Insurance

[steelynorm]

I am looking into insurance for e30
I daily mine and I am concerned in the unlikely event I get an accident or it’s stolen that I will not receive value of the market value of the car?
how is everyone insuring their cars.
anyone have first hand experience filing a claim?

[2mAn]

You'll have to get a stated value policy

[cheffy30]

drive aggressively and defensively and carefully. keep your space. know your escape plan. never assume the intersection is clear. I have put 36k+ into this bitch over the last 20 years. every drive is exciting. sent from hell using tapatalk

[daveduck]

As 2mAn said, get a stated value. Mines insured for $9k in case anything happens.

[steelynorm]

Do the stated value policies have mileage limitations?

[ZeKahr]

Mine is on liability insurance under my dad’d insurance and I daily it. I drive mine like a grandpa due to the insurance policy, living in a densely populated area, and because it’s 30-35 year old car with outdated safety tech - if you get into an accident with any modern car there’s a greater chance you will be smushed in like a sardine. You have to assume other drivers will be stupid and aggressive (that’s how they are here in densely trafficked NJ) and plan accordingly. If you want to rip on it go to a sparsely trafficked section of road with little to no cops or drivers (for me there are plenty of those 100-150 miles into central PA) so you minimize chances of causing a collision

If you’re worried about the car’s value get classic car insurance through Hagerty. I believe that you and them come to an agreement on the car’s value and I don’t think their policy has any mileage limitation. They only offer comprehensive and collision though

[evandael]

After a long hiatus I’m back in an e30 and seeing how their value has risen even since my last car, thought I’d chime in on the insurance discussion as I’ve just gone through it myself.

There is a big difference between what other posters have mentioned (stated value) and a true agreed value policy. Do a quick google search and it’ll tell you what you need to know. Basically though, you want agreed value.

A number of mid-sized specialty insurers/underwriters offer agreed value policies. However, most require you have a more modern and conventionally insured daily, have mileage /usage guidelines, and don’t underwrite policies for street-parked vehicles.

All said, do some digging around for agreed value insurers and make phone calls. Don’t be upset or discouraged when many tell you no. And lastly.. don’t skimp on the liability side of the policy.. especially for uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. Paying a couple more bucks a month for higher limits and additional medical coverage is literally cheap insurance versus the alternative.

As sad as it is to see a good classic car wrecked beyond repair, in an accident the least of your worries should be the value of your e30. Emergency service and medical bills pile up FAST, let alone property damage and/or resultant lawsuits.

[steelynorm]

evandael, this is exactly what i am finding when searching for insurance.
I have an extra car, I do not have room in my garage for e30, and my mileage will be much higher then 2500 mile per year restrictions.

Based on my initial findings "Agreed Value insurance" will pay out the predetermined valuation in the event the car is totaled, "Stated value insurance" allows the insurance company to pay out whatever they deem is fair, which could be far less then the stated value referenced.

[Shangsta]

I have multiple e30's and a Porsche 944 turbo and have different insurance policies on all of them so I will chime in with my advice. There are a couple ways you can go about protecting yourself and your car. If your e30 is a secondary car and you have a daily driver then I would recommend looking into classic car insurance. Classic car insurance policies do have mileage restrictions that vary so i recommend you call around and talk to the various companies. I have my 944 turbo and two of my e30's on classic policies. When I bought my touring I used an agreed upon value policy with state farm because I had decided i would daily it and didnt want to have mileage restrictions. The worst case scenario happened and my touring was totaled in an accident and even though it sucked the whole ordeal was seamless in getting me payed out. I did not have to fight with insurance they simply wrote the check for the agreed upon value. I currently have my 325 vert on a agreed upon value even though I have a daily driver as I drive it quite a bit and didnt want any mileage restrictions.

[mike.bmw]

Shangsta , thanks! This was very helpful. I've spent a few weeks looking for a policy that will cover my 318is. I've checked Hagerty, Grundy, etc. Grundy said on the phone that I can't even drive my car to work occasionally. So that was a no-go as I like to drive my car often. I do have a "daily", but if it's nice out I'll take the E30. Hagerty boasts they "want you to drive the car" and on the phone they said that I could drive to work, run errands, do whatever I wanted as long as I had a registered, insured daily driver. However, Hagerty's fine print in the policy documents pretty much says the exact opposite: no driving to work, no errands, etc.

I'll look into an agreed value policy with State Farm next.

[Shangsta]

Shangsta , thanks! This was very helpful. I've spent a few weeks looking for a policy that will cover my 318is. I've checked Hagerty, Grundy, etc. Grundy said on the phone that I can't even drive my car to work occasionally. So that was a no-go as I like to drive my car often. I do have a "daily", but if it's nice out I'll take the E30. Hagerty boasts they "want you to drive the car" and on the phone they said that I could drive to work, run errands, do whatever I wanted as long as I had a registered, insured daily driver. However, Hagerty's fine print in the policy documents pretty much says the exact opposite: no driving to work, no errands, etc.

I'll look into an agreed value policy with State Farm next.

Yup most of the big insurance companies have agreed upon value policies. Some will make you take it to an appraiser but most will let you just state the value. I would recommend shopping around on it too.

[hamann318is]

Shangsta , thanks! This was very helpful. I've spent a few weeks looking for a policy that will cover my 318is. I've checked Hagerty, Grundy, etc. Grundy said on the phone that I can't even drive my car to work occasionally. So that was a no-go as I like to drive my car often. I do have a "daily", but if it's nice out I'll take the E30. Hagerty boasts they "want you to drive the car" and on the phone they said that I could drive to work, run errands, do whatever I wanted as long as I had a registered, insured daily driver. However, Hagerty's fine print in the policy documents pretty much says the exact opposite: no driving to work, no errands, etc.

I'll look into an agreed value policy with State Farm next.

I have Hagerty's on my E30, and the policy is vague there. It basically says main use is public car club activities or for maintaining a private collection or other infrequent usage. I'm not sure the threshold, but they also told me once a week to work, etc, was fine. My policy doesn't state anything specific against driving to work, however, it may be state-dependent. I'm in the process of doing some more work on the car, so I only drive it a few times a month, so once I get things repaired, I may move to something along the lines of an agreed value policy.

[mike.bmw]

I reached out to a State Farm rep in the VA, MD, DC region. An agreed value policy with no driving restrictions (aside from a 3,000 mile mileage cap) was priced VERY reasonably. The rep said the mileage cap is required in this region, but may be different elsewhere. The other restrictions such as where you are allowed to drive the car (to work, to the store, etc) aren't in the policy so it's fairly open in that regard.

Update: I spoke with a second State Farm rep today and he quoted me similar coverage/price with a 5,000 mile a year cap. So apparently there is not a "regional" mileage cap. As with anything, it's best to call around and get multiple quotes, even if from the same parent agency.