Classic Car Insurance and Teenagers

[TomM 25]

I'm getting close to getting my 70FB street legal.  I would like to teach my teenage kids to drive a manual tranny, preferably insured.  USAA defers to Hagerty.  Hagerty requires 5-9 years of driving experience.  Has anyone had any luck with teenagers and classic car insurance?  My kids won't be driving more than 1x/mos and it would be with me in the vehicle.  This is supposed to be a father/son project, so I'm not looking forward to telling my son that he has another 5-9 years before he can drive the Mustang.  Thanks, Tom

[barnett468 418]

i don't understand your question. i would think that progressive would insure them.

[mustangstofear 608]

We've had the best luck with American  modern insurance. Since we're also a collision shop they pay off like a slot machine :) 

[MN69Grande 203]

+1 on American Modern.  I'm under a Heacock Classic insurance policy and they have been pretty easy to deal with and cheaper than Hagerty.  Looking at their about page they are under American Modern Insurance Group.  Don't know about teenagers driving the car.  I would call them and ask.

 

https://heacockclassic.com/about/

[1969_Mach1 333]

On ‎08‎/‎08‎/‎2018 at 8:55 PM, barnett468 said:

i don't understand your question. i would think that progressive would insure them.

I switched to Hagerty because most auto insurance companies that don't specialize in classic cars will not valuate the car at it's true value.  For example, they consider a 69 or 70 Mach 1 just another old worn out Mustang with a total value of maybe only a few thousand dollars.  Basically they only look at the age of the car.  It was my insurance agent with Allstate that told me to switch my 69 Mach 1 over to Hagerty or something like that for that very reason.  I haven't followed to many classic car insurance companies.  But when I chose Hagerty, they had the least restrictions.  At that time, the only major restriction was the car had to be stored inside a garage or similar building.  But apparently, there is also the driving experience restriction.

The OP, TomM, might have to get two insurance policies for the car, one classic car, and one from a non classic car auto insurance company.  Then hope and eat TUMS like they're M&M's while his teenager kids drive the car that no incidents occur.

Don't mean to be rude, but we all know if that car makes much power, with new drivers, there's a good chance quarter panel repairs will be in the future.

[Mach1 Driver 560]

Think you've got problems? My teenager is now 48.

[Her69fastback 3]

I have American National Ins . It’s just like Hagerty. 

[barnett468 418]

I called progressive and they will insure him irregardless of what he drives but won't tell me what value they will put on your car.

You can try these guys also

https://americancollectors.com/passion/?st-t=gclid=*&gclid=Cj0KCQjwzK_bBRDDARIsAFQF7zNtWoPDalRgA1rumjEJOMRdbdfmAJUsW4g01sdwG0r7RmpKDBLb_JYaAsEJEALw_wcB

[TomM 25]

Quote

Thanks for the replies.  I'll give American Modern a call.  I do plan on calling a few others, State Farm, maybe Progressive.  Sounds like I need to make the passing the car to my son contingent on him moving out of the house!  Thanks, Tom

 

[RPM 1,190]

"  Sounds like I need to make the passing the car to my son contingent on him moving out of the house!  Thanks, Tom"

You Sir, are a genius!

[barnett468 418]

Also, if you want to reduce the power when he drives it, you may be able to put a stop/limiter on the throttle or connect the end of the cable lower on the throttle arm when he is not looking of course.

[mustangstofear 608]

Progressive  Insurance is one of the worst  companies to deal with when it comes time for a claim. I  deal with  hundreds of  companies. 

[1969_Mach1 333]

I think the bottom line is he will need to get classic car insurance to have it valuated at it's true value and not simply a 48 year old car with a few hundred thousand miles on it.

[barnett468 418]

1 hour ago, 1969_Mach1 said:

I think the bottom line is he will need to get classic car insurance to have it valuated at it's true value and not simply a 48 year old car with a few hundred thousand miles on it.

Well he said if he uses haggerty his son can not drive it and the companies I know will not let him have a haggerty policy for himself and a separate one from another company for his son, however, i'm sure he will come up with a plan after he calls the other companies that I and others suggested.

"I would like to teach my teenage kids to drive a manual tranny, preferably insured.  USAA defers to Hagerty.  Hagerty requires 5-9 years of driving experience."

[RPM 1,190]

I'd get them a beater 1980-90's pick up with a stick. Plenty of those around, and no future body damage to the Mustang.

[Midlife 814]

Although I don't have children, I always thought that the teenagers were the parent's insurance policy for when the parents become old...sorta like an old age life policy.  Too bad the premiums over the years seem out of whack with the payoff...

[mustangstofear 608]

16 minutes ago, Midlife said:

Although I don't have children, I always thought that the teenagers were the parent's insurance policy for when the parents become old...sorta like an old age life policy.  Too bad the premiums over the years seem out of whack with the payoff...

Problem is kids aren't  moving  our these  days LOL.

[69volunteer 84]

Interesting! I also have Hagerty and have had them for over 10 years.  

I picked up another project recently (which is why I have not been on this forum lately) and my daughter is asking the same question about driving. Would also like to teach her how to drive a stick with this new project once its done.

Thanks for alerting me to this....

 

[jholmes217 65]

I have USAA also, but they sent me to American Collectors Insurance for my classic cars, not Hagerty.  Did USAA switch to Hagerty?

[RPM 1,190]

On 8/9/2018 at 9:02 AM, 1969_Mach1 said:

I switched to Hagerty because most auto insurance companies that don't specialize in classic cars will not valuate the car at it's true value.  For example, they consider a 69 or 70 Mach 1 just another old worn out Mustang with a total value of maybe only a few thousand dollars.  Basically they only look at the age of the car.  It was my insurance agent with Allstate that told me to switch my 69 Mach 1 over to Hagerty or something like that for that very reason. 

