Insurance coverage and mods

[Doc3g]

I've always had full coverage on my 99' 3G but it is based on whatever "standard" insurance is, ie, the bluebook value for a stock vehicle. At this point in my build, I've put ~ 8K in upgrades into the truck but if it were totaled tomorrow I'd probably get a check for $3k.

My questions are:

- is it possible to increase the coverage or do most insurance companies not cover mods?
- if it is possible, is it a good investment, or is it generally so cost-prohibitive that after a couple of years you have paid more in premiums than the mods are worth?

And lastly, I'm not done with the build so if I can update my coverage, what is a good break-point where it makes sense to change the coverage again (ie, every $5k worth of mods, etc)?

 

[WeakSauz]

- is it possible to increase the coverage or do most insurance companies not cover mods?
- if it is possible, is it a good investment, or is it generally so cost-prohibitive that after a couple of years you have paid more in premiums than the mods are worth?

- It is possible to increase the coverage. This is usually via a "Stated Value" coverage where you state, within reason (and proof, if need be), the covered value. These premiums are no joke however

- Is it a good investment? meeh.. It is very hard to say. If you were to get in a front-end collision, for example, you may get a check for $3k from insurance. You could probably buy the truck back for $800-ish (estimate). Could you then part it out and recover the remaining $6-7k in value? That's the sort of math you have to do. Of course, you have to subtract your premium amounts from that to see if it's worth it.

For me, it's not worth it on these rigs. They're pretty "partable" and I feel like I could get a good amount of $ parting it out and applying the mods to another 3rd gen

 

[Ron Burgandy]

Insurance is the biggest scam in america... go with the cheapest legal amount of liability insurance you can find. I’ve paid more in insurance than my whole rig is worth.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[phattyduck]

Insurance is the biggest scam in america... go with the cheapest legal amount of insurance you can find.

Works out great until you get sued for an amount over your coverage limits... Though, I also agree with the general premise - insurance is almost always a money losing proposition for the individual with the policy. Your job is to find the best price/risk profile for your personal situation.

As for the original posters question... The answer is highly dependent on your insurance company and applicable laws, etc. A phone call to your insurance company/agent will be better than some random guys on the internet.

I personally just have 'standard' coverage - I have/will bought/buy back any vehicle I total to part out or rebuild. Of the two cars I have totaled, one had no collision coverage and the other was on a race track (didn't make a claim, just parted out directly after towing it home).

-Charlie

 

[96RedRunner]

As for the original posters question... The answer is highly dependent on your insurance company and applicable laws, etc. A phone call to your insurance company/agent will be better than some random guys on the internet. -Charlie

Good advice ^^^^^ Charlie.

Things are different from state to state and within the state itself depending where you live Downtown or in the sticks.

 

[pavelvoivoda]

...You could probably buy the truck back for $800-ish...

...buy back any vehicle...

Hi guys,
What does buying the truck back mean?? Isn't it yours in the first place?

-Pavel

 

[Skulking]

Hi guys,
What does buying the truck back mean?? Isn't it yours in the first place?

-Pavel

If your insurance company decides your car its totaled, then they buy the car from you for an amount of money which they say will let you buy an equivalent vehicle. If you decide you want to keep the car, then you can choose to buy back the car from the insurance company. If you do that, you will get to keep the car, and you will get a smaller check from the insurance company which should be the difference between the cost of a comparable vehicle and your car as it currently sits. Your car would then get a salvage title (Or similar depending on state) indicating to any future buys that the car had been totaled which makes the care worth less if you try and sell it in the future.

 

[Brian.]

One of the most profitable financial services globally is insurance. It's a trap, so don't try to pay for the most expensive one.

That's fine and dandy to say... till you run into a situation where it saves you from modern day indentured servitude. Especially in the Litigious States of America. Not saying there aren't traps with insurance, just that it's not a one-size-fits-all evil either.

Now, with 2 posts, maybe try to keep it a bit more on topic to 4runners till you build a semblance of a positive reputation here in our community?

 

[busmup808]

I don’t work for an insurance company, but when I got in an accident last year my USSA insurance company was going to total my truck. When I told them that the problem was not structural and that it was still able to drive they did a second appraisal. Basically they were going to total the truck because the insurance company goes off the blue book value of stock value. When the adjuster came and looked at the truck, he saw that my truck was heavily modified and asked me if I had receipts. I told him yes and he told me to send it via email to USSA. I sent USSA over 200 saved emails of all my purchases for my truck that came in over 50K in purchase’s. That week my truck was fixed.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Geology]

You can always pay more for more coverage, but why?

