Bike insurance
- Thread starter dmedic
- Start date
Tars Tarkas
Well-Known Member
I have Markel. Check out their website. They can tailor your coverage to whatever you want, from simple theft, to medical and liability, etc. I think they look very good on paper. I haven't had to file a claim.
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California Flash
Member
- Region
- USA
My insurance company (Auto-Owners Michigan) requires that my ebike be insured under my auto policy.
Originally it was insured under my homeowners insurance. I read in this forum where the owner of a Class 2 bike had his bike stolen. When he filed a claim the insurance company denied his claim because it should have been insured as a motorized vehicle because it had a throttle (Class 2).
After reading this, I decided to look deeper into what my coverages were on my ebike. At the time, it was insured under my home owners policy. I sent an email to my agent confirming what I was told my coverages were. My agent decided to contact the insurance company to confirm what coverages I had. As it turns out, the company underwriter indicated my ebike would not be covered by my homeowners policy in the event I had a claim. The underwriter told my agent that my ebike must be insured on my auto policy.
So.....had I been involved in a collision there was no coverage. Also no coverage if the bike was stolen. My agent made a mistake.
If your agent does not put your ebike in the proper category (like mine was), and you have an accident or theft, your only recourse is to sue the agent which would be very expensive.
However, and most importantly, I had no liability coverage should I be at fault in a collision and injure or kill someone. I could then be sued and most likely lose part or all of my assets!
Everyone should confirm what they believe their coverages are on their e-bike and get that in writing!
I now have my ebike covered under my auto policy. My coverages are, comprehensive $100 deductible, collision $500 deductible, liability $500,000.
I cannot stress how important it is in my opinion, that you have liability insurance coverage for your ebike.
I would recommend you contact your insurance agent and get a quotation. Independent companies like Markel, Velosurance and others write bicycle insurance. I have obtained quotes from both of these companies and have found their rates were significantly higher than the coverage I have under my auto policy.
This is how my insurance company here in Michigan insures ebikes. Other insurance companies that insure ebikes in Michigan may have different policies.
Also, each state has different insurance laws on how ebikes are insured.
Originally it was insured under my homeowners insurance. I read in this forum where the owner of a Class 2 bike had his bike stolen. When he filed a claim the insurance company denied his claim because it should have been insured as a motorized vehicle because it had a throttle (Class 2).
After reading this, I decided to look deeper into what my coverages were on my ebike. At the time, it was insured under my home owners policy. I sent an email to my agent confirming what I was told my coverages were. My agent decided to contact the insurance company to confirm what coverages I had. As it turns out, the company underwriter indicated my ebike would not be covered by my homeowners policy in the event I had a claim. The underwriter told my agent that my ebike must be insured on my auto policy.
So.....had I been involved in a collision there was no coverage. Also no coverage if the bike was stolen. My agent made a mistake.
If your agent does not put your ebike in the proper category (like mine was), and you have an accident or theft, your only recourse is to sue the agent which would be very expensive.
However, and most importantly, I had no liability coverage should I be at fault in a collision and injure or kill someone. I could then be sued and most likely lose part or all of my assets!
Everyone should confirm what they believe their coverages are on their e-bike and get that in writing!
I now have my ebike covered under my auto policy. My coverages are, comprehensive $100 deductible, collision $500 deductible, liability $500,000.
I cannot stress how important it is in my opinion, that you have liability insurance coverage for your ebike.
I would recommend you contact your insurance agent and get a quotation. Independent companies like Markel, Velosurance and others write bicycle insurance. I have obtained quotes from both of these companies and have found their rates were significantly higher than the coverage I have under my auto policy.
This is how my insurance company here in Michigan insures ebikes. Other insurance companies that insure ebikes in Michigan may have different policies.
Also, each state has different insurance laws on how ebikes are insured.
California Flash
Member
- Region
- USA
If you have any questions regarding what your policy covers, ask your agent and get the answers in writing. In my situation, the agent had my ebike insured under my homeowners policy which was not correct. If I had a claim, my insurance company would have denied it!
scottsdalecommuter
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
Thanks for the insights, since my ebike is what we call our second car and we already save so much not having two cars, I also like the idea of getting it insured. Less concerned about theft and more concerned about liability should I get in a crash and hurt someone. I have auto insurance with progressive I believe so will ring them up today and report back too.
California Flash
Member
- Region
- USA
It is a personal choice whether or not to carry liability insurance on your e-bike. In this crazy world where there are so many lawsuits being brought for pain and suffering, it makes sense to me to protect yourself by having an appropriate amount of liability insurance. In my situation I pay $0.12 per day. This protects me against Bodily Injury - $500,000, Residual Property Damage - $500,000, Residual Uninsured Motorist - $500,000, and Underinsured Motorist $500,000.
