Even if your RV is not your full-time home, the value of protecting your investment goes without saying. Of course, if your RV is financed, you already have insurance, but let’s take a look at what to keep in mind above and beyond the basic requirements or when your rolling home is paid off.
Just about everything you’ve learned while insuring your home and car applies to your RV as well. Bundling multiple vehicles, researching companies and rates, looking for discounts and reputable insurers … well, you know the process. So how is insuring an RV different—or the same?
How to keep it low … or lower
Much the same, actually. Insure your car and RV together. And your boat. ATV. All the toys with wheels. And even your health insurance. Take an RV safety course to reduce rates. Get an independent broker who will ask the right questions and knows their products. Join an RV association that offers insurance, such as Good Sam. AAA, KOA, FCA. And make your payments once a year.
What you need to know beyond that is this: The class of RV that you are insuring will affect the rate. Living full time will also affect the rate. And how much you use your RV and where you store it makes a very big difference.
Let’s say you store your RV in a safe and very secure park, such as Riverbound Custom Storage & RV Park. Your rates drop. Riverbound not only provides secure storage, but you can also stay comfortably for extended periods, and with a flexible insurance plan, not hitting the road means savings in both gas … and insurance.
How much?
Full-time living can cost you $1,000 to $2,500 annually for insurance. You could pay $500-$1,200 annually for the true “recreational” vehicle that you use sporadically. In addition, some states are well known for having cheaper rates, such as Massachusetts, approximately $1,130 or North Carolina, approximately $860, and some (Michigan, $4,500) have the highest rates. Even your zip code can affect the rates.
Class A, the most luxurious and largest of RVs, insure at the highest rates, of course. If it’s old and in poor condition, those rates drop, as they will for classes B and C. Good insurance will also cover liability for visitors and the contents of your RV. (We suggest you inventory those contents with photos and any receipts.)
With a driver’s safety course and a good driving record, your rates will drop further.
And coverage includes….?
And coverage types? Use your auto insurance as a base: comprehension and collision, bodily injury and liability, roadside assistance and vacation liability, and then add on coverage options for custom equipment, total loss replacement, personal effects, and even pet injury.
Where to look for good rates
When looking for the best insurance companies for RVs, you will find about six or seven highly rated companies—not only for cost, but for service and accessibility as well. The companies Good Sam Insurance and Progressive and Roamly appear in list after list. However, consumer comparison sites rarely delve as deeply as zip code or specific personal needs. Nothing we can say here can make your decisions. Each person’s situation will be different.
RVer Insurance Exchange clearly explains terms used by companies. Do you know the difference between actual cash value, purchase price guarantee, and agreed value? This site is a great starting point, and allows for bundling your health insurance into the vehicle policy.
Cartalk includes comparative potential rates by company and for 2021 RV models.
Additional Resources
Consumer Affairs RV Insurance Options (2019)
So settle in at Riverbound Custom Storage and RV Park to take a break and slow down those insurance rates. Riverbound has a wealth of amenities to make this even more fun—a pool, sports courts, playground, dog park, laundromat. As for storage, Riverbound has security cameras, secured entrances, clean up stations, and climate control. Riverbound checks all the boxes to help you insure your RV economically. Come to Lake Havasu City, Arizona, for a vacation from adventure.
