November 10, 2023 By InterWest Insurance Homeowners Insurance 0
You've got auto insurance protecting your car and homeowners' insurance in place for your house, but what protects the unique recreational vehicles you use for play? Campers, RVS, boats, and even golf carts may spend the majority of their time stored on your property.
However, understanding how to best protect these recreational vehicles can be a bit confusing, especially if they spend a significant amount of time parked on your covered home property.
Is My Camper Covered by Homeowners Insurance?
Your RV or camper: it's part home, part road vehicle, and a whole lot of fun for making memories. Homeowners insurance does provide some coverage for campers and RVs, but it's important to understand its limitations. Typically, your homeowners' policy will cover your camper or RV against risks such as fire, theft, vandalism, and some weather-related damages, but only when the vehicle is parked on your property.
The moment you take your camper on the road, homeowners insurance ceases to cover it.
Therefore, a specialized RV insurance policy is essential for on-road protection and other specific risks.
What Does RV Insurance Cover?
An RV is a house on wheels and needs to be insured like one. RV insurance blends homeowners insurance and auto insurance insurance into a single form of coverage designed to protect the vehicle and the personal items inside. You may add RV coverage to an existing auto insurance policy or obtain a stand-alone RV insurance policy.
RV insurance coverage can include:
- Liability - Just like any automobile, liability coverage helps cover third-party repairs or medical expenses if you are at fault in an accident.
- Comprehensive and Collision – Add comprehension and collision coverage to protect your RV from collisions with another vehicle or damage from vandalism, falling trees, wildfire, or a renegade moose. You never know what perils you might (actually) run into out on the road.
- Uninsured/ Underinsured Motorists – Don't pay the price for someone else's inadequate coverage. Uninsured motorist coverage can help bridge the gap where someone else's coverage ends and may even protect your RV if you're the victim of a hit-and-run while on the go.
- Medical Payments – This coverage can help pay for medical bills for your passengers or yourself if you're involved in an accident while traveling in your RV, no matter who's at fault.
- Roadside Assistance and Towing – Anything can happen, from flat tires to dead batters and other unexpected surprises. Towing and labor coverage can save the day if you need affordable assistance on the road and may even help cover the cost of lodging, transportation, and meals if your vacation gets interrupted.
- Vacation Liability – Your home-away-from-home is a temporary residence, and vacation liability coverage helps ensure third-party liability is covered in the event someone gets injured while visiting your home-on-wheels.
- Personal Effects – Break-ins can really ruin a vacation, but personal effects coverage can save the day if your personal property is stolen or damaged from your RV.
Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Boats?
Your boats and other watercraft have extremely limited coverage under homeowners insurance, typically at most $1,000-1,5000 worth of damage. Even if you have a very small boat or personal watercraft, it's easy to see that the amount wouldn't go far towards repairs or replacement.
There are other limitations to protecting your watercraft under your homeowners' insurance policy; damage to your boat may only be covered if it's on your property, and adding the boat to your homeowners' policy could increase your premiums.
If you have a boat, you're better off considering a stand-alone boat insurance policy to protect it — and your passengers — in the water.
What Does Boat Insurance Cover?
Boat insurance may help protect your boat or personal watercraft if it's stolen, in an accident, or damaged by a covered peril, like fire or extreme weather. Boat insurance may also help protect you if you accidentally injure someone or damage their property with your boat.
- Boat insurance covers your watercraft itself, plus:
- Boat trailers
- Boat accessories and instruments
- Special equipment and gear
- Towing coverage
Boat insurance coverage can include:
- Boat Property Coverage – Help pay for repairs to your boat if damaged in an accident or replace it if stolen, whether on water or dry land.
- Liability Coverage – Coverage for third-party injuries or property damage if you're at fault.
- Medical Payments – An accident on water could lead to injured passengers. Medical payment coverage helps you and your passengers pay for hospital bills, x-rays, medications, and other necessary medical care.
- Uninsured Watercraft Coverage – Just like uninsured drivers on the road, this coverage kicks in if an uninsured boater collides with you on the water.
Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Golf Carts?
Smaller than an automobile yet road-ready, a golf cart can be an especially confusing item to ensure. Is a golf cart covered under homeowners insurance, auto insurance, or another type of policy?
For golf carts, coverage under homeowners insurance is limited and often contingent on where the golf cart is used. Generally, homeowners insurance might offer some protection if the golf cart is used solely within your property or a specific area like a golf course.
However, once the golf cart is used on public roads or for diverse purposes, homeowners' coverage might not apply. A special golf cart insurance policy is your best bet for coverage tailored to this unique asset.
What Does Golf Cart Insurance Cover?
Golf cart insurance is typically a stand-alone policy separate from your homeowners or auto insurance policy.
Golf cart insurance is similar to auto insurance — you can obtain different types of coverage ranging from liability insurance to comprehensive and collision insurance and more.
A golf cart insurance policy can provide coverage for:
- Liability Coverage – If you are responsible for third-party damage or injuries while operating your golf cart.
- Collision Coverage – Covers your golf cart in case of an accident with another vehicle or object.
- Comprehensive Coverage – Protects against non-collision-related incidents, like theft or vandalism.
- Medical Payments Coverage – This can cover medical expenses resulting from a golf cart-related accident.
Protect Your Toys at Your Home and Away
Homeowners insurance offers some protection for recreational vehicles and toys like campers, RVs, golf carts, and boats. However, this coverage is usually limited to covering your recreational vehicles while stored at your home, but not when you take them out on the road, water, or the greens. Understanding the limitations and exclusions of your homeowners' policy is vital in determining whether you need additional specialized insurance policies for each type of recreational vehicle.
Each recreational vehicle has unique risks. An expert can guide you in selecting the right coverage to protect your recreational vehicles and safeguard your peace of mind during your leisure activities.
Get a no-obligation quote for your personal property, including recreational vehicles, from Aegis Insurance Markets today.