Please let everyone know how your insurance company recommends you insure your e-bike.
rbeckert
Member
- Region
- USA
I have my Riese and Muller 2021 ROADSTER VARIO insured with NATIONWIDE INS. I have my home and a MAZDA CX5 insured with them, also. They wrote up my ebike on a RECREATIONAL VEHICLE POLICY for $267.04 a year. The policy covers LIABILITY (Bodily injury; Property damage; Personal Injury Protection; Medical Payments; Uninsured/Underinsured). PHYSICAL DAMAGE (Replacement Cost(!); Comprehensive (fire and theft; $500 deductible); Collision ($500 deductible); Custom Equipment (up to $3,000)). It also has a "Vanishing Deductible" of $100 a year so after the 5th year there would be no deductible for a claim. Basically, just like automobile insurance even if I cause an accident with my ebike and say, 2 other vehicles sustain damage with injured passengers, I'm covered. Plus, the "Replacement Cost" replaces my ebike, even if it's 3 years old, with a new ebike!
California Flash
Member
- Region
- USA
Thanks for sharing. Looks like excellent coverage for the money.
Rich W.
Active Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- The Farm, Grass Valley, Ca
I just went through this having purchased a pair of Specialized Tero’s (3.0 and 5.0) . I started with a couple on-line quotes at around $780/year for the pair. I realized that I needed to be a little more pro-active and involved, so I called Progressive since they insure my E-Polaris Ranger for $75/year and it is worth around $15,000. Well they don’t insure e-bikes. I mentioned that if they were going to call themselves Progressive….well whatever.
I called my primary insurance company, State farm and their initial quote was around $730 - better but not by much. I then called Velosuramce since they claim to focus on this market and they were $610. Still too high but in their defense they said they insured everything including my shorts! Wow. Next was Markel (thank you @Tars Tarkas ) and they were somewhat better at $575. Since they are over Geiko, that saved me a call. This was getting closer to reasonalble but it still seemed high.
I then emailed these quotes to my State Farm agent, explaining that someone was going to get my money and I’d prefer to do business with a known and trusted entity. Surprisingly, they came back with a quote a little under Markel. So I’ll probably go with them and have full coverage for theft, damage, fire, etc at replacement costs with a very low deductible, but this still seems ridiculously high for a couple bikes. My guess is this is a result of a high incidence of e-bike thefts driving the price of insurance up. @rbeckert I’ve done a lot of business with Nationwide over the years, so I’ll probably call them for a quote before I make my final decision.
Your experiences, comments, ideas, thoughts.….?
I called my primary insurance company, State farm and their initial quote was around $730 - better but not by much. I then called Velosuramce since they claim to focus on this market and they were $610. Still too high but in their defense they said they insured everything including my shorts! Wow. Next was Markel (thank you @Tars Tarkas ) and they were somewhat better at $575. Since they are over Geiko, that saved me a call. This was getting closer to reasonalble but it still seemed high.
I then emailed these quotes to my State Farm agent, explaining that someone was going to get my money and I’d prefer to do business with a known and trusted entity. Surprisingly, they came back with a quote a little under Markel. So I’ll probably go with them and have full coverage for theft, damage, fire, etc at replacement costs with a very low deductible, but this still seems ridiculously high for a couple bikes. My guess is this is a result of a high incidence of e-bike thefts driving the price of insurance up. @rbeckert I’ve done a lot of business with Nationwide over the years, so I’ll probably call them for a quote before I make my final decision.
Your experiences, comments, ideas, thoughts.….?
When I had my accident a couple of years ago, I didn't damage the car I ran into, nor my own bike. But I did damage myself. My auto insurance (PEMCO) covered the first $10,000 for hospitalization and medical, in addition to coverage from Kaiser. My out of pocket amounted to a few hundred $, so it wasn't too bad.
This doesn't answer the main part of your question, but it did surprise me that my auto insurance readily took on a major part of the cost. This did not involve any special bike insurance. Up til then, they didn't even know I had a bike.
This doesn't answer the main part of your question, but it did surprise me that my auto insurance readily took on a major part of the cost. This did not involve any special bike insurance. Up til then, they didn't even know I had a bike.
Oyster Insurance
New Member
- Region
- USA
What did you decide to do in the end? Let me know if you have any other questions about eBike insurance
JohnWiddick
New Member
- Region
- USA
Hey! Congrats on the new E-Bike! When I got mine, I did a bit of research and found some good options online. Have you tried looking at insurancecloud.co.uk? They have a variety of plans tailored for eBikes and might offer what you need. I ended up going with a plan that covered both theft and damage, which gave me peace of mind. Hope this helps, and happy riding!
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