My inurance co has indicated that my1988 Volvo [with 130k miles] may be declared total in event of collision. Some companies have even said they would not insure it. Yet, check of parts costs show that a new 2006 Volvo would cost even more for equivalent damage. I have the '88 because it is in beautiful shape and costs nothing. Any ideas??
Save money and don’t have collision damage coverage. They won’t pay for collision damage to your car anyway. Don’t confuse its value to you for its market value. That is what is insured.
Agreed; if the car is damaged extensively, then insurance will pay you market value which may be well under the repair cost, Keep the comprehensive for glass breakage, however. One broken windshield and you’ll wish that you had it.
Surely you can get liability coverage plus medical and whatever else is required by your state. It is collision & comprehensive that’s your problem, right? Well, you really wouldn’t want it even if offered. Coverage for an '88 Volvo is economically unsound. In the event of a true total loss you’d only receive a few peanuts, according to the car’s book value. Don’t pay for coverage that cannot be recovered.
Keep the comprehensive for glass breakage, however.
Depends on what state you live in. Many states the insurance companies don’t ovver comprehensive or glass UNLESS you also have collision.
Almost any vehicle that’s almost 20 years old should NOT have collision on it. Totally worthless coverage for a vehicle that old.
You could get an agreed value policy, but it would probably be too expensive. I have full coverage on a couple of 25+ year old cars, but the reality is that it will only help me for minor damage (up to a few $1000), if I had a major collision I would still end up paying to fix them myself. I should probably adjust my coverage and just self-insure, but I’ve never bothered.
I wouldn’t worry about windshields, they are usually pretty cheap and many states don’t have a glass exclusion anyway. I end up replacing windshields every few years anyway, because the start to get pitted.
Collision or comprehensive only maxes in payout to the average market price of your vehicle which I am guessing is about $1000-$1500. Nearly any collision is going to approach this $1000-$1500 hence the reason they don’t bother offering the coverage. They total a vehicle when you hit 75% of the book value and payout the 100% of book value.
This is a good thing that insurance company is doing and also saves you money.
I have two vehicles, and dropped C&C on both. Why? Because the C&C coverage only covers up to book value (replacement cost) of the car. And the rate was too high to make it economically feasible.
But, I do have Liability and Injury coverage. This is where the real need for insurance is.
On another note, I think most states, especially no-fault states, only hold insurance companies to the replacement value of your car for damages if another is at fault for damage, or are they not liable at all? I was always confused on that issue.
So in event of one solid impact, we lose reliable and safe transportation that costs nothing, even though it would cost less to repair than a newer car! And what comparable transport could be purchased for $2500–nada!
Common sense would dictate that the reliable, safe car in good condition should be worth protecting. Bur the bean counting actuaries care nothing about that.
Maybe it’s time for a consumer movement via state legislation.
I agree, there is no reason to carry collision on a car that old. It is too expensive for the potential value you would get from it.
The reality is you are not going to change the way insurance companies pay claims. If you had coverage and had an accident, they are required to only pay the value of the car or replace it with a similar car. They aren’t going to try and find a similar one.
If it will be so cheap to fix, just be self insured for the collision coverage. Put $100 a month into your fund and in the event you have a major accident, you can pay the $2-3000 repair cost yourself. The other problem with a car that old is that, it bcomes very difficult to even get body parts for it.