Motorcycle Insurance Guide

[bzb]

Just about every state requires insurance to operate any motor vehicle over 50cc. How much or how little coverage you need is completely dependent on your situation. For the purposes of this article, we’ll give suggestions for three distinct riders – a novice on a starter bike, a rider with a brand new bike, and an experienced rider that does track time.

Before we dive into these specifics, let’s describe some generalities in motorcycle insurance. There are some common factors that will affect your rate quote from any company, and these pointers will potentially help you save some money. There will be a list of the “top rated” companies to deal with at the end of the article.

1. The younger you are, the more it will cost to insure you. This is also true with car insurance, as younger males are willing to participate in more risky behavior – statistically speaking, of course. “Married with children” lowers your risk assessment, so get hitched and pop a few out. Don’t forget, you get a tax credit, too!

2. The more popular the bike, the more it will cost to insure. One of the biggest reasons a MV Agusta F4 costs less to insure than a GSX750 is theft rates. On that note…

3. Your address. High crime rate equals high insurance rate. If you’re in the ghetto, your rate is going to skyrocket. Move.

4. The newer the bike, the more it will cost to insure. It doesn’t matter if the bike is now a collectible 1970s café racer. To an insurance carrier, it’s an old, practically worthless bike.

5. Tickets are bad. If you have 3+ speeding tickets, you should really re-evaluate purchasing a sportbike. A cruiser might be an option, but you’re still looking at sky-high rates. Make nice with the police.

6. Rates change often. It’s a good idea to get quotes every year from multiple companies – just make sure you stick with established companies with a good reputation. Quotes are free and don’t usually require a social security number until you’re ready to purchase.

7. Check your credit reports with Equifax, Transunion, and Experian. Yes, your credit score affects your insurance rate! The excuse that’s floating around is that if you’re in loads of financial trouble, you’ll try to off your vehicles to get a fat paycheck.


Insurance Options

Each company differs in the type of coverage you can purchase. Here are a few optional coverage selections you can get:

- Liability – this amount covers you causing a wreck, and pays the other party for damage caused by you, to them. This is not optional insurance – it’s required to operate your vehicle. If you own a house, make sure you get the biggest liability option you can. Liability protects you from the other party suing you for everything you own.

- Comprehensive – this generally includes theft, vandalism, hit-and-run, and other damage caused to your bike.

- Collision – this covers your bike, regardless who is at fault (outside of illegal acts, of course). If the bike is totaled, the insurance company writes you a check for the value of the bike.

- Medical Payments – covers… medical… payments.

- Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist – this covers you if the other idiot doesn’t have insurance. I’d highly recommend this, as it’s pretty cheap, but provides a lot of coverage.

- Gear and modifications – this varies depending on how much you want to cover. Think of it as similar to covering your sound system in your car – you have to document everything and keep receipts.

- Replacement value – this is generally for new bikes, where the insurance company doesn’t valuate the bike at time of wreck, but rather just cuts you a check for however much you paid for it.

- Towing and Labor – AAA for bikes. Depends on how you ride.

- Track days – some companies offer coverage for your bike during track days as a operator “training” scenario. You absolutely must call your provider for details on this.

Now, let’s take a look at the suggested scenarios:

The Novice

The novice should ideally be starting on a 250-500 cc bike, regardless if it’s a cruiser or sportbike. Standards are generally regarded as the best to learn on, as they are plentiful and more “forgiving” in many ways to new riders – throttle control, braking, and ergonomics.

A 250-cc bike should realistically only require liability. If you were a smart consumer – you bought your bike used from a private seller! Even if you purchased it through a dealer, the bike is probably worth somewhere between $1500 and $4000.

In this case, you probably don’t want to get full coverage for $700-1000 per year. At this rate, you’ve paid for a new bike in a couple years – not to mention your deductible will probably be $1000 at this rate.

Last piece of advice: take the MSF course! Discounts are offered for training (this is also true with car insurance).

The New Bike

This is highly dependent on the model of the bike, and the number of modifications you have on it – but any financial planner worth his salt will suggest you get, as a minimum, Comprehensive and Collision with at least a $500 deductible for the first 5 years on the bike.

If you finance the bike, you will almost certainly be bound by the terms of the loan to purchase C/C coverage, and possibly even replacement value to insure the loan company against the depreciation (in the case the bike is totaled, and the bike is worth less than you owe).

Modification and gear insurance is a good idea, as it’s generally pretty cheap.

Track Time

At the time of this article’s writing, there are a few companies that still cover riders in a non-competitive track day, because it is considered training. Also at this time, however, car insurance companies are closing those loopholes with specific wording in their policies.

It is highly recommended to speak with your insurance agent to see if your policy covers any track time.

Reputable Motorcycle Insurance Companies

The following companies all have a high rating and generally good reviews around the Internet and Consumer Advocate groups. It is recommended to contact a few of them to get the best rates for your situation.

Geico
GEICO | Motorcycle Insurance Quote - Get online cycle insurance quotes

Progressive
Motorcycle Insurance: Motorcycle Insurance Quotes - Progressive

Allstate
Allstate - Motorcycle Insurance
1-877-379-2453

State Farm
Motorcycle Insurance

Dairyland/Sentry Insurance
https://www.dairylandcycle.com/

USAA
http://www.usaa.com
(at the time of writing, USAA outsources motorcycle insurance to Progressive)

Nationwide
Motorcycle Insurance Quotes | Custom Motorcycle Insurance & Motorbike Insurance at Nationwide | Nationwide.com

Liberty Mutual
Motorcycle Insurance from Liberty Mutual

Rider Insurance
Motorcycle Insurance by Rider Insurance of New Jersey, Ohio and Pennsylvania

Capitol Insurance
Capitol Insurance Company - Car and Motorcycle Insurance for Pennsylvanians


Rate Shout Out

If you’d like to contribute to this article, please post in the comments the following:

Age
Driving record (good, bad, ugly)
Marriage status
Bike Model and Year
Insurance carrier
Amount of coverage (Liability, Full, etc)
Price Per Year

[bzb]

Update:

Changed to Progressive with similar coverage. Dairyland dropped replacement coverage due to the Supersport turning 3 years old, but only knocked about $60 off the premium.

Progressive through USAA
$36 per month
$300,000 Combined Single Limit
Comprehensive/Collision $1000 deductible

[Alawicious]

I may check and see what replacement would cost for mine. With the economy the way it is, glad to see you saved a little

[bzb]

Yeah, saved about $300 per year and actually upped my liability limits (which was pretty minimal increase to the premium between the coverages).

[Builtgypsy]

Age: 25 year old male
Driving record: No ticket in the last 3 years
Marriage status: Single
Bike Model and Year: 2006 Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Classic
Insurance carrier: Viking through Dairyland
Amount of coverage: State-minimum liability
Price Per Year: $256

Personally I'm not a fan of insurance, let alone legally required insurance, so I always have the absolute minimum unless there's something I really feel would be best insured.

[kman458]

Age: 50 year old male
Driving record: No ticket in the last 3 years
Marriage status: married
Bike Model and Year: 2006 Yamaha 1900 Roadliner S with several thousand worth of stuff on it
Insurance carrier: Dairyland
Amount of coverage: full coverage
Price Per Year:$400 to $500 a year I think

[Scissors]

Age: 33
Driving record (good, bad, ugly): Good
Marriage status: Married
Bike Model and Year: 2008 Star Midnight Warrior and 2009 Ducati Monster 1100
Insurance carrier: Geico
Amount of coverage (Liability, Full, etc): Full with $300,000 on each for both liability and C&C, $500 deductible for all.
Price Per Year: $968

[Sparky]

Age: 28 year old male
Driving record: No ticket in the last 3 years
Marriage status: married
Bike Model and Year: 2001 Ninja 250
Insurance carrier: Dairyland
Amount of coverage: liability
Price Per Year:$50 a year