Classic Car Insurance

George,

You are not off base at all, and thank you for your suggestion. In fact, that is precisely what I intend to do.

Hi George Camp,

I am not sure what you mean when you say this is a gentle forum. For sure when people are having problems with restoration shop defrauding jag owners this forum had much bite. If you are referring to me describing the response I received from Hagerty as unprofessional; than I reiterate that I think they were unprofessional. What else would you call it? They ask me to accept a contract/policy with a clause I don't like or agree with, and when I call them on it they say " don't worry we won't enforce that". Would you sign or accept a contract like that???
Also, I don't care how much support any vendor provides, if they are not being professional for any reason we should feel free to comment on it. Also don't forget that you, the customer, is paying for all that support . I will however call them again, who know, maybe this time I will get someone different and get a better policy deal. Yes, consistent and professional.

I may be off base here, but if you decide to contact Hagerty again, perhaps letting them know right up front that you're giving them "another try", despite having received "less than satisfactory" answers in the past - just might get their attention.

As I said, might be off base - just a thought....

Bill they are not able to post here and so can not defend themselves if they in fact needed to. Like all companies they perhaps have better agents and less better agents. If the issue was raised to a policy maker and they said that I might agree with you. They have a large base of satisfied customers but like any company might have a bad day. perhaps your approach was not one that led to satisfaction on both parts-don't know. For what it is worth I am not a customer but not because of any issues rather I have everything-home-life-cars-toys etc. through one company. Give them another try.

Hi George Camp,

I am not sure what you mean when you say this is a gentle forum. For sure when people are having problems with restoration shop defrauding jag owners this forum had much bite. If you are referring to me describing the response I received from Hagerty as unprofessional; than I reiterate that I think they were unprofessional. What else would you call it? They ask me to accept a contract/policy with a clause I don't like or agree with, and when I call them on it they say " don't worry we won't enforce that". Would you sign or accept a contract like that???
Also, I don't care how much support any vendor provides, if they are not being professional for any reason we should feel free to comment on it. Also don't forget that you, the customer, is paying for all that support . I will however call them again, who know, maybe this time I will get someone different and get a better policy deal. Yes, consistent and professional.

A. Bruce,

You are correct. We are all different under the eyes of the insurance company (talk about profiling). However, I don't get it; I have not had an insurance claim in over 30 years, we have no speeding tickets, cars are garaged, and we have two other daily drivers. What gets to me about my conversations with people from Hagarty was the lack of a straight written policy. It was very unprofessional. The person I spoke with said " I know how the policy is written, but we don't really enforce it". What kind of policy is that??? If you don't enforce it, than take it out. Others were told that Hagarty encourages driving the cars even to work, and I am told that they insure cars for pleasure driving only. Also, how does Hagarty support JCNA?

Bill this forum is a gentle forum. Mostly technical but def. not one for airing issues with vendors who you can easily call. As to how Hagarty supports JCNA--do you get a Jaguar Journal? Have you been to the home page of JCNA? Did you see the support they provided at the AGM or have you been to a JCNA event and gotten a "goodie" bag? They offer a discount to JCNA members and are a valued partner. I suggest if you got answers that you were not clear with give them a call and discuss it with them. You said they were "unprofessional" but perhaps they were responding to you the best they could. One sided conversations are always tilted.

Bill - I don't remember the agents names, but I asked that question very specifically during live chat sessions with 2 of them. Further, I saved - and printed - the live chat transcripts. Both agents told me essentially the same things - Hagerty understood the desire of owners to "occasionally" drive their classic cars to work, so they were ok with that. They just don't want anyone making a "daily driver" of the classic car which they insure.

I forgot about the JCNA discount - that was another factor in my decision....

A. Bruce,

You are correct. We are all different under the eyes of the insurance company (talk about profiling). However, I don't get it; I have not had an insurance claim in over 30 years, we have no speeding tickets, cars are garaged, and we have two other daily drivers. What gets to me about my conversations with people from Hagarty was the lack of a straight written policy. It was very unprofessional. The person I spoke with said " I know how the policy is written, but we don't really enforce it". What kind of policy is that??? If you don't enforce it, than take it out. Others were told that Hagarty encourages driving the cars even to work, and I am told that they insure cars for pleasure driving only. Also, how does Hagarty support JCNA?

