My insurance company says it does not cover my trailer or vehicle when towed...

[1wonton]

My insurance company says it does not cover my trailer or vehicle when towed; how does one insure a car towed to a show or to another location?

 

 

ron

[John_S_in_Penna]

Ron, do you have insurance from an established

antique-car insurer?  Which company?

 

I can see that extra coverage would be required

for the trailer itself.  But covering the car inside the

trailer should, it seems, naturally be part of an

antique-car policy.

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[SC38dls]

I’ve towed horse trailers all over the USA and yes we had insurance on the horses. We also had a policy for the trailers both liability/comp & collision. I know some companies cover a trailer while it’s being towed but did you know it’s may not be covered when parked with those policies. Also it it brakes loose while being towed those policies may not cover you for any damage or injury done to anyone it hits. Our 4 horse with an eight foot dressing/tack room ( large enough to fit most cars if it was all opened) and $500 deductible cost about $130-150 with State Farm. Horses, truck, trailer and tack all gone about 10 years now as our daughter accomplished her goals. So cost may be a little more now. 
dave s 

[61polara]

Generally, your tow vehicle insurance policy covers liability only insurance for the trailer while you are towing, but not the trailer or the car being towed for damage.  You have to purchase separate coverage for damage to the trailer and for the car you are towing. 

Edited November 6, 2022 by 61polara (see edit history)

[Paul Dobbin]

    The liability coverage from your car covers the liability of the trailer.  (Like if it breaks away and kills somebody or damageses property)

     For Physical Damage to the car on or in the trailer, or the trailer itself, you need specific Collision and Comprehensive coverage.  (Usually

      on it;s own policy)    i endorsed my trailer onto my collector car policy)   You need to talk to your agent.   You'll get it all in writiing in the     

      policy..

      30 years as a Claim Adjuster & Agent, Financial Advisor in Florida 1971 thru 2000..

Edited November 8, 2022 by Paul Dobbin (see edit history)

[Marty Roth]

On 11/6/2022 at 4:19 PM, Paul Dobbin said:

    The liability coverage from your car covers the liability of the trailer.  (Like if it breaks away and kills somebody or damageses property)

     For Physical Daer mage to the car on or in the trailer, or the trailer itself, you need specific Collision and Comprehensive coverage.  (Usually

      on it;s own policy)    i endorsed my trailer onto my collector car policy)   You need to talk to your agent.   You'll get it all in writiing in the     

      policy..

      30 years as a Claim Adjuster & Agent, Financial Advisor in Florida 1971 thru 2000..

I agree with Paul,

additionally, the collectable vehicle inside the trailer is covered by your antique car insurance - at least mine always has been, and we needed it once!

[MochetVelo]

I couldn't get trailer coverage from my regular vintage car insurer (Hagerty) because it is not stored on my own property. I believe they do cover the car when I tow it, however (at least, I hope so!).

[John_S_in_Penna]

On 11/6/2022 at 8:57 AM, John_S_in_Penna said:

Ron, do you have insurance from an established

antique-car insurer?  Which company?

The original poster has been back to the forum, but

he hasn't responded to questions.

 

Ron, we're here to help you.  You need to participate.

[1wonton]

42 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

The original poster has been back to the forum, but

he hasn't responded to questions.

 

Ron, we're here to help you.  You need to participate.

I.ve just been reading the responses; no one seems to have the same answer.  My insurance (J C Taylor, antique car insurance on my antique licensed tow truck) says they do not cover my trailer or towed vehicle.  Since many people do tow their trailered vehicle to shows I'm wondering how they do this.  

[EmTee]

Read your policy(ies) and talk to your agent.  Accept no verbal answers.

[TAKerry]

10 minutes ago, 1wonton said:

I.ve just been reading the responses; no one seems to have the same answer.  My insurance (J C Taylor, antique car insurance on my antique licensed tow truck) says they do not cover my trailer or towed vehicle.  Since many people do tow their trailered vehicle to shows I'm wondering how they do this.  

You are using an antique licensed tow truck? That may be the problem. I know in my state (MD) it is 'illegal' to tow or put anything in the the bed of a truck with an antique license plate. My trailer does not have coverage until its hooked up to a vehicle then that trucks policy will cover it and its contents.

[Larry Schramm]

10 minutes ago, 1wonton said:

I.ve just been reading the responses; no one seems to have the same answer.  My insurance (J C Taylor, antique car insurance on my antique licensed tow truck) says they do not cover my trailer or towed vehicle.  Since many people do tow their trailered vehicle to shows I'm wondering how they do this.  

