seasonal insurance shuffle

[BFisher244]

This question is for those in the upper states that have a real winter. When you put your bike away for winter storage and have zero intention of riding it until the spring, do you change up your insurance coverage? (ie drop the coverage level since it's just sitting in a garage, and then raise it back up in the spring before you bring it back out).

[Yakaru]

In my area it's 12 months a year riding season, but one thing I have done before is called my insurance company and declared a vehicle "Not in Service"; it makes most coverages drop to the legal minimums with a few discounts because it's not being used at all. Don't know if that's possible with all states/insurance carriers but it is handy -- especially because reinstating later is just a matter of another phone call and all the previous coverages are restored.

[k-os]

I recently asked my insurance company (American Family) about this as I've got a motorcycle I'm working on and probably won't ride anymore this year, but I still wanted to keep it insured for threft/fire. Their response was that they don't do a Storage Type insurance, but the premium they do charge for the year is actually priced to the equivalent of 8 months, because of our seasons in Wisconsin.

[Bigballsofpaint]

i drop mine down to liability since the bike is paid for. Granted i still take the bike out during the winter when a nice day pops up since i dont do any general winterization on the bike, so i ride it about 5 miles every 2-4 weeks. Its kept in a garage and not outside otherwise. It brings the insurance down about half. My gfs bike isnt paid off though so it requires the full insurance regardless, even though she doesnt ride the bike all year...

[Lychee]

Originally Posted by k-os

I recently asked my insurance company (American Family) about this as I've got a motorcycle I'm working on and probably won't ride anymore this year, but I still wanted to keep it insured for threft/fire. Their response was that they don't do a Storage Type insurance, but the premium they do charge for the year is actually priced to the equivalent of 8 months, because of our seasons in Wisconsin.

This sounds like a very crafty load of bs from the insurance guy. You can cancel/change your coverage at any time, but at every change your policy history is evaluated and your premium reset. You can bet that the insurance companies have probably seen activity like that before. I would expect that your rates would change after a few flip flops. Kudos to the OP for finding a creative method of temporary cost savings.

[Malicious Logic]

Don't know if it's an option for motorcycle coverage but we have an option for our car to put the vehicle into 'parked' status. Payments drop significantly. You can use it like twice a month but have to call them beforehand so they're aware.

[Yakaru]

Originally Posted by Malicious Logic

Don't know if it's an option for motorcycle coverage but we have an option for our car to put the vehicle into 'parked' status. Payments drop significantly. You can use it like twice a month but have to call them beforehand so they're aware.

Yep, that's exactly like what I was talking about earlier. Worked well while I was out of state for a few months; this was before I got my bike though.

[miss_syn]

My insurance is priced for our climate.

[thisisbenji]

I'm not sure who you have as your insurance provider. But Progressive prices your insurances based on where you live. So I just keep my bike insured all year around here in Chicago.

[Boom King]

If your policy is rated on a seasonal basis, I'm gonna guess that dropping coverages to fire and theft during the winter months will have very little to no cost savings. Some places may not even allow that so best to call your agent/broker.