The Best Antique Car Insurance Policies, Options and Providers

If you own a valuable antique car, insurance coverage options are something that deserve a lot of careful consideration. An antique vehicle is always worth more than the sum total price of the parts in the vehicle and is always worth many times the original cost of the vehicle. Moreover, not all insurance companies are able or willing to issue insurance policies on classic antique vehicles because of the extraordinary value of many of these vehicles and the difficulty in determining values on them. So, when choosing an insurance policy for an antique vehicle, there are indeed many things to consider.

Antique Car Insurance Specialists

When shopping for car insurance for an antique vehicle, you definitely want to avoid the mainstream insurance companies. While companies like AIG, Allstate, GEICO, Progressive and State Farm are all excellent insurance companies, they know very little about antique vehicles. Even if you are able to purchase a policy from one of these companies, the valuation placed on your antique vehicle will almost surely be much lower than the vehicle is really worth. So, when insuring your antique vehicle--choose an antique vehicle specialist.

If you need an antique auto insurance policy, consider companies like Grundy Worldwide, Hagerty Insurance Agency and JC Taylor insurance agency. All three of these companies have been insuring antique vehicles for about 50 years or so. All of these companies understand the special needs and requirements of antique vehicle owners and how to address insurance concerns associated with these types of vehicles. Adequate insurance coverage for collector cars is never cheap; however, using an antique car specialist company like the ones mentioned above will always result in a better value in the long run.

Agreed Value Insurance

One of the major advantages that antique car specialist insurance companies have over standard insurance companies is the fact that they often allow for an agreed value or negotiated value policies for antique vehicles. Because an antique vehicle is worth so much more than the parts needed to build the vehicle, and often has a lot of sentimental or demand-based market value, true valuations can often be difficult to determine.

An agreed value or negotiated value for antique vehicle is a value for the vehicle that is determined not only by the insurance Company--but the antique car owner as well. The value is negotiated between the car owner and the insurance company until a realistic value is reached. Of course, a higher value placed on the vehicle will always result in higher insurance premiums; however, this type of process does allow the car owner to be adequately compensated in the event the vehicle is ever damaged beyond repair or stolen.

Infrequent Use and Other Considerations

Another advantage of policies issued by an antique car insurance company is the ability to reduce rates based on the way and antique vehicle is used. For example, if an antique vehicle owner only drives the vehicle to and from car shows, or drivers the vehicle in parades; he/she can save considerable amounts of money on insurance company by claiming only occasional use for the vehicle. Also, most antique car coverage policies provide discounts when the vehicle is stored in a locked garage or trailer when not in use.

Antique Car Insurance Online Quotes

One of the easiest ways to search and compare antique car insurance policies is by using the online resources that many of the top companies make available to their customers. Besides saving you time, it can also help you compare prices among competitors and help you get the best deal possible. Before looking for antique car insurance online quotes, it's important to have as much information on your vehicle as possible, as this will make it easier for the insurance provider to give you a more accurate estimate as to the cost of your potential policy.