I called my Classic car insurance company yesterday (American Collectors Insurance in Cherry Hills NJ) to ask them a few questions pertaining to coverage. I was floored when I was told that if I were to bring one of my cars to a classic car dealership for consignment or auction to sell that they would not cover the car for any damage or theft. The rep said that they haven't had any issues with the policy. I told him that's because most customers probably don't realize they have this in their policy. He told my that I was probably correct. Crazy!

You're turning over possession of your car to someone else, and garaging it at their facility, and giving them permission to drive it. That's why it's not covered. No one else is covered to drive your car except you, and whichever resident relative you specify on the policy. Car has to be kept in a locked garage when not in use, which is something you can't ensure is the case if someone else has your car. Classic car policies are inexpensive in part because of the restrictions/exclusions. People should take the time to read their policies. I hear people say "What am I paying this money for insurance for?" The answer is the policy, yet few people read them. If you read it and need clarification, by all means call and ask.

My insurance (American Modern brokered through Heacock) covered my Shelby when it was invited to the Houston Auto Show. The car was at a huge convention center for a week, called to verify it was ok and they did not have any issue with it.

You did the right thing.

Whenever you call about something like that, get the name of the person you are talking to, and document the date/time of the call. Better yet, have them email you a confirmation of the content of your conversation.

I had a friend consign a car to one of those guys. The car got sold and he never got paid. Tried to file with insurance that it was stolen and they said no it wasn't you gave him the car to sell and would not cover the theft. It was a $125,000.00 car. The local authourity was really no help as the car went to europe and was gone. All you can do is get a judgement adaints the company.

Didn't happen to me and I'm seeing red. That stinks.

American Collector Car is great at collecting money and not much else. My first dealings with them was on a truck and the pictures I sent had a couple of parts in the bed. ACC said they wouldn't insure it because if it's used to haul anything they don't hold any liability. It just made me laugh and I went to Hagerty the next year.

I wonder how that works if you take the car to a shop for a repair and leave it there overnight? I have done this before and never thought about it. I do ask that they keep it inside as the insurance says it needs to be locked in a garage. I drive by after closing to make sure they have it inside.

So after being with American Collectors Insurance since 1998 without a claim I'll be changing, probably to Hagerty. Through my regular insurance agent to find insurance to cover a car while on consignment and being a new customer, there aren't many companies that will take that on. Progressive quoted a little over $1600 for six months at a stated value. So after staying with American Collectors Insurance for all these years makes them a very expensive option.

This is why I use Hagerty.

Like most things in life, too many people buy insurance based on premium cost. I buy insurance so I'm covered if there is a loss, not just to meet legal minimum requirements. If I have a loss, I want a company that's going to do a good job covering it and not try and stick a knife in my back. I'm a roofing contractor so I know all about that. There's good companies and bad companies when it comes to claims.

If you want to save on premium, you're better off going with a higher deductible then using a crappy company. You shouldn't be filing claims for little things anyway, it just pushes your rates up. I'll never file a claim for anything under $5,000. So why pay insurance on the first $5,000?

Whatever an agent tells you over the phone is meaningless when you go to file a claim. Totally meaningless! You need to read every word of your policy and understand it. The written terms of the policy that they provided you will prevail over any verbal communication when the poop hits the fan.
Hagerty's policy terms provide for occasional non-collector use. They specifically exclude coverage from the car when it is on a race track, but they do cover it while being transported to and from the event. I did not see any exclusion of coverage for when the car is at a dealership or auction.

If you really want to be safe when leaving your vehicle at a garage, or a dealer, or an auction, ask them to have their insurance agent send you proof of liability coverage with you named as a certificate holder. Then double check the language of any written agreements that may exclude them from liability. And remove it from the agreement.