When a kid totaled my 98' their insurance paid but didn't want to cover the lift so I grabbed the springs, wheels, tires... essentially anything but the motor/trans and they were fine with it.

As stated above you'll spend more on payments than the add-ons real fast and if there's a problem you can just yank the parts that are still good and buy another runner.

 

[fourwd1]

It's simple, if you want extra coverage for all your improvements you have to pay extra money.
If you don't you can loose out.

But then if you are too heavily modified they may decide not to insure you at all and drop you.

 

[Jakeepoo3]

I've always had full coverage on my 99' 3G but it is based on whatever "standard" insurance is, ie, the bluebook value for a stock vehicle. At this point in my build, I've put ~ 8K in upgrades into the truck but if it were totaled tomorrow I'd probably get a check for $3k.

My questions are:

- is it possible to increase the coverage or do most insurance companies not cover mods?
- if it is possible, is it a good investment, or is it generally so cost-prohibitive that after a couple of years you have paid more in premiums than the mods are worth?

And lastly, I'm not done with the build so if I can update my coverage, what is a good break-point where it makes sense to change the coverage again (ie, every $5k worth of mods, etc)?

I wouldn't tell them you off road on a regular basis. What if you screw up on the trail, tell them it was an act of god

 

[3bears]

some stuff i have learned in the past. ( from my son who was a state farm agent, and from wrecks I have been in)

some of my mods were not covered, as they were considered replacements for standard wear items ( lift including shocks, springs, tbu).

some insurance companies will not like a modified vehicle ( such as lifts etc) as it changes the way the car was designed to be safely used

some insurance companies will not cover anything ( or be real picky) more than 100 feet off of pavement ( back roads) unless you live on gravel roads as a primary residence or a designated gravel road such as a main commute road or a campground ( when I worked as a park ranger in oregon and people would mess up on a back road, they were shocked to find their insurance company would not even cover a tow truck to get them out....one local company made a fortune towing people out of the woods, never did follow up to see if insurance would pay their repairs associated after they got pulled out of woods)

even most rental car companies....if you read the small print...your not supposed to go on gravel roads and their insurance will not cover and they can charge you when you return for extra clean up etc

if someone does not HIT YOU...you will be charged at fault..

if roads are solid ice and you slide off road ( thats your fault in their eyes) your premiums will go up.

even if you buy back your rig, your premiums will go up.

and of course....speeding, wheeling ( which they can say is reckless driving) , and a duii you can expect your rates to go up or even dropped by the insurance company after they pay you off, and that will make it harder to find insurance and bring in high rates. ( so dont wreck your rig if you are on a back road, playing and have had a beer or three)

if your on good speaking terms with your agent you might want to ask.....what about mods and how to cover....and what about off road fun

 

[eolandotarro]

Commercial truck insurance takes into account the cargo or goods being transported, as well as the size and type of vehicle. Tow trucks, concrete mixers, pickups and tractors are among the commercial trucks for which they provide policies.They include truck insurance in the category of commercial auto insurance. Truck drivers and firms using trucks use commercial cargo insurance. Contact the website for help truckinginsurance.org. Think about it. Good luck. I hope that my information will help you.

 

[shadow247]

and of course....speeding, wheeling ( which they can say is reckless driving) , and a duii you can expect your rates to go up or even dropped by the insurance company after they pay you off, and that will make it harder to find insurance and bring in high rates. ( so dont wreck your rig if you are on a back road, playing and have had a beer or three)

if your on good speaking terms with your agent you might want to ask.....what about mods and how to cover....and what about off road fun

Just to cover the part about Off-Roading. I am a License Auto Damage Appraiser in all but 3 of the states that require one. I have written Auto claims in 47 states.

Damage from Off-Roading is not specifically excluded on any standard auto policy. I pay off-road damage claims all the time. We even sell UTV Collision insurance. I paid for an oil pan on a Can-AM. He was at an off-road park, and destroyed the oil pan and part of the suspension. Fully covered minus deductible. Paid out on an ATV that rolled 1000 ft down a mountain.

As long as you didn't intend to cause damage to your vehicle, you are generally covered. My wheeling buddy just got his engine paid for on his 5th gen after driving a little too fast through some water at the OHV park.

Intention is all that matters. As long as your are not in a Race or Speed Contest, you should be covered.

