insuring a 1 ton

[BB Racer]

I just got my insurance bill for next year and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on an insurance company for 1 tons. I live in NH, currently use progressive, and don't have commercial plates (i had to in MA), and use the truck infrequently so qualify for a low usage discount. But it's still damn expensive. I called Progressive and they said that 1 tons are just plain expensive and it would be $400-500 less if it was 3/4 or smaller.

Sooo, are there any companies that do 1 tons without the huge penalty?

[ITANorm]

My F-550 is insured through State Farm, alonge with another truck, 2 cars, a trailer, and a motorhome. It was higher than anything else (even the motorhome) but I don't think it is $300 higher than anything else I have.

[joeg]

There may be something to what the insurer told you.

I know my 3/4 (Chevy 2500HD)'s insurance is a lot cheaper than even my Ford Focus.

[Wreckerboy]

I don't know about your local laws, but I when I relocated back to NY from NC a few years ago and bought a new truck I discovered that shopping around gave me a HUGE spread in rates from company to company. (Incidentally, Progressive was the highest by a fairly large margin.) Each company set its own rules, and some had "residency" requirements that essentially put a new to the state driver into assigned risk, regardless of points on the license or years licensed.

Of course, I have since bought a house in NJ and have managed to find the one state in the Union that manages to make NY insurance costs look affordable and rational. We won't even discuss the fact that my insurance costs have quadrupled moving north from NC.

[gsbaker]

Originally posted by Wreckerboy:
...We won't even discuss the fact that my insurance costs have quadrupled moving north from NC.

Reminds me of state auto registration fees moving from California to Florida. In CA it is based on the value of the car, and the annual fee for a high-buck street car runs in the thousands.

Last Florida registration fee for my 5 year-old BMW (~$20K book)? $46.10.

[alex s]

Try Geico.
I'm paying approximately 600/year for 99 F350 and two E30 BMWs. Full coverage on truck and state minimum on BMWs.

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Alex Shchipkov
www.e30.us
TeamSoloRacer.com

[jhooten]

Safeco's online price beat geico's for me. The 1 ton was no more expensive than the smaller truck.

Definately shop around. And don't just look at the "bargain" insurance companies either.
90% of them can't quote me a rate that would make me consider changing over from Nationwide. Some are even higher than Nationwide.


My full coverage insurance with Nationwide on my 01 2500 Ram is only about 70 bucks a year more than the 97 3500 I had. The 3500 was only 100 bucks more per year than the 1500 I traded in when I got the 3500.

[jc836]

I will agreee-shop around. I have had GEICO for nearly ## years and in that time they have insured everything from the TR-3 to the CRX. Our Dakota costs ~$50 more than the Prelude (for sale BTW). The rate for the truck and our open trailer are much lower than Progressive. My wife had them for her RSX and changed and saved nearly $100/6mo. PA rates are not the same as NY or elsewhere-there is no national rate standard so it seems.

YES-shop around. It does pay. There are several people who read this board in the insurance business-you might want to talk to them (one comes to mind-e-mail me for his info).

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Grandpa's toys-modded suspensions and a few other tweaks
'89 CRX Si-SCCA ITA #99
'99 Prelude=a sweet song-FOR SALE
'03 Dodge Dakota Club Cab V8-Patriot Blue gonna tow

[BB Racer]

thanks for all the ideas, looks like i've got some phone calls to make. I'll let you know what i come up with. And to you NJ guys, try moving to the republic of MA if you want screwed up insurance .

[spnkzss]

I spent 2 weeks calling around for insurance on an '87 Ford E350 box truck that I'm using as a race support vehicle and to sleep in. Some places thought about refering to it as a RV until they found out I had no water. Everybody wanted me to put it on a commercial policy because it is a "box truck". Then when I did find someone to take me they said I had to bring all of my vehicles over. I don't want to leave USAA. THat and when I did humor them they wanted to raise my insurance $600 every 6 months. Needless to say I did not do that. I sold the truck to a friend of mine and they where able to add it to their State Farm, I believe, insurance for $58/month. That's how it sits now. I drive it once a month maybe to the 9-10 races a year.

Don't know how much help I was, but it was definitly a pain in the a$$ and don't wish that kind of frustration on anyone.

Spanky

[shwah]

Originally posted by jhooten:
Safeco's online price beat geico's for me. The 1 ton was no more expensive than the smaller truck.

No way in the world I will do business with Safeco. The terms slimy, and dishonest come to mind.

Chris

[Wreckerboy]

"Then when I did find someone to take me they said I had to bring all of my vehicles over."

I experienced the same thing recently - it turns out that Liberty Mutual charges me an extra $500 premium here in NJ for the Miata, which effectively doubles the policy, and brings the cost in line with what I am paying for the other much more heavily insured newer vehicles in the house.

Shopping around found that while others would charge me reasonable amounts for all the cars, the provisos on the policy (six month renewals/opportunity to raise rates) were not worth it. None would insure just one car of the three because of the "exposure" factor. That seems to be defined as although you think you are insuring the vehicle, what you are really insuring is the driver. If the driver moves from vehicle to vehicle, apparently an accident on one can be used against the seperate insurance policies on the others.

Maybe, maybe not, but they were all consistent in their explanations of this little gem.

[jhooten]

Originally posted by shwah:
No way in the world I will do business with Safeco. The terms slimy, and dishonest come to mind.

Chris

BBB and the state insurance board don't seem to agree with you. I called both before I bought the policy. The company was rated in the top 10 in customer satisfaction surveys according to both.