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Classic plates, insurance & claims

To: mgs@Autox.Team.Net
Subject: Classic plates, insurance & claims
From: barneymg@juno.com (Barney Gaylord)
Date: Mon, 20 Jan 1997 12:28:20 EST
I have antique vehicle plates and J. C. Taylor classic car insurance on
my MGA. 

A few years ago some uninsured divorce' backed a '67 Buick into the side
and gave it a football size dent behind the rear wheel.  Three estimates
I got ranged from $450 to $875.  Taylor sent out an independent
contractor type appraiser, took several weeks for him to show up.  My
independent agent says that's very unusual, that Taylor is usually very
responsive and that they always pay up, are among the best in the
business.

The independent contractor type appraiser wrote it up at $400, said to
take it to any shop I like they'll do it for that or Taylor will settle
it with them.  I wrote Taylor a short note with a copy of the $875
estimate, noted that it was a fully restored classic with no bondo, that
it really needed a new fender, that new fenders list at about $750 (at
that time), included copies of pages from Moss, Vicky Brit, and Scaroboro
Fair, that the new parts were not available at that time, so I had to get
a good shop to do a proper job of the repair, not a cheap bondo job. 
Taylor promptly sent me a check for $875.

Stated value?  In 1987 I said $10,000.  The agent asked for a photo of
the car for their file.  I gave them a 3 x 5 glossy.  They wrote the
policy.  Simple.  I was pleasantly surprised.  I thought they might ask
for a proper appraisal.  As I recall, at the time they said no appraisal
necessary if the stated value was less than $12,500 (or something like
that).  Today the value of a nicely restored MGA is more like $14,000, my
car has another 95,000 hard miles on it, mechanically sound but getting a
little tatty, may be worth $8000 tops.  I'm not sure what would happen if
it got totaled, but we might end up settling on $8000, certainly not
less.  Or, maybe I could talk them into a $9000 repair bill.  I'll get
around to repainting and new front carpet in about another year.  At that
time I'll reassess my stated value.

I don't think anybody's classic car insurance is any cheaper than Taylor.
 I think the service is OK.  I think the company is rock solid.  I'll
continue to do business with them until they convince me otherwise. 
Maybe it's just that my independent agent is easy to deal with.

One thing I like about Taylor is no specific mileage limitation.  They
ask how much you expect to drive it, just for the records, but it's not
limited, and they do allow for a little personal use, so it's no problem
if you get smashed when you stop by the 7-11 on your way home from a club
meeting.  My MGA does about 15,000 to 20,000 miles a year, almost all on
club activities.  At the time I first got the insurance I think I told
them 2500 miles a year, thinking that was plenty.  I think the agent's
renewal notice each year might mention the 2500 miles, but the printed
policy does not mention mileage, and nobody but me has ever kept track.

When it got the dent it was in a gas station ten miles from home.  I took
a friend to look at a MG Midget with a for sale sign on it (for him, not
me).  The cop didn't ask about the antique vehicle plates or why I was
there.  The insurance people didn't ask either.  Nobody questioned if it
was a legitimate trip, the subject never came up.

Driving outside the limits of the antique plates is legally a no-no.  If
you should ever get stopped by a cop, it helps to belong to a lot of
clubs, keep the latest newsletters, keep a calendar of events, and think
ahead.  If you want to take a personal trip, just take along one good
excuse.  Like:

a.)  Cruising the back roads within 50 miles of home:  I'm doing a rally
layout.  Have to measure the distances with this car so it's
representative of the other cars in the club.

b.)  Outbound:  A few club buddies are restoring one in abcde village,
and they want to see mine as a sample.

c.)  Inbound:  A few club buddies are restoring one in abcde village, and
they wanted to see mine as a sample.

d.)  Outbound a long way from home:  The abcde car club has an event at
ghijk park in lmnop city today.  I'm taking these back roads to avoid the
interstate, don't like all those cars and trucks whizzing around this
little car at those speeds.

e.)  Out of state:  Don't worry about the antique plates, nobody outside
of your home state cares.  If you get in an accident you were on your way
to or from a national car club meet, you can browse the newsletters later
to figure out which one.

It's easy.  Just think about it for a minute.  You can come up with a few
good ones of your own.  It should never be a problem.

Only occasionally, maybe once every 20,000 miles or so, some cop may pull
you over just to check the strange plates and ask you where you're going.
 Of course it's not legal to stop you without probable cause, but he'll
have some good reason before he gets to your door.  He does it all the
time, so he has more good reasons than you do.  If you yourself are
convinced that you're on club business, it's no problem, can even be kind
of funny watching the cop's reaction.

Get the classic car insurance for sure.  Get the antique plates too as
long as you don't drive it to work every day.  Then drive the wheels off
of it.

Safety Faster,
Barney

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