Ya, but! The deal is when you have a total loss claim the insurance company has to get the value of your car from somewhere. Either value guide books, or comparable recent sales or for sale cars. Many insurance companies use vendors to gather the data based on your car's info. They can't say your nice clean Mustang is comparable to a rust bucket needing most everything to bring it up to your car's value. Your car will have the same value regardless of the type of policy on it, or if you have no insurance at all. The policy doesn't determine value, the car does. 

The ease of companies like Haggerty who use agreed value, is that the value is agreed upon before you have a claim. But that value still has to be documented with pictures, valuations, guide books etc. They won't let you insure a $3,000 car for $45,000. The pain with that system to me is that your driving mileage is limited, which is a no go for me. With the typical stated value policy (actual cash value-ACV) the value is determined after the claim is filed. This scares some people. I already know a ball park value of my 69, and can show proof if ever needed.  

If you like to drive your car when and where you want without limitations with the standard acv policy, make sure you have a valuation, pictures, and proof of the work on your car, so you are compensated fairly.

 

[RPM 1,190]

48 minutes ago, jholmes217 said:

I have USAA also, but they sent me to American Collectors Insurance for my classic cars, not Hagerty.  Did USAA switch to Hagerty?

Unrelated, but 10 days ago I was backed into at a traffic light by a guy who had USAA. I was driving my brother's car out of town, the other guy was from Arizona and had been drinking. Truly a disaster in the making. They accepted 100% liability by early the next day, and called me before I woke up. I worked as an auto adjuster for 18 looong years and never saw such outstanding service. If you've got USAA, keep 'em, If you're gonna get in a crash, make sure the other guy has USAA!

[1969_Mach1 333]

15 hours ago, RPM said:

Ya, but! The deal is when you have a total loss claim the insurance company has to get the value of your car from somewhere. Either value guide books, or comparable recent sales or for sale cars. Many insurance companies use vendors to gather the data based on your car's info. They can't say your nice clean Mustang is comparable to a rust bucket needing most everything to bring it up to your car's value. Your car will have the same value regardless of the type of policy on it, or if you have no insurance at all. The policy doesn't determine value, the car does. 

The ease of companies like Haggerty who use agreed value, is that the value is agreed upon before you have a claim. But that value still has to be documented with pictures, valuations, guide books etc. They won't let you insure a $3,000 car for $45,000. The pain with that system to me is that your driving mileage is limited, which is a no go for me. With the typical stated value policy (actual cash value-ACV) the value is determined after the claim is filed. This scares some people. I already know a ball park value of my 69, and can show proof if ever needed.  

If you like to drive your car when and where you want without limitations with the standard acv policy, make sure you have a valuation, pictures, and proof of the work on your car, so you are compensated fairly.

 

All I can say is when I purchased my insurance through Hagerty I had to send them pictures of the car and the garage where it will be stored.  If there are any drastic changes to the car or storage area I hold the responsibility to send them revised pictures.  That doesn't seem like too much for them to ask.  I didn't need any type of proof of work done to the car or cost of parts spent.  That's ridiculous.  Some purchase these cars complete and won't have that information.  Then, an agreed upon value is determined.  You are not limited to when you can drive the car.  But you do select the estimated annual mileage it will be driven.  So you are right in one sense, Hagerty will not value a $3000 car for $45000.  However, non classic car insurance companies like Allsate, Statefarm, etc, will not value your $45000 classic car for $45000.  That value will be much less.  They basically use Kelly Blue Book to valuate cars and we all know with Kelly Blue Book age is big factor so the ACV as you keep mentioning will be much less than $45000.

In my mind I don't care what the arguments are, if I have an option, I'm going to use classic car insurance for a classic car.  You can have all the proof needed to verify how much you've invested and spent on your classic car.  If your classic car is totaled and you are trying two get full value for it from a basic auto insurance company It won't help much and you will be in for a fight with legal fees that can easily will drag out for years.  To the best of my knowledge and from my experience when a car is totaled only a small percentage of the money spent on a car dating back one year from the incident will be considered to add value.

[RPM 1,190]

Oh, I completely agree if you're only going to drive up to 5k miles, get an agreed value policy from Haggerty or someone who sells agreed value coverage. But I went over 5k miles on one trip last year. For guys like me who don't care to be limited on miles driven, I was just trying to point out that you can indeed have an older  $40,000 car insured and claims paid on a classic car under the standard type of policy. And regardless if my claim is with a 1969 or 2009 Mustang, if i have a total loss I'm going to bring all the proof I have to the table to show the adjuster why my car is worth what I think it's worth. Certainly every total loss claim isn't a fight, but I like to be prepared, just in case. My beliefs are based on settling insurance claims for 18 years. Insurance claims and dealing with the DMV are alike in that you never know who you're gonna get to deal with.

[69volunteer 84]

21 hours ago, RPM said:

 Insurance claims and dealing with the DMV are alike in that you never know who you're gonna get to deal with.

This says it all. I have been through one totaled car experience and while I EVENTUALLY ended up being satisfied, it was a beat down trying to convince the adjuster my 8.1 liter, 3/4 ton, all luxury items, 4x4 suburban was not the same as your run of the mill 2WD 1/2 ton. Granted we were only talking a few thousand dollars but comps for classics cars are all over the place. 

[TomM 25]

It looks like Condon Skelly is my only real option.  I'm still reviewing the policy.  It appears the driving is limited though, not daily drivers. 

Yes, USAA sent me to Hagerty, but I believe they use multiple sources of collector car insurance, not sure how they decide to dole them out.