the vehicle w/o the mods. Good luck.

 

[M-Fünf]

Most carriers have to be put on notice of any additions/modifications to vehicle or else they will only pay FMV (fair market value) of the vehicle w/o the mods. Good luck.

Josh,
I agree with the above statement, but you may not find a carrier that will cover your mods. FMV for your car is what somebody is willing to pay, not what has been put into the car. I have State Farm, and they're only covering FMV for the M's. They didn't even ask about mod's.
Do make sure to get enough UM/UIM/PIP/MEDPAY as boplaw mentioned. I think this is much more important than collision or comp.

Your blue beast can't sue you and take all your money, but an injured person can (and WILL).

Good Luck

 

[boplaw]

.

Your blue beast can't sue you and take all your money, but an injured person can (and WILL).

Good Luck

True enough Jeff, but only if Josh is negligent in the operation of the beast and hurts someone badly as a result (like street racingouich ). I can say that in my years of practicing law I have never gone after someone personally (over and above their insurance policy) for a simple negligence action, but if there are aggravating circumstances (dui, reckless driving, road rage, intentional use of the vehicle as a weapon, ect.) I have no problem going after them personally.

That is all the more reason to have higher liability limits so you can protect your personal assets from a possible excess judgment. In our state you must have high liability limits in order to procure high UM/UIM limits. You can have UM/UIM limits up to your liability limits, but you cannot have more.

BTW Jeff, I love the quote in your sig line :haha: . I was going to put it in mine but you beat me to it. I have not been able to ID the author though, any idea?

Bobby

 

[gsfent]

Well after my miss fortune of a u joint failure(or whatever happened)
AAA Michigan does not like the fact that my car is "highly modded" and is dropping my policy Feb. 10.

Sucks because Ive been AAA since 99. Houses,cars,etc. Usually spend 6-8k a year. Very minimal claims. Any way they will not insure the blue beast.

I need to find a company that will insure it for what it is. Any suggestions?

josh.

You might also look in the Roundel for advertisers who insure high performance cars. I know there are ads in the Panorama (Porsche Club equivalent of the Roundel). These people should be used to dealing with high end cars. Most companies will insure for a "stated value" but it is typicallly very expensive.
I have Liberty Mutual (bought out Prudential here) and since my children are not on my policy (separate policy, different company), I have no problems.
Regards,
Jerry

 

[M-Fünf]

BTW Jeff, I love the quote in your sig line :haha: . I was going to put it in mine but you beat me to it. I have not been able to ID the author though, any idea?
Bobby

Hey Bobby,
Not sure who the author is. I tried to google it a while back and found nothing. I'm sure it was ol' Winston Churchill or Ted Kennedy, though :haha:

So, on the subject of insurance, what are your thoughts on an umbrella policy with much higher liability coverage, and then lowering individual liability coverage on each vehicle? We're going through this right now, and it seems to make sense...

:cheers:

 

[SC'dKellenersM5]

josh,

i have had liberty mutual (they have a discount for BMW owners...) and now im with Progressive....

 

[bmwusa]

Josh I had progressive and then switched to Liberty mutual as they have a BMW discount I found them to be quite nice and cheaper then progressive, let us know what you find out, maybe one of us will need this info someday, Josh

 

[boplaw]

Hey Bobby,
Not sure who the author is. I tried to google it a while back and found nothing. I'm sure it was ol' Winston Churchill or Ted Kennedy, though :haha:

So, on the subject of insurance, what are your thoughts on an umbrella policy with much higher liability coverage, and then lowering individual liability coverage on each vehicle? We're going through this right now, and it seems to make sense...

:cheers:

Oh yeah, I would absolutely recommend an umbrella policy of a million or so, especially if you have teenagers or a pitbull :1:. My law partner has an umbrella with State Farm and I will probably get one with Farm Bureau in the near future. (my firstborn is on the way and Boxers are not on the 10 most dangerous dogs list).

 

[bmwusa]

Oh yeah, I would absolutely recommend an umbrella policy of a million or so, especially if you have teenagers or a pitbull :1:. My law partner has an umbrella with State Farm and I will probably get one with Farm Bureau in the near future. (my firstborn is on the way and Boxers are not on the 10 most dangerous dogs list).