 

[3bears]

Just to cover the part about Off-Roading. I am a License Auto Damage Appraiser in all but 3 of the states that require one. I have written Auto claims in 47 states.

Damage from Off-Roading is not specifically excluded on any standard auto policy. I pay off-road damage claims all the time. We even sell UTV Collision insurance. I paid for an oil pan on a Can-AM. He was at an off-road park, and destroyed the oil pan and part of the suspension. Fully covered minus deductible. Paid out on an ATV that rolled 1000 ft down a mountain.

As long as you didn't intend to cause damage to your vehicle, you are generally covered. My wheeling buddy just got his engine paid for on his 5th gen after driving a little too fast through some water at the OHV park.

Intention is all that matters. As long as your are not in a Race or Speed Contest, you should be covered.

well times and location changes...i was basing my comments on when I lived in Oregon up to 2019 ( when I moved to alaska) I was a park ranger in rural oregon. and lots of guys would complain about the lack of insurance coverage for back roads. If you got stuck in mud/snow more than 500 feet off an approved paved road most insurance would not cover a tow out. I saw that way too many times. Vehicle damage more than 500 feet also was not coved. Rental car companies have small print also stating that their insurance would not cover any damages off a main road.
But times change....and most of what I am talking about is what people told me about damage coverage....and like I said ...what I saw for tow outs and insurance not covering....telling customer...on my sat phone..on more than one occasion...they were not covering tow out.....the local guy who did back road tow outs made a fortune...and would only take a valid credit card....would not mess with insurance.
I even had one person who locked his keys on a back road....he hiked into me and used my sat phone....his insurance agent pretty much told him he was not covered and to figure out which was the cheapest window for him to break out. This was for a 1 year old land rover with good insurance.

 

[Jakeepoo3]

Insurance is the biggest scam in america... go with the cheapest legal amount of liability insurance you can find. I’ve paid more in insurance than my whole rig is worth.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Yes sir. F_ck insurance. I've spent at least 50 grand easily on that scam in my time and yet I'm never covered. I'd like to tell em to eat a fat c0ck and give me the money I've been giving them for nothing to fix my little mishap they won't cover. Why aren't people bombing that shit instead of innocents. Brainsmudged

 

[Jakeepoo3]

well times and location changes...i was basing my comments on when I lived in Oregon up to 2019 ( when I moved to alaska) I was a park ranger in rural oregon. and lots of guys would complain about the lack of insurance coverage for back roads. If you got stuck in mud/snow more than 500 feet off an approved paved road most insurance would not cover a tow out. I saw that way too many times. Vehicle damage more than 500 feet also was not coved. Rental car companies have small print also stating that their insurance would not cover any damages off a main road.
But times change....and most of what I am talking about is what people told me about damage coverage....and like I said ...what I saw for tow outs and insurance not covering....telling customer...on my sat phone..on more than one occasion...they were not covering tow out.....the local guy who did back road tow outs made a fortune...and would only take a valid credit card....would not mess with insurance.
I even had one person who locked his keys on a back road....he hiked into me and used my sat phone....his insurance agent pretty much told him he was not covered and to figure out which was the cheapest window for him to break out. This was for a 1 year old land rover with good insurance.

Yeah I f_cked up and they found out it was on trail because the little cop that came out with the tow truck made a report. I would have scammed the f_ckers like they do everyone if that report wasn't made.

 

[RodrickHeffley]

I've noticed that insurance can be quite bipolar depending on your wreck and coverage. I see 3rd gens on copart with a dent in the bumper and a broken taillight as totaled, but when I was in an accident in my 98 that required basically a rebuild of most of the front end, they covered me, why? i still have no idea. I got lucky considering I bought it for 3700$ and the repairs total about 4800$ not including the ~1000$ I spent on parts.

It just depends on your insurance and what your coverage is, and make sure to be pushy so you get your way.

 

[GiovannaBerger]

You bring up a really interesting point about the unpredictability of insurance. It's fascinating how insurance companies assess damages differently, even for similar situations. It sounds like you had quite the experience with your '98 and the extensive repairs needed after your accident.

It's great that your insurance covered the rebuild, especially considering the initial cost of the car versus the repair expenses. Sometimes, it really does come down to the specifics of your coverage and the policies of your insurance provider.
If you ever want more insights on insurance or need assistance navigating coverage options, feel free to check out Gap Insurance Quote Comparison: Best Gap Insurance UK. Wishing you safe travels on the road ahead!