Changed insurance to AAA

TerryH

TerryH

Well-known member
I know this has been a frequent topic here, but just wanted to pass on my very recent experience. I had been with Grundy for several years, but finally found out how very limited their coverage is.....no errands, no going to the store or post office. So I called AAA and got a quote. It ended up being beneficial to put our house with them also, as there was a significant discount. I was able to insure my Model A for $29,500 with very few restrictions...... Just not daily driving to work in it, anything else is covered. My estimated mileage is only about 1,500 miles per year, so am sure that helped. Total annual cost for the Model A is $275..... I was very pleased, and glad I switched. I cannot image anyone keeping Grundy, unless you just show your car.
Terry
 
Ive had AAA since i was 16 for my modern cars and i have to switch... No accidents, tickets, claims, just 100k/300k liability and the last 4 years my rates have gone up a ridiculous amount. I was paying just barely over $500 for 3 vehicles, last bill was $689 for 6 months!....that's $1378 a year!!!! That's not counting renters insurance or AAA membership that Ive never used...

Their excuse was there were a lot of claims with them from tornados, fires and whatnot in the country that everyone's rates have gone up nationwide. Not sure how wildfires in California is my problem and why i should pay more because i am a safe driver in Illinois...

Got a quote thru Cincinnati insurance for identical coverage on same 3 vehicles for $813 A YEAR. Dropping AAA like a hot pan next week...
 
I quit AAA in 2002 when they refused to bring me diesel for my motorhome. It was our first trip and I did not know how unreliable the fuel gauge was. We ran out in Ventura CA and when I called AAA they said their "contractor" could not bring diesel. When I asked how they were going to help me, they said they would tow the 40 ft motorhome to garage. Yeah, right. I unhooked out tow and drove about 2 miles to the nearest station and brought back diesel to the motorhome. When I got to their main office the next day they were astonished about my story. I had the supervisor's name and all.
They said a manager would call me for more details. No call, I'm gone. Now with Good Sam and Hagerty. Very happy.
 
I had AAA until my daughter was the inocent party in totaling my car. The guilty party also had AAA. They had no incentive to be my advocate, and grossly undercompensated me for the loss of my vehicle. Never agin.
 
I had AAA for a short time in the 80's. Some crazy woman ran a stop sign at 80 MPH and slammed into the front corner of my car (I had no stop sign and she was going so fast, no time to react). I had AAA, she had some other company. AAA told me that since I wasn't injured, I need to deal with her insurance company directly and to not bother them! WHAT?!!

I dropped AAA for the auto and went with USAA for everything.

Fast forward to a couple years ago...

Wife was hit head-on by a drunk driver. USAA was less than helpful. In fact, USAA said that since we have (excellent) health insurance, the health insurance company needs to pay for her medical care. In this state, in an auto wreck, the auto insurance pays for medical. We had $1M of medical coverage in our USAA auto plan that we had been paying for!! We ended up out of pocket for medical and had to sue the insurance company to get reimbursed. That's how USAA treats young vets?

With Farmers now on everything except the Model A. Have Hagerty (through same agent as Farmers) for the Model A.
 
Wow, sorry you all had a bad experience with AAA.

Last year while on a trip to Oregon a logging truck kicked up a rock and broke our windshield. AAA went out of their way to have our windshield replaced, even sending a mobile repair to our hotel.

SeaSlugs said:
Their excuse was there were a lot of claims with them from tornados, fires and whatnot in the country that everyone's rates have gone up nationwide. Not sure how wildfires in California is my problem and why i should pay more because i am a safe driver in Illinois...
Click to expand...

Not sticking up for insurance companies but unfortunately that's how the insurance companies operate. Ain't coming out of their pocket!

When I asked why my Health Insurance went up so much I got the same or similar answer. " Medical costs have risen and a lot more medical claims this year in Illinois..." I didn't make any more medical claims but my premium went up!!
 
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In my opinion insurance companies are great to have until you need them.

I currently have my home and 4 automobiles with AAA, but I have learned that it is important to do a complete review of my insurance every few years because of "premium creep" My previous company was Allstate and I saved close to $1,000 a year and got better coverage by switching.

I also know that insurance companies are afraid of state insurance commissions. A few years ago we had a slight problem (before Allstate) and when I mentioned that I was considering a discussions whit the State guys they suddenly became very agreeable.

Your experience may be different but that is what I see
 
State regs make a big difference and your coverage in Oregon is meaningless in CO. My ***** is the fact that my umbrella policy will not cover cars insured by Hagerty.
 
As Denis4X4 stated:
State regs make a big difference and your coverage in Oregon is meaningless in CO. My ***** is the fact that my umbrella policy will not cover cars insured by Hagerty.

Our State Farm agent said our umbrella policy will be voided if we dropped the coverage on our roadster and insure it with someone like Hagerty.
 
nhusa said:
In my opinion insurance companies are great to have until you need them.

I currently have my home and 4 automobiles with AAA, but I have learned that it is important to do a complete review of my insurance every few years because of "premium creep" My previous company was Allstate and I saved close to $1,000 a year and got better coverage by switching.

I also know that insurance companies are afraid of state insurance commissions. A few years ago we had a slight problem (before Allstate) and when I mentioned that I was considering a discussions whit the State guys they suddenly became very agreeable.