 

As Paul stated earlier, to be sure you are covered for everything behind the tow vehicle,  get separate insurance for the trailer.  If I remember, it costs about $175/year for my car trailer.  Then you need insurance for your old vehicle that you are towing.  That is a separate policy.  If something happens while towing, each policy should cover the insured item.   That is how I have my insurance in place.

 

As EmTee states, talk to your agent and read your policy.

[Paul Dobbin]

7 hours ago, 1wonton said:

I.ve just been reading the responses; no one seems to have the same answer.  My insurance (J C Taylor, antique car insurance on my antique licensed tow truck) says they do not cover my trailer or towed vehicle.  Since many people do tow their trailered vehicle to shows I'm wondering how they do this.  

Please re-read the underlined parts of my post above.

While each of the 50 States regulate insurance, they all are accepted in a 50 States.   They are all similar in this question.

Edited November 8, 2022 by Paul Dobbin (see edit history)

[SC38dls]

Paul, you may be correct or depending on how insurance companies have changed in this crazy market you may not be correct. A blanket (pun intended) statement may not apply with all insurance companies. It’s been at least 10 years since I’ve towed our horses but back then our agent told us we could be found liable if the trailer became unhitched due to our negligence. The ins co could refuse to pay any claims because of negligence.  No idea how someone would prove that but for a $125 a year I always had a separate policy on my trailer. Our horses had an injury/death policy also. They were covered as passengers with the truck policy and then the trailer policy then the horse policy. A loose horse at an accident scene can cause a lot of damage after they get them out of a wrecked trailer. The agent wasn’t just selling me a policy to make $$ he has been a life long very good friend. Spend the $$ and be sure you are covered but talk to your agent don’t just take Internet forum advice. 
dave s 

Edited November 8, 2022 by SC38dls (see edit history)

[TAKerry]

5 minutes ago, SC38dls said:

Paul, you may be correct or depending on how insurance companies have changed in this crazy market you may not be correct. A blanket (pun intended) statement may not apply with all insurance companies. It’s been at least 10 years since I’ve towed our horses but back then our agent told us we could be found liable if the trailer became unhitched due to our negligence. The ins co could refuse to pay any claims because of negligence.  No idea how someone would prove that but for a $125 a year I always had a separate policy on my trailer. Our horses had an injury/death policy also. They were covered as passengers with the truck policy and then the trailer policy then the horse policy. A loose horse at an accident scene can cause a lot of damage after they get them out of a wrecked trailer. The agent wasn’t just selling me a policy to make $$ he has been a life long very good friend. Spend the $$ and be sure you are covered but talk to your agent don’t just take Internet forum advice. 
dave s 

Best advice. Its nice to see what others have done in this situation, but there is no substitute for taking a drive into town and talking to your agent face to face. You might even get a lunch out of it!

[John_S_in_Penna]

Thank you, Ron, for getting back to us.

Some people, especially newcomers, post a question

but never respond further.  See how your return

elicited a flurry of responses to try to help you!

[Scooter Guy]

2 hours ago, EmTee said:

Read your policy(ies) and talk to your agent.  Accept no verbal answers.

All these answers and it comes down to really being that simple... 

 

If you want to know what insurance you have and what's covered and what isn't, read your policy. That's the only way to know about your situation and your coverage. Make no assumptions.  

 

If you want insurance coverage that you don't have, contact an agent and buy it. If they can't or won't find a way to sell you the coverage you want, find out why. 

If you don't understand what your insurance covers or you have questions about it, talk to your agent and get the responses in writing. Make no assumptions (I know I already said that). 

[Robert Street]

I have been towing my two AACA cars all over for years. The car must have proper coverage from a specialty company such as been mentioned above in my case because neither car is tagged but correctly titled. The trailer since is tagged(Maine not Maryland)is listed by the tow vehicle insurance as another vehicle. In the event of a serious towing problem you should have an umbrella liability policy as the towing vehicle limits are not sufficient in the serious events. Yes, if the tow vehicle is tagged an antique or street rod no your insurance won’t cover an incident if towing. 

Robert 

[SC38dls]

Robert, I agree completely if that is what your policy says. I  would add if you unhook your trailer and you are relying on your truck insurance to cover it if it somehow was damaged it most likely will not do so. When it is hooked up it maybe an additional vehicle but not unhooked. 
dave s 

[Robert Street]

16 hours ago, SC38dls said:

Robert, I agree completely if that is what your policy says. I  would add if you unhook your trailer and you are relying on your truck insurance to cover it if it somehow was damaged it most likely will not do so. When it is hooked up it maybe an additional vehicle but not unhooked. 
dave s 

With my vehicles policy when the car’s trailer is unhooked such as at a national event it is insured if was hit and a run or if it rolled during the night as it is jlisted as another vehicle.  Yes agree if you had say a lawnmower little trailer and was unhooked correct it’s not covered by your road cars policy only under an umbrella policy

Robert

[1wonton]

I can read and understand my insurance policy, I know what it says.  My Question is:  I am towing an antique with my antique car/truck; what do others do for insurance on the towed car?

