Where to get skoolie insurance?

[ashley]

Safeco cancelled me because they didn't have a valid make and model even though I sent them a copy of the registration. Going through commerce now and waiting on policy to be finalized. Liability only bundled with my primary car.

[PNW_Steve]

Originally Posted by EastCoastCB

I wouldn't expect much. Its just a piece of paper that makes you legal.
I got into a fender bender in my first school bus back in the day. Had insurance. They denied me any help and I payed around five grand for the accident.

Hey CB,

You may want to give State Farm a try.

I have been insured with them for 20 years and have never had an issue with them paying out a claim.

Heck, when a tree fell on my $2500 cut away they paid me $2200 to have it repaired. I elected not to repair it and sold it for $3000.

When a guy ran a red light and T-boned my truck, his insurance gave me grief. State Farm stepped up and paid for my truck and then sued his insurance company to recover.

[o1marc]

Originally Posted by PNW_Steve

Hey CB,

You may want to give State Farm a try.

I have been insured with them for 20 years and have never had an issue with them paying out a claim.

Heck, when a tree fell on my $2500 cut away they paid me $2200 to have it repaired. I elected not to repair it and sold it for $3000.

When a guy ran a red light and T-boned my truck, his insurance gave me grief. State Farm stepped up and paid for my truck and then sued his insurance company to recover.

That's why I stay with State Farm, been with them for 30 years. I was in an accident once, not my fault. At fault party insured with progressive. I had a cherry 86 Mustang GT that I bought new. It was totaled in the accident.Progressive only offered me around $2500 for it, which I wouldn't accept. State Farm followed up with me, even though with my liability they had no dog in the fight, and asked me if they had settled with me on the car. When I explained their offer and what I thought the car was worth they agreed and cut me a check for $5500 and went to subjugate against Progressive.

[Blueman]

Ive had American family for the past 5 years on my bus. They were the only ones in Mn who would insure it.

[Dirtdoctor]

i paid for commercial vehicle insurance then after it was reclassified as a RV- I went with progressive. Feomm$300/month commercial to $40/month as an RV. Dmv inspection when we installed a sink countertop and bed with curtains- that turned it into a RV. The sink wasn’t even hooked up. Cheers

[Dclewis]

I'm a little late to the party but I tried Progressive because I had my motorcycle insurance through them but they said no. Finally I got it through Good Sam with National General Insurance. I have a GMC Shorty and I live in NH.

It was a hassle and I had to convince them (National) that the platform on my roof were solar panels not a rack.

[goodguyneighbor]

I called Progressive today since I needed insurance urgently to move my bus this weekend down from CO.

They immediately informed me that they did not cover bus conversions. I insisted "but I've heard from a lot of people that you do" they stated categorically they did not; they instead referred me to commercialinsurance.net, which is essentially a lead generation tool that farms out to various insurance companies.

I got a call, like literally the second I hung up after giving commercialinsurance.net my info, from, you guessed it, a Progressive agent saying absolutely they could insure me today, not just liability but full damage and uninsured motorists coverage under their commercial umbrella as a non-business entity.

Gave my VIN and ID and had a reasonable quote in 5 minutes, which I took.

He also stated that the policy was active today, I could cancel tomorrow and only be liable for the prorated coverage of the day (YMMV).

Anyways, the left hand doesn't always seem to know what the right is capable of in these large companies.

I also picked up a quality roadside assistance policy from Good Sam for $115/yr.

[GWRider]

Originally Posted by MarkyDee

I ended up with Progressive Commercial thru their web portal (believe it or not!). On my second year with them and no cancellation. However, my bus is a transit bus, not a true 'skoolie'. The bus was previously insured with Progressive Commercial, so that may be part of why mine was so easy.


I'd still recommend as others do finding a local agent and going that way....

I did the same thing and the only differences are 1. Mine IS a 'Skoolie'. 2. New customer.

[ChiliChzPoopTart]

Originally Posted by goodguyneighbor

Gave my VIN and ID and had a reasonable quote in 5 minutes, which I took.
.

How much is reasonable

[bfuller181]

Does anyone have experience filing a claim with Progressive? I've had the same experience of people on the phone telling me no, but people on this forum telling me they use Progressive, and I'm wondering if there are simply some agents who will write the policy knowing full well that in the event of an accident, the underwriter will simply deny the claim.

I currently have Progressive through an independent agent and the policy is for a commercial vehicle for private use. I pay $800/yr and I'd like to find something cheaper, but the only option seems to rely on hiding the truth about my bus (it's a shortie, so the title says Chevy 3500 cutaway). Yeah, I could get a cheap policy as a non-professionally converted RV, but I'm guessing that I'd be on the hook for all damages in the event of an accident. Just doesn't seem worth it.

[o1marc]

I can't believe some of the prices some are paying for insurance. The previous poster is at $800/yr. I went through an independent agent that ended up getting me a policy through Progressive Mountain Insurance Company. It doesn't have a name like "Commercial for private use", but is just liability. I paid $171 for a full year of coverage. Granted I get a discount for being a home owner and have a Responsible driving record, though none of my other insurance is through them. It also says I'm married, I'm not, don't know if that mattered or not.
Here's the declaration page of my policy.