Your experience may be different but that is what I see
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When i got a quote for Allstate they wanted over $800 every 6 months for the same coverage. Geico was like $750+ state farm was $720

Heres my theory: if i see a commercial (tv or sports sponsorship etc) from an insurance company i don't even consider them. To me it screams "well our rates are high so we can pay for these commercials". Commercials arent free nor is putting your company logo/name on a plackard at the home run back wall at a baseball stadium.

Since insurance companies make their money and pay their employees through our premiums every year it seems they have alot of expendable income to waste on commercials. Those voice actors and spokemen/women dont work for free ya know...
 
TerryH said:
I know this has been a frequent topic here, but just wanted to pass on my very recent experience. I had been with Grundy for several years, but finally found out how very limited their coverage is.....no errands, no going to the store or post office. So I called AAA and got a quote. It ended up being beneficial to put our house with them also, as there was a significant discount. I was able to insure my Model A for $29,500 with very few restrictions...... Just not daily driving to work in it, anything else is covered. My estimated mileage is only about 1,500 miles per year, so am sure that helped. Total annual cost for the Model A is $275..... I was very pleased, and glad I switched. I cannot image anyone keeping Grundy, unless you just show your car.
Terry
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Hi Terry,

I'm glad you are one of those guys who drive their cars - we like to see our customers enjoy their special automobiles. Grundy does indeed have unlimited mileage coverage, but it must be pleasure driving only. If you use your car to chase groceries, run everyday errands, go to work or school and the like, it is a "regular-use" vehicle which disqualifies it for our collector car insurance.

However, that being said, if you are going to or coming from a car event and want to stop to pick up a quart of milk or do another errand, that is fine. Also, if you use your car to take your wife out to dinner, go for ice cream, go to a car event, or simply take a pleasure drive, that is also fine. We cover our customers' collector cars when they are on tour both here in the US and also if the tour is overseas, and some of these tours last weeks and cover well over a thousand miles. When the cars are home, we require they be kept in a closed and locked garage. However, while on tours we cover them when they are parked in your hotel parking lot, at a store, at a restaurant, or at any other stop.

Our goal is that you are able to use and enjoy your collector car. However, you cannot use it as your primary vehicle or use it as a regular-use vehicle and still be covered. If you have additional questions, please call our sales department at 866-338-4006 and they will give you more detail. James A. Grundy invented agreed value insurance in 1947. We also offer zero deductible in most states, unlimited mileage, towing and labor, trip interruption, your choice of repair shops, spare parts coverage, and more.

Finally, make sure AAA allows regular use and is giving you Agreed Value coverage. If you have a total loss, a standard insurance company will reimburse you only what they are willing to pay based on their depreciation of your vehicle. You may have $20,000 in a restoration, but if they think your old car is only worth $1,000, that is what you will get. Standard insurance companies do not understand collector cars - it is not their business. PLEASE be sure you insure your car using Agreed Value insurance. If their product says anything other than "agreed value", walk away. "Stated Value" and "Actual Cash Value" policies depreciate your car - don't use these policies to insure your collector vehicle unless it is your primary, regular use vehicle.

Hope this clarifies things a bit. Bill Hoffer, Director of Marketing, Grundy Insurance
 
Bill-

Thank you for chiming in here. Nice to have you in the discussion.

So, how does Grundy insurance and Hagerty insurance differ so much? For example, on the Model A, Hagerty allows a trip to the store or the movies but apparently Grundy does not, unless it happens to be on your way home from a car event. You also mentioned Grundy covering the collector car in the parking lot of the hotel, but what about when you are staying at a hotel and you want to drive to the grocery store for some snacks or drinks for the ice chest? If that is covered (a trip to the store from the hotel), then why not a trip to the store from home?

Also, Hagerty does insure for "agreed value". My Model A is insured for $30,000 agreed value with Hagerty, and it is allowed to go to the store, and even to work once in a great while for " show and tell". It went to work once, and everyone got a lot of joy from seeing the Model A. Why deny people that joy? The parking lot at work is sure a lot safer than a parking lot at a hotel.

Thank you.
 
The state insurance commission is a good resource to see how the insurance you are interested in is performing before you buy. There is so much flim flam in their pitches it's hard to understand if your getting riped off or not.
 
FYI, the AAA Collector Car Policy is agreed value. I have one and combined with multi-policy discounts, the premiums are very low, and pose no problem for underlying policy requirements on umbrella policies.
 
When I discussed my car with AAA, I made a point of telling them that I do not work.....I am retired, but I do drive my Model A 2-3 times a week, and do run errands in it to Costco, grocery store, Post Office, and sometimes to a meal. I do not use only the A for those trips, but do when I like to. When I called Grundy recently, I went over that scenario with the rep on the phone, and they said yes, that was too much use of it for them, so probably not covered. To me, their criteria is pretty nebulous and vague.....just the kind of loopholes you don't want when a claim is made. Bottom line is, don't use Grundy if you drive your A much at all.....it is very limiting.
 
TerryH said:
When I discussed my car with AAA, I made a point of telling them that I do not work.....I am retired, but I do drive my Model A 2-3 times a week, and do run errands in it to Costco, grocery store, Post Office, and sometimes to a meal. I do not use only the A for those trips, but do when I like to. When I called Grundy recently, I went over that scenario with the rep on the phone, and they said yes, that was too much use of it for them, so probably not covered. To me, their criteria is pretty nebulous and vague.....just the kind of loopholes you don't want when a claim is made. Bottom line is, don't use Grundy if you drive your A much at all.....it is very limiting.
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make sure your new policy states that in writing
discussing or talking about it verbally does not mean squat
 
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