[Larry Schramm]

9 minutes ago, Robert Street said:

With my vehicles policy when the car’s trailer is unhooked such as at a national event it is insured if was hit and a run or if it rolled during the night as it is jlisted as another vehicle.  Yes agree if you had say a lawnmower little trailer and was unhooked correct it’s not covered by your road cars policy only under an umbrella policy

Robert

 

My understanding is that an umbrella policy in is only for liability, not personal property loss.  Maybe the other persons property loss, but not yours.  Is that correct?

Edited November 9, 2022 by Larry Schramm (see edit history)

[Robert Street]

1 minute ago, Larry Schramm said:

 

My understanding is that an umbrella policy in is only for liability, not personal property loss.  Maybe the other persons property loss, but not yours.

Correct I believe!

Robert

[Robert Street]

3 minutes ago, Larry Schramm said:

 

My understanding is that an umbrella policy in is only for liability, not personal property loss.  Maybe the other persons property loss, but not yours.

In my case I am fairly protected as the aluminum car trailer is insured as another vehicle so I have personal coverage through the vehicles insurance  policies as it is on it. However my little utility trailer is only personal covered IF behind the truck. I’ve just resigned myself to since it’s a iron metal single axle it is replaceable if it rolls out of my parking pad out back.

if I was a commercial business there is coverage available for liability and comprehensive but due to the cost not worth it.  But in Maryland you have to watch for certain GVW on the tow truck as they want commercial policies anyway.

Robert

[Scooter Guy]

2 hours ago, 1wonton said:

I can read and understand my insurance policy, I know what it says.  My Question is:  I am towing an antique with my antique car/truck; what do others do for insurance on the towed car?

No need to be annoyed by the responses, mine or those from anyone else as the question you've now posed is not the question you originally asked, hence the responses you had received. 

[SC38dls]

In our case I had insurance both collision and liability on our truck and another policy on our trailer and another policy on the very precious cargo ( at least to my daughter and as I feel about my antique car) the horses. The horses were covered for medical/death. One was valued in the low to mid six figures so we w Ed not taking chances. We also had a blanket liability that covered the horses if they hurt anyone or damaged anything especially if they had to be taken out of the trailer after an accident. Competition horses can get very unpredictable when exciting things happen. 
So to answer your question - 

4 policies

  1 on towing truck

  2 on trailer

  3 on cargo ( horse or car)

  4 blanket overall coverage

 

the trailer cost about $140 and blanket coverage cost about $800 but also covered the home & property. 
Hope that answers your questions. Again talk to your agent. He’s there to help you figure out what YOUR situation calls for.
dave s  

[ChazA]

To answer the question for my setup with Hagerty:
 

Classic cars all insured that get towed

Trailers are on the policy as separate items, fully covered. I just called and gave them my trailer Vin and they added.

Tow vehicle truck on my regular auto policy

 

Hagerty will not cover an antique truck towing your trailer and car.  Even if the antique truck is insured with Hagerty, policy states you can't tow with it.  If you had a 1980 Ford truck to use for towing your cars for example, you'd need to insure on regular auto policy.

Chuck

Edited November 10, 2022 by ChazA (see edit history)

[1wonton]

Thanks Chuck, I guess that answers the question for me.

 

 

ron

[wayne sheldon]

In most states, specialty license or registrations such as antique, collector, horseless carriage, and even hotrod, say in their rules that the vehicle cannot be used to haul or tow anything! Many such state laws (if you actually read them?), even if you had a beautifully restored Peterbilt truck, you couldn't "legally (?)" carry a picnic basket for the car show lunch. I sometimes wonder how the rules really read if your Peterbilt tractor was pulling a same vintage Fruehauf trailer? (I know, yours isn't a Peterbilt.)

Some collectors put standard modern vehicle licensing on their collector tow vehicles in order to avoid the potential legal ramifications. It may even be necessary to use regular automobile insurance in some states.

The collector car insurance companies are not generally going to insure a vehicle that is being used outside the legal restrictions of its licensing. Regular licensing and regular (trailer included!) insurance may be your best option.

 

Some parts of the antique automobile hobby really love their little trailers. Model T Ford camping trailers and 1930s color coordinated utility trailers are very popular within some antique automobile groups. I often wonder how many of those people have looked into their insurance coverage for those things?