[firebuild]

Originally Posted by ashley

Safeco cancelled me because they didn't have a valid make and model even though I sent them a copy of the registration. Going through commerce now and waiting on policy to be finalized. Liability only bundled with my primary car.

Are you insuring in a different state? I couldn't get Safeco in MA.

[firebuild]

Originally Posted by o1marc

I can't believe some of the prices some are paying for insurance. The previous poster is at $800/yr. I went through an independent agent that ended up getting me a policy through Progressive Mountain Insurance Company. It doesn't have a name like "Commercial for private use", but is just liability. I paid $171 for a full year of coverage. Granted I get a discount for being a home owner and have a Responsible driving record. It also says I'm married, I'm not, don't know if that mattered or not.
Here's the declaration page of my policy.

You'd be surprised what a difference that "responsible driving record" makes. One accident and a 6 month lapse in coverage - even though I had no vehicle for those 6 months - and my rate skyrocketed. I am paying almost as much per month as you're paying per year.

[ashley]

Originally Posted by firebuild

Are you insuring in a different state? I couldn't get Safeco in MA.

I have commerce now

[bfuller181]

Originally Posted by o1marc

I can't believe some of the prices some are paying for insurance. The previous poster is at $800/yr. I went through an independent agent that ended up getting me a policy through Progressive Mountain Insurance Company. It doesn't have a name like "Commercial for private use", but is just liability. I paid $171 for a full year of coverage. Granted I get a discount for being a home owner and have a Responsible driving record, though none of my other insurance is through them. It also says I'm married, I'm not, don't know if that mattered or not.
Here's the declaration page of my policy.

what state are you in? I'm also married and have no accidents on record. My auto policy is around $1k per year too, but that includes collision & comprehensive.

[randa]

We just bought a school bus and need to get it registered and insured in AZ. My husband talked to USAA but was told no and that we would need to go through Progressive Ins. at that point we just stopped because of what we had heard about Progressive.
Tomorrow we are going to see a broker because we just seem to be running into dead ends over the phone just calling insurance companies.
We haven't done a thing to the bus. We just need to go and pick it up and bring it home about a two hour drive to our house. The bus has temp tags on it from TX that are outdated.
Any suggestions or help from other AZ people would be greatly appreciated at this time.

[blueabyss]

Hi all. Does anyone have info on getting a bus insured in Alaska that has not been converted? Thanks

[Seddin93]

I have read through pages and pages on this forum about the troubles people go through insuring their Skoolie. Whether is be before or after convertion. I've also watched hours of youtube videos. There is no one size fits all because each state has different laws and each convertion is different.
I've also spent my fair share of time on the phone with insurance companies. Some denied me right away, some gave me hope only to deny me at the last min.
There are lots of people out there who suggest lieing or leaving information out and flying under the radar to get coverage. There are those who advice not to do that because after putting so much money and time into the bus you want it to be adequately covered.
Here is my one size fits all suggestion : USE AN INSURANCE BROKER!
At the end of the day, insuring a skoolie is a delicate dance of what to say, what not to say, and when to say it. Let the broker do what their ment to do, be the middle man, the go between you and the insurance companies. You can be 100% honest with them, and they can find the right coverage for you. They are the experts, so they know how to dance that delicate dance with insurance companies. Coverage will be different for the bus at different stages: when your getting the bus home pre-convertion, when its sitting while you're converting it, and afterwards once it's been fully converted and you begin living in it, vacationing in it, or selling flowers out of it. Whatever it is you are doing with your skoolie.
The best part is, the insurance companies pay the broker for selling the policy. You don't have to pay them anything!
I have an insurance broker who I contacted when I was ready to insure my bus. He went MIA for about a month, so I eventually got frustrated and started looking on my own. It was a nightmare! When I finally got ahold of him, turns out he had flu and phenomena and was in the hospital! Damn good excuse for going MIA if you ask me.
He spent 45 min with me on the phone and by the end of that conversation I had insurance! With a plan to reduce my premium once I move my bus to the shop, and a plan to increase the insurance to reflect the modifications I do once I finish converting it.
So that's my suggestion folks do with it what you will!

[ArmyRunner]

Hello, it’s now 2021 and I’m wondering if there are changes with getting insurance for Skoolies. I’m in AZ and just passed Level 1 inspection, converting my Skoolie from commercial to motor home. Currently I have Geico coverage as commercial but I was told that once this is registered as MH, I’m going to get dropped. So, the hunt begins…what insurance company out there is still catering to our population? National General will insure only if you live in your rig 5 months of the year! What the heck! Lol Any input is appreciated. Thank you.

[Blueman]

I go through American family. Although Minnesota is way more lenient than most states. It's insured as an RV. I pay only 50 bucks a month for full coverage. I emailed them photos and and the Vin number and bam.. it was insured!