MH value for insurance

[choctawmel]

I've got my '86 345 'Silver Bullet' insurance valued at $35000. If it was to be totaled, the insurance company would only pay what 'they' would say it's worth. So, what's it worth in insurance terms?
My 'agent' don't know, she can't tell me what saving it would be to reduce either.
Insurance companies, can't live with 'm, can't live without 'm
mel

[wkerfoot]

Originally Posted by choctawmel

I've got my '86 345 'Silver Bullet' insurance valued at $35000. If it was to be totaled, the insurance company would only pay what 'they' would say it's worth. So, what's it worth in insurance terms?
My 'agent' don't know, she can't tell me what saving it would be to reduce either.
Insurance companies, can't live with 'm, can't live without 'm
mel

Mel,

Where did the $35,000 amount come from? Was it from an appraisal which the insurance company accepted? If so, I would think that they would have to justify any reduction from that amount. If not, you should have it appraised and have the insurance company accept the appraisal. Wouldn't it be great if the agent was working in you interests?

I remember that Chaplain Kent had similiar problems when the mechanic ruined the engine on his motorhome and that was convincing the insurance company that replacing the engine was cheaper than totaling the motorhome. Perhaps he has some insight.

Bill

[choctawmel]

$35K was the amount I purchased it for 11 years ago.
mel

[wkerfoot]

Originally Posted by choctawmel

$35K was the amount I purchased it for 11 years ago.
mel

Mel,

I am back to the have it appraised and the appraisal accepted by the insurance company. A member in our unit is going through this now, his Tradewind was appraised and the appraisal accepted by the insurance company at $18,000 two years ago. The first offer of settlement was $6000 it was refused and they countered at $7400. Hopefully he will receive the full $18,000.

Bill

[choctawmel]

Best bet would be a Airstream dealer to get an appraisal. Think the closest one is still a long way from my home. Need to find a dealer that does that and plan a road trip.
Mel

[dalefox]

I'm going through a similar issue right now. My 280 was hit in the rear and Geico is telling me the depreciated value according to their books is just over $3000! I have nearly $40,000 documented invested in this vehicle and refuse to have them total it based on a claim of just a few thousand bucks. Any suggestions?

[skid4u]

Tell them to repair it. You have the option to repair your vehicle, even if they say it is a write off.Get a quote from Airstream and tell them to get it fixed by a dealer.

[Sav'h Steve]

I have a '90 Excella. Seems most are selling for $8-14,000 depending..

I asked for an 'agreed on value' of $10,000, and they said OK based on an appraisal.

OK, so I have to travel 200 miles to a dealer. Then the dealer said they only use NADA book. I said that won't do as the *NADA value* is only $3500.

Tried another Airstream dealer and got the same answer. I'm afraid Florida will have lower values than GA & S.C.

So I have printed out asking prices for about 10 comparables to show my agent. Don't think that will change any minds, but haven't seen him yet.

What have others done??

Steve in Savannah

[KANEHILL]

I would like to purchase a 2001 Excella, the seller is asking $29.900. My Ins. Co. State Farm will cover only up to $14.080 high end NADA. They said NADA is the only market value they go by !
Is there any Ins. Co. that pay fair market value?

[fischerbeach]

So I had a 1983 310 and insurance with the Auto Club (AAA). Thought I had coverage of $26,000, but after it burned down (VolleyTrolley - Volley Trolley Year 5: Hotter Than Ever), I learned how most car insurance deals work.

What I had, and you probably have, is a maximum number the ins company will pay. Fair Market Value up to $___ they maybe call it. "Agreed Value" plans are expensive and hard to find and require a detailed inspection. They're usually for the very rare and expensive cars. Maybe other Airstream owners have this type of insurance. I don't know.

I had paid $15k for the motorhome. AAA looked for exact models for sale and found some for 10k and they offered me 10k. I was upset and asked them to reconsider. 2 months later, they looked for exact models for sale and found some for $25k, and they offered me 25K. I took it.

So, perhaps you can help them find exact models for sale at the higher price to get a fair Fair Market Value. Good luck.

Btw, I went through an interesting year, then purchased an '82 280 with the isuzu, so I'm back in the game.
--David

[choctawmel]

Originally Posted by Sav'h Steve

I have a '90 Excella. Seems most are selling for $8-14,000 depending..

I asked for an 'agreed on value' of $10,000, and they said OK based on an appraisal.

OK, so I have to travel 200 miles to a dealer. Then the dealer said they only use NADA book. I said that won't do as the *NADA value* is only $3500.

Tried another Airstream dealer and got the same answer. I'm afraid Florida will have lower values than GA & S.C.

So I have printed out asking prices for about 10 comparables to show my agent. Don't think that will change any minds, but haven't seen him yet.

What have others done??

Steve in Savannah

I sent a list of all the (all most $17000) upgrades I've do and the insurance girl said that didn't matter.
Want I've seen, asking price is $24-33k. I sure wouldn't take less then $30,000 it I wanted to sell my 'Silver Bullet' (I don't)
Wish 'Fred's Airstream Archives' would list the price they ask/sold for.
A guy in town sold his '85 345 for $20,000 a couple years ago. And it was used hard and never put away. It had a new motor in it, but the trany had problems.
mel

[dalefox]

Hey guys,

So a little update on my situation. As I indicated above, Geico at first told me I would only have $3-4k in coverage and they would have to total the vehicle for insurance/title purposes. I provided them with a detailed log showing nearly $50,000 spent in restoration. I then went to a nice appraiser and got the vehicle appraised for $35,000. And I pulled a few listings of extraordinary Airstreams for sale in the same price range (for reference: airstreamforsale.com).

They quickly changed tune and approved the claim in full. I'd recommend anyone to take the same approach. To be clear, it wasn't insured for an agreed upon amount but they approved my claim nonetheless since I substantiated my claim of true value. Of course, your mileage may vary...

Best of luck,

Dale

[Alwhisman]

If you look at your coverages, you will see "ACV", which means they will pay actual cash value at the time of the incident.

I have agreed value, which took the agent and an appraiser coming out to look at Christine. Most companies wont do agreed value. I finally got progressive to cover with agreed value rather than ACV

Al

[LuvRVing]

Does anyone use Good Sam ins?
Myrna

[Trophycare]

I bought my 62 tradewind for $3500.00, I went to my agent and insured for 8k. One year later I have increased the value to 10k. I know this may be little high I restored the trailer and with picture documentation they agree to pay 10k value if a loss occurred. I asked what criteria they use. They find comps via the internet and base the value on that. Ive seen trailers from 1k - 25k in my model. With the pictures my agent feels good about the value of the trailer. I hope I never have to use the insurance. It would be nice to replace with a very similar trailer if needed.