There are a number of “gotchas” in insurance and among businesses you may entrust your car to, which you don’t think about unless you get burned. And incidents where this happens are few and far between so we don’t usually give it much thought.
I know guys who own enclosed trailers and boast that they use their trailers to store a car when they aren’t using it to take a car someplace. Collector car policies I’ve reviewed always stipulate that the insured vintage car must be stored in a locked structure. If one of these guys trailers got destroyed in a fire or tornado while parked on their property with a car stored in it, what do you think the odds are they get paid for their insurance claim on the car?
One of my car guy coworkers showed me a listing today for a vintage car he is interested in. I asked where he would keep it knowing he’s already got a big garage full of his collection. He said he was going to get a portable shelter or tent to store it on his property. I told him he better check with Hagerty, his insurer, before he does that and thinks himself covered!
One story that really scares me was one a friend told me about one of his cars he sold through a brokerage in Wisconsin. His car got sold, he got his money and transferred the title to the new owner (the broker never had the title). Great, car sold, move on with life!
Months later he gets a letter from the courts or a law firm in Wisconsin that the broker went bankrupt and he has to return the money he got from the sale of his car! I’m not a lawyer nor do I know how the law works, so I have no idea how money he got from his car sale, through a broker who never had title, could be taken back in a bankruptcy case as assets of the bankrupt business?!
He went back and forth with lawyers and found he was screwed. After months his insurance agent called him and said, I’ve never seen this before, but I have good news for you, the insurance company is going to cover you for your loss.
I’ve heard anecdotal stories of situations like this happening with cars in restoration shops which went bankrupt while the car was being worked on, the customers cars would be considered assets of the bankrupt company.
I’m sure the laws on this vary by state, but does this mean one must hire a lawyer before consigning a car to be sold or taking it to a shop for work to be done on it to make sure you can’t legally lose your car?

I had a guy try just that. Stored in a car trailer. Storm hit overnight, tree fell on the trailer and smashed trailer and car. He ripped open the trailer, hauled it away, and moved the car into the garage, because he knew it was supposed to be kept in the garage when not in use. Then he reported a claim...except he reported the loss exactly as it happened, including the date, the time, the facts, etc. Everything other than his car having been parked in a trailer. All of which meant that, according to his report of the loss, his vehicle had to have been kept outside overnight, because how else would the tree have fallen on it? When I pointed this out, the guy began stammering and got red and flustered, had no idea how to explain his way out of it. Didn't stop him from trying, of course. His car was destroyed, a VERY nice all-steel 34 Ford street rod with a blown 428 and a 4 speed. He got $0. I did ask him if he had insurance on the trailer, because filing a claim for the trailer would've been a covered loss, but he did not. Good thing he saved himself $150 or so by not insuring the trailer.

So after checking a few ore insurance companies this is what I was told by each company representative. Heckock classic / American Modern Insurance, This company also does not cover the car for sale at an auction, dealership or consignment. Also if you have your car in your possession and list it for sale anywhere like craigslist, ebay or park it and put a for sale sign on it, you void coverage. I called Hagerty and the representative told me take a car to an auction or dealership / consignment, not covered. I was very surprised to here this from Hagerty. Grundy Insurance does cover the cars while at auction and at a dealership or consignment place and will insure for stated value. They said the best thing to do was beforehand to notify them of your intensions. They are kind of pricy but so far they are the most reasonable I've found for the situation.

So if I’m reading this correctly, if you try to sell your car on eBay or Craigslist, your insurance is void? If you are driving to a show and wreck, and they see you’ve listed for sale someplace you are SOL? What about other online sources, if you list your car here is your insurance void?
Put a for sale sign on the dash at a cruise, whoops your not covered?
I can see where if you give the car to an auction house or brokerage to sell, they might balk as it’s in someone else’s control. But it’s in your garage and you decide to sell it you are not insured?
How are you supposed to sell your car?

That's not correct, no. However, if you have collector insurance on the car, and you let a prospective buyer test drive it and they wreck it, your collector car insurance won't cover you. The prospective buyer's insurance might cover you, if they have collision coverage.

I have owned and ran a collector car repair shop for over 20 years. I carry insurance that will cover any vehicle in my possession for repair work. In addition [b]I NEVER[/b] leave customers car outside PERIOD!
Nor would I leave my car at one that does so.

Not for all of the companies. The Heckock / American Modern Insurance representative did tell me that specifically though. If you have a policy with them and put your car up for sale privately with a for sale sign on or in the car, run on ebay or craigslist and during that time something happens to the car they will not cover it.

With Hagerty, THERE IS NO EXCLUSION FOR WHEN YOUR CAR IS FOR SALE OR WHEN IT IS IN THE CARE OF A REPAIR FACILITY OR AUCTION! Whoever said that was misinformed. I have read my policy from cover to cover several times, and there is no such exclusion. I will attempt to copy and paste the policy here if anyone wants to read it.

Please do. I will try to get to mine to look it up as well.