Does your insurance cover you OFF-ROAD...

[FutureBoy]

Ran into this video today.



So this brings up lots of interesting questions to research. This video is probably specific to Australia but the exact same questions should be posed to insurance companies around the world. And now that Elon says the CT is practically a boat, perhaps we need boat insurance too.

Some of the questions one might want to get answered:

1. Is your vehicle insured off-road?
2. Even if you are insured off-road, what are you actually covered for?
3. What is the coverage differences between public listed roads vs non-listed roads?
4. Is the track you are on listed on a map?
5. Are you covered on the beach? Beach driving vs parked on the beach. What if your vehicle gets taken by the tide?
6. What if you drive over a sand dune too fast?
7. What if you are crossing a river or other body of water? What if you have a snorkel to enhance the vehicles ability to travers waterways.
8. Are you covered while taking 4WD training classes?
9. Will 4WD training classes impact your insurance costs?
10. Are you covered while driving in a 4WD park?
11. Does the insurance policy cover the accessories that have been installed on your vehicle? Is there a way to itemize the covered accessories?
12. Once a claim has been filed, is there a way to remove the accessories that are still in working order for use on another vehicle?
13. In a total write-off case, how much reimbursement do you get for the accessories beyond the actual vehicle?
14. If the vehicle is damaged in a remote area, does the insurance pay recovery costs to retrieve the vehicle from a remote location so that damage can be assessed/repaired?
15. Must the vehicle be returned to a towable location before the insurance claim can be assessed and paid out?
16. If the vehicle is completely destroyed in a remote location, what evidence is needed to file a claim?
17. Is damage sustained to your vehicle while assisting in the recovering another vehicle covered?

So... Anyone have experience with any of these situations? Any great insurance companies/policies that you have experienced?

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[FutureBoy]

Along with the insurance... We should also talk about roadside assistance.

I know of Matt's Off Road Recovery... Are there other specialized recovery companies out there?

And if you have something like AAA, what kind of locations will they not be able to do recovery from? When do you become un-recoverable?

 

[charliemagpie]

I guess the best option is Tesla Insurance.

But I happened to watch a Vid a few weeks ago, a Truck was being recovered on Fraser Island. The tow truck driver had said the most expensive recovery cost $30,000. They had to get it out of 10 metres of water..


To go on..." The insurance company wouldn't pay, if the truck was still in water
"

On that, we can say, Yes.. you can insure. With caveats.

BTW.. Im guessing they didn't tell the insurance company that they had pulled it out lol

 

[CyberGus]

Insurance, or lack thereof, is my primary concern for taking Cybertruck offroad. An underside impact that damages the HV pack would be a very expensive repair.

 

[SpaceYooper]

I've never heard of insurance NOT covering offroad use. Assuming full coverage of course. I have a friend who hunts with us and he rolled his vehicle opening morning of deer season 2 years in a row. Yes, you read that correctly. In 2 straight years, he rolled 2 different vehicles while driving off-road. He was covered both times. The second time the vehicle was totaled and it took a week before the tow vehicle could get it out. That 3rd year, when he drove safely back to the campsite and walked in, we clapped.

Also, here in Colorado and I'm sure elsewhere, there are rescue clubs that will help recover vehicles that are not able to be recovered by tow trucks. I'm not sure if they charge a price or not. I think it's more of a donation type of operation for these guys/gals looking to test their own vehicles and ingenuity out. I've seen videos of some pretty clever multiple-winches multiple-vehicle operations.

 

[SwampNut]

I've had an off-road claim that totaled the vehicle and it was not an issue. Towing was done from "near road," meaning a dirt area but not requiring 4WD or extraordinary measures. We had self-towed from the really "out there" location where it met its death. I don' know what would have been done if I threw my hands in the air and said, "get it." I'm pretty sure I could have. But recoveries are fun.

Pretty much all the coverage questions are answered with "yes." You are covered for anything you do that is not purposeful damage or absolute gross negligence. Basic negligence is covered (after all, nearly every traffic collision is negligent, not accidental).

Accessories can be added to a rider. If you don't, they are not covered. In my case above they let me take the old vehicle for a few days and park it with the new one. Friends and I transferred all the extras.

 

[Zabhawkin]

My Jeep is has very basic coverage, so in most cases not insured. My wife's truck has full coverage so as long as it isn't something they could call gross negligence its covered. We haven't had to make any claims and any small dents or dings don't get repaired. Even many parts we break we fix ourselves out of pocket.

I tried to get the mods on the Jeep covered but that lead to too many questions which lead them to telling me they could not cover it because they would not be able to tell if it was damaged while off-roading or in an accident which I thought was nuts. Called back the next day and insured it as stock.

Edit: Around here AAA will not leave the pavement so if you need a tow you would have to hire a local tow company to go get it. Unless you can get ahold of one of the local off-road groups to recover it which can be very helpful. (Responded to a couple myself)

 

[SwampNut]

American Family just wanted to know how much extra we wanted to pay for. It was "$15k of accessories" without listing them out. They'd be under the same deductible, so claiming off-roading damage would be both stupid, and actually probably legal. I mean, you'd lose your no-claims discount and things like that.

We ended up not covering it, as the extra coverage was a much higher percentage rate than the comp coverage on the vehicle itself.

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