How do umbrellas work? are they for the workin man such as myself, or do you need some coin to get one set up? Josh

 

[phillym5]

Thanks for the responces.
Im not really concerned about the liability, Thats a easy issue.

My issue is being able to insure the car for its value. Like if it got stolen or totalled. Im looking for insurance that will cover the "appraised" value.

Getting it insured as a"m5" is easy. I need insurance for a Area 51 M5.
If it got rear ended, and i hit the car infront of me, How can the aftermarket parts be prepared.

Can you get insurance for a RUFF?
Shadowman,
Maybe we can change the vin# and get insurance on a D/A M5.

josh.

 

[M-Fünf]

How do umbrellas work? are they for the workin man such as myself, or do you need some coin to get one set up? Josh

Josh,
First off, I'm NOT an authority on this subject, so talk to your agent about umbrella policies.

That said....

Basically, it's a liability policy that covers ALL of your assets (home, auto, boat, etc.). The way it worked for us, we reduced the individual liabilities on each of the auto/boat policies, and then got a $1MM umbrella. Then, IF there's ever a liability claim from another party, your individual policy pays up to it's full amount, and then the umbrella kicks in.
We ended up spending just a slight bit more for all of our policies, but have MUCH better liability coverage.

Good Luck!

 

[bmwusa]

Thanks for the info, Josh

 

[phillym5]

Does the umbrella cover the mechanical,comp,damage also? Or is it mainly liability?

thanks.

 

[boplaw]

How do umbrellas work? are they for the workin man such as myself, or do you need some coin to get one set up? Josh

Basically, an umbrella policy is a personal liability policy over and above your auto and homeowner's policies. They are usually offered in 1 million dollar increments. They come into play when the policyholder's negligence hurts a claimant or damages the claimant's property. Typically, as with most homeowner and auto policies I have seen, intentional acts are excluded from coverage, such as assault and battery, murder, ect..

It is usually the more affluent folks that purchase these policies. I'm not an insurance agent, but I believe the cost is determined by the overall insurability of the prospective policyholder, i.e. prior claims made by and against the insured, credit score, driving record, ect. A quick google search will provide more detailed info from different carriers.

 

[boplaw]

Thanks for the responces.
Im not really concerned about the liability, Thats a easy issue.

My issue is being able to insure the car for its value. Like if it got stolen or totalled. Im looking for insurance that will cover the "appraised" value.

Getting it insured as a"m5" is easy. I need insurance for a Area 51 M5.
If it got rear ended, and i hit the car infront of me, How can the aftermarket parts be prepared.

Can you get insurance for a RUFF?
Shadowman,
Maybe we can change the vin# and get insurance on a D/A M5.

josh.

Josh, what you are talking about is another person's negligent conduct. In SC (the only state I'm licensed it), that person has to take the victim as he finds him. Look at it this way: If a person runs into a truck full of eggs, he can't say "if the truck was full of golf balls there would be no damage to the golf balls, so I shouldn't have to pay for the damaged eggs". Therefore, in my state if someone runs into my client's modded car, the defendant can't say: "I shouldn't have to pay to repair the modified part of the car, I should only have to put it back to OEM status".

Contrast the above with the car being stolen and your insurance company saying: "We are not paying the extra 50K in mods you installed on your car because we only insured an OEM car". The same logic is applied if you were at fault in an accident. Bottom line, a heavily modded car needs to be insured as such.

All this **** legal logic has made me thirsty. I'm outa here. cherrsagai

 

[mottati]

Josh, i'd suggest you look for one of these 'specialty car' insurance companies. They will cover the car for an agreed value, and require pics and lists of mods. They usually have a limit on annual milage, so if you drive the car daily, that may not work. i wonder if you could have 'standard M5' insurance thru a normal carrier and some type of specialty rider thru another company. Most classic car type magazines have these insurance companies listed.
Mike

 

[M-Fünf]

All this **** legal logic has made me thirsty. I'm outa here. cherrsagai

hiha hiha hiha hiha

Me, too :byebye: