Collector's insurance for a modified car

What's the best option here? 1970 orig 318 auto car now hemi 5-speed. All companies seem to ask about originality vs. modifications. Is agreed upon value the way to go? Any company stand out here? thx

Call various companies, tell them about the modifications, ask if it is a risk they will insure/provide coverage for. Get a copy of the policy language and read it. That's the only way to know. One company's covered vehicle is another company's uninsurable risk.

I'll now sit back and await all of the people with absolutely no experience whatsoever to tell me I'm wrong.

What are the thoughts on Hagerty?

I was looking into them a few months ago since I have plans to do a 440 swap into my ride. And I saw they had an option under the vehicle info for "horsepower increase over 50 more than stock".

It was a stated value, and they say you can still use the vehicle for the occasional drive to work, or the grocery store. It doesn't need to be only for a pleasure cruise or show/event use.

Every car I have insured with Hagerty is modified, no problem. Just state up front that it's modified when making application for a policy.

Your best bet is one of the specialty companies. The usual big name insurance companies might provide coverage that looks good on paper but the devil is in the details. State Farm has agreed value policies but the terms are fairly restrictive. If you violate some of the contract terms then you might not be covered.

Hagerty used to have a list of modifications that they would not accept. It was on their website. Cage, blower, nitrous, etc. It is no longer listed there. Even when it was, people claimed (and I believe them) that they would call Hagerty and ask about mods, and get the "Oh, sure, it's fine" line from whomever they spoke with, even when the website clearly said otherwise. This is why calling to ask, and then verifying in writing by reading the policy, is the only way to know for sure.



It was not stated value. It was agreed value. Big difference. Hagerty doesn't sell stated amount/stated value policies.

The same is true of the collector car companies. In fact, they all have more restrictions than a standard auto policy.

That's for sure. Just about all companies like Hagerty specifically note that the coverage is for collector type use, not driving to and from work or shopping etc. That's why the policies are so cheap, it's taken out most of high risk use. They all seem to have coverage for modified vehicles.

Local Haggerty (?) guy here was chatting it up with my bother at a car show parking lot, and wanted to sell him a policy. As soon as he saw the headers, DOT Hoosier rear tires. etc my brother's car has that was the end of that.

The Haggerty guy drives a 63 Fairlane that is a pro-touring build with individual EFI stacks thru the hood, lowered, big diameter wheels ect so it's just as far removed my stock as my brother's car is on paper. I guess if it looks like a "drag" car then they don't want anything to do with it.

Same here. Have never had a problem with Hagerty. I currently have a street rod that I built from scratch. Chassis and body were both built by me in my shop. Its a one of. It’s insured by Hagerty. First gal I talked to said no (don’t think she knew what she was doing). I called back and got a guy that understands street rods. Told him what I had, emailed him pictures while I was on the phone with him, told him what I wanted it insured for and he issued the policy.

https://heacockclassic.com/

https://www.hubinternational.com/

Contact Hub International, they are insurance brokers, I have had Hagerty and Grundy with a modified 70 Cuda, with a Stated Value, they find the best deals and rates that work for what you need.

Not_a_Charger, could you please explain what the difference is?

I'm getting the "market value" b.s. from my insurance company and not liking the sound of it. I could provide all the comparables of a '71 Hemi Challenger value but could they really say "nah, it's a $200.00 pile of scrap iron?"

I'm not worried about mashing the car up on my own account, I'm more concerned about a total loss by theft, if that helps you.

Sorry O.P. for the hijack.

Same here with Hagerty, Agreed policies as well, for the OP don't ever consider a "Stated Value" policy with any Insurance Co, Agreed only....

Same here - sent pics, no problems. I never had a claim tho

Exactly. Never had a claim. Everyone here making statements that it was "no problem" to get coverage can't actually say there was no problem unless they had a claim and it was covered. If they had a covered loss, that's great...not that they had a loss, but that it was covered. But unless they are speaking from that experience, they have no way to know that it was "no problem" to get coverage. All they really know is that they paid a premium to the insurance company.

Agreed Value = you and the insurance company agree that the car is worth $X. If it's totaled, that's how much $ you get. If it's damaged and it costs less than $X to repair, it gets fixed. None of this "We think the car is worth less than that, so now it's a total loss." These policies typically have more restrictions regarding who can drive the vehicle, what is covered/what is excluded from coverage, where the vehicle can be stored (usually requires a locked garage), etc. They also are typically fairly inexpensive.

Stated Amount/Stated Value = you insure the car for $X by telling the insurance company that's how much you want to insure it for. The insurance company lists that amount on your declarations page, but because that value was stated by you alone, the insurer owes you the LESSER of the Stated Amount and the Actual Cash Value. Stated Amount can only limit/reduce your recovery. You'll never get more than that amount, but you may well get less. These policies typically have fewer restrictions than an Agreed Value policy. In fact, most of them are very similar to a standard auto policy, allowing for broad usage of the vehicle, temporarily letting someone drive the vehicle, etc. They also typically cost more because they are less restrictive.

Not a Charger: your input on insurance issues is a welcome asset to this site IMO
With that being said, over the years I have been asked/paid to go out and do estimates on classic vehicles that have had some sort claim like and electrical fire etc.
In every instance Hagerty just wrote a check (normally totaling the vehicle). In one case the car was insured for at least twice what is was worth, again they wrote a check and picked it up.
State farm on the other hand has been the exact opposite whining all the way. One car I clearly remember was a 70 Challenger that had been insured with them for over 30 years. The adjuster called me and asked if i could find used parts instead of new. LOL It had an under dash electrical fire. I was like yeah great idea. That turned into a real mess for the insured as they wouldn't pay the claim despite 3 different shops being very close $$ wise. Not sure how it turned out

Every collector car company provides good service. They have to. The market is too small for any of them to survive if they provide subpar service. As far as writing a check on a vehicle that was worth half of the insured value, that's their own fault. If they agree to the value, and the value is too high, the insurance company is out of luck, as they should be.They don't have a choice but to pay up in that instance.

My son has Hagerty on the Charger. Been 9 yrs. since we filled out the app and I don't remember any questions about non-stock or modified engine, etc. like they have now. The VIN shows a 318 car while the requested pictures show a non-stock big block (appearance-wise) as well as the American TT-D wheels, race buckets w/ harnesses, and 'glass front end. Of course, this is assuming that whoever looked at the pictures know a BB from a SB.
I thought it was a stated value policy but if not-a-charger says it's agreed value, he should know.


Tim

I can vouch for Hagerty paying my claim on a "modified vehicle", not a total loss, but several thousands in damage, no issues, check cut in full for the estimated repair damages..... I know of 2 other member here on Moparts besides myself that have had claims for damage paid by Hagerty for modified vehicles, in fact one is a heavily modified custom, again no issues from Hagerty for either policy holder

When I was looking for insurance on my '72 big-block Dart, I applied through a couple of the big-name collector companies and sent pics. Neither would consider my modified car as soon as they heard the word "nitrous". One actually asked me to explain what was the blue tank [nitrous] and the aluminum box [fuel cell] in the trunk. I informed them and was promptly declined. My final message was that if they didn't know what those items were, perhaps they should not be insuring hot rods...

Anyhow, Heacock Classic (their underwriter is AMIG, American Modern Insurance Group) had no problem with my 451, 4-speed or the N 2 O... They just charged a slightly higher rate for "Highly Modified" instead of "Modified" class.