Insurance
First lets go over what types of insurance exist:
Market Value (Actual Cash Value): If you suffer a total loss, you will be paid market value which could take into consideration NADA valuations.
Agreed Upon Value: With this type of policy, if you were to have a total loss, the insurance company would pay you the agreed value which is set at the beginning of the policy. The agreed value is usually determined by a purchase contract or an appraisal. This type of policy typically carries a small premium over Market Value (For our 2016 Airstream, there was about a 14% increase over Market Value).
Total Loss Replacement (typically first 5 years) Purchase Price Guaranteed (thereafter): In the case of a total loss, the insurance company would replace your RV with the same model RV. If the model year is no longer sold, you would get the newer model. In year six, the coverage reverts to purchase price guaranteed which is the original purchase price of the RV (For our 2016 Airstream, there was about a 2.5% increase over Agreed Upon Value).
When browsing the forums, I found out about FCIS Insurance in Iowa. We ended up calling FCIS Insurance and they were able to get us an incredible deal. FCIS Insurance saved us 46% off the price from our previous insurance company. Their phone number is: 800-331-1520. We don't get any compensation from them, we just wanted to pass on some great information to help others save money and have the right coverage. We ended up getting a policy with Progressive through FCIS Insurance. I read several people say they tried calling Progressive directly and were either denied coverage or premiums were much higher than going through FCIS Insurance.
We also heard good things about Overland Insurance in Arizona. We gave them a call but their quote was 17% more than FCIS Insurance.
Appraisals
In order to get an Agreed Up Value policy, most insurance companies will require an appraisal. Consult with the insurance company prior to having an appraisal completed. We kept seeing Jim Polk with Polk Associates, LLC pop up on discussion boards when it came to appraisals. We had our Airstream appraised by Jim and we couldn't have been any happier. Jim was thorough, professional and had a quick turnaround time. He provided us with a 37 page appraisal and FCIS Insurance accepted the appraisal no questions asked. They said they were very familiar with his work. Give Jim Polk a call at 805-646-7293 or email him at [email protected]. Be sure to tell him that Jon over at TinVenture.com sent you!