Let's all remember that each of us is different on the computers of the insurance companies. They know where you live, what you do and what you have done. My experience with Hagerty is one of pleasure. Great rate and great agreed upon value and they are a supporter of JCNA and thus I got a discount. I have no restrictions on my driving
Sweet

For what it is worth, I had the same experience with Grundy. I decided I would rather pay higher premiums to a conventional carrier, than be restricted on when and where I could drive one of my old cars. But, this discussion has prompted me to rethink my decision. It appears there are some other options out there, besides the standard carriers, who will allow for the enjoyment of collector cars. I understand having a different underwriting standard for everyday use. But, I do not understand the restrictions some of the better known classic car insurers have. Seems they want you to just leave them in the garage and look at them. If that is the case, why have the old cars?

Hi George,
I am intrigued by your post. I recently tried to get insurance from Hagerty for my 68 XKE and 88 Porsche. They would only insure the cars for pleasure and nothing else. Also, if on the way back home from a car show for example, if we stopped at the supermarket or the mall for shopping and something happened to the car, it would not be covered. So I am intrigued by the comment that Hagerty made to you that they encourage driving even to work. Who did you talk with at Hagerty? The person I spoke with was very ambiguous and frankly didn't make me feel confident with the company.
Bill.

I chose Hagerty because their premiums were reasonable, their restrictions on use (or lack thereof) were reasonable, and as mentioned above my friend had excellent support and service when he had to make a few high dollar claims. In fact, Hagerty told me that they encourage driving classic cars, including to work.

How was Infinity when it came to making a claim?

As always, YMMV.

Thanks.

I switched from Hagerty to Infinity Insurance Company for my 15 classic cars and cut my insurance premium in half. Also Infinity does not limit usage to classic car events.

There are many insurance companies out there. Watch any restrictions they may place on your use of the vehicle. Some restrict driving to shows, Sunday drives, etc. Some have mileage (per trip and/or annual) restrictions. Some require appraisals. Most require locked garages for storage.
Hagerty is a good company. Also check J. C Taylor, Grundy and Heacock. A Google search of classic car insurance will bring a lot of companies. Just watch their restrictions and underwriting requirements. Caveat emptor!

Call a Hagerty Agent, it doesn't cost you anything to get a quote

I currently have all my cars (including a 70 FHC and a 1960 Triumph TR3A) insured by American Family. I've been thinking of switching the Jag and Triumph to Hagerty but I receive a multi-car discount from American Family which I will lose if I make the switch. Is Hagerty that much cheaper than a "traditional" company that I can switch and still be ahead?

All-Thanks for your input-well received comments by all-Happy Motoring!
Cheers
-Gordon

All-Thanks for your input-well received comments by all-Happy Motoring!
Cheers
-Gordon

Gordon,

I've only been with Hagerty since taking over this Jag back in June. Previously, my Spitfire was on my regular daily driver State Farm policy. By moving it to the Hagerty policy with the Jag, the cost for insuring the Spitfire (agreed value of $5K - none w/ State Farm) went from over $200/year to about $65/year. I have made no claims, so cannot comment on that from a personal perspective.

But a good friend has a pre-war Rolls Royce on a Hagerty policy. He has made 3 claims, each in excess of $20K. He's never had any issue w/ payment of the claims, nor any indication or even threat of raising the premium.

Hope this helps.

As we are talking insurance, what opinions are there on Unlicensed driver cover. Also a number of years back i switched -after many years from 20 Century, to a well known company. I read the details and decided I wanted comprehensive, so everything was covered. i was then in a serious accident in which the police report blamed both of us, even though the other driver entered the junction at over 70 MPH. I filed a claim and was told, you do not have coverage for this, you only have liability for damage to the other vehicle. i protested that this was ridiculous as I signed on for comprehensive, they replied that it is termed comprehensive but the small print explains it does not refer to accident coverage!!
They had copies of my full insurance and argued that i moved my seven classics to them as they offered full value. They refused to help.

Gordon my 68 E-type FHC sounds similar condition and use. I have used Hagerty for several years. Like Alan says it is an agreed value. I have increased the value a few times over the years. Last time for both the E and my Cosworth Vega it was under $400 a year combined including their road side assistance but I guess that may vary with age , location and driving record. Never have made a claim so no experience on how they are with that but never have heard bad stories from anyone else

David Barnes
68 E-Type FHC

A Hagerty feature I really like is that I get to establish the insured value on the car and pay a premium set accordingly. As I 'restored' the car (a rolling restoration), I have been able to increase the valuation to reflect work done each year.

A few years ago, USAA reccommended American Collectors Insurance to me too. They pointed out that, in the event of a major claim, American Collectors would probably offer a more realistic price for the car rather than one based on the original price of the car reduced by it's age.

I switched. Have had no claims.

Edited on 2014-03-27 16:27:22
there are many options, there are a few bad ones, but I like Hagerty.