Insurance for e-bike thoughts?

[Tree]

total n00b here - in fact, my RadRover 6 hasn't even arrived yet. But I am super jazzed and keep checking the tracking every day as it gets closer and closer to arrival day.

I've done searching here as well as other places online, and haven't really found much aside from a few scattershot comments.

Do folks insure their e-bikes, and if so, what has proven to be the most effective route? Seems to be a purchase that is a couple of grand oughta be insurable, but I've seen exclusions  on homeowner and renter policies for things like "moto-vehicles," which I suppose by definition, an e-bike is.

thoughts?

[DCH3416]

I was shopping bicycle insurance a little while ago. It's very cheap. Order of magnitude cheaper than car insurance.

[JimInPT]

Depends on where you live.  In my state, I inquired with my agent about to cost of adding my MiniST to my policy and she said no need - it's automatically covered under my personal-property coverage.

[Ddaybc]

I live in Canada and my insurance company told me the same as JimInPT.
My homeowners insurance told me all I will have to do, in the event my bike is stolen, is prove I bought it and it is going to be covered.
They do have some limitations however. It must be 500 watts or less and it must have cost $3000.00 or less, accessories are not included. So they don't insure my bike and all of it's accessories.
I'm still going to try to find an insurance company that will completely insure my bike and if it was ever stolen it would be totally covered. I don't have any issues with proof of accessories etc as I take pictures every time I make changes.

[Tree]

I've continued to research, and for e-bike coverage exclusively, https://velosurance.com/ seems to be the strongest. Most of the ebike companies are underwritten by the same insurance company, but the little features seem to make Velo stand out.

My homeowner policy actually specifically excludes e-bikes, which i suppose it's nice that they're upfront about it, and i don't have to research the fine print.

[santacruzpaul]

Here in Central Ca. My homeowners covers my e-bikes.

[Ddaybc]

Tree, I agree. Velosurance appears to be a decent insurance company. I also looked into a company called Oasis Pedal Power insurance as they cover bikes in Canada too. Not sure yet which one I'll go with but I am going to contact them soon and make my choice.
I have my RW4 insured through my homeowner plan and I have it registered with Bike Index. However, my homeowner policy doesn't completely cover my bike and accessories. I'm also concerned about their coverage if I upgrade my controller or motor because then it's no longer "officially" (maybe?) a 500 watt e-cycle.

[Papamik]

Homeowners generally covers your personal property for destruction and theft from a locked storage, subject to a deductible which could significantly reduce your settlement. Read the theft exclusions. Read the policy and speak with your agent and document the response. This is for the property damage. The liability has been hard to get on the homeowners policies forever. BUT, good news is that effective March 1, 2022, a new endorsement has been approved for use by all companies by ISO (Insurance Service Office) to address the "motorized vehicle exclusions on Homeowner Policies". Covers bikes up to 28hp and gives you that coverage when you say "Left" and the lady steps to the left. Call your agent and add the liability endorsement. Separate physical damage and theft policies vary by state and values so check that in your state. New policies are coming out as the motorized vehicles expand in numbers. Lower deductibles and broader coverage for thefts from a carrier or rack may make a separate policy a better option for you. Read The Exclusions and Conditions of the policy. Don't assume anything.

[Airborne_Chemdog]

I will be calling my insurance company tomorrow and find out. My bikes arrive tomorrow and I can't wait!


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[EllaHarper]

I used to think that bike insurance is a waste of money! But since I love to travel by bike, I am absolutely not immune from various accidents. On my last trip, I had an accident with my bike. And its repair cost me a lot, a lot. So on the advice of a friend, I decided to contact bicycle insurance and get my bike insured. To be honest, it was a very good decision. So now I don't think bike insurance is a useless thing. On the contrary, I recommend this insurance to all my friends.

[Eric7]

Insurance companies are not in the business of losing money. So they did some calculations and decided it is a good risk and sell you the insurance.  It means that you are usually ahead if you don't buy the insurance and can afford to replace it yourself if lost.  Otherwise, you end up buying insurance for too many things (TV, your bicycle, your fridge, etc.). It adds up.

The bike is expensive for me. If I lose it, it would take some time before I can buy another one. But I figure if I lose my bike, I can save up to buy another one, and considering the risk, I should be ahead because the insurance is not in the business to lose money.

You need to read the fine print to see if you need to file a police report before you can recover money from insurance. Then decide if you are willing to spend the time to do so. Is the police coming to you or do you have to take the time to go to a police station to file a report. How much is a day off work worth to you?  If you lose your bike on a campus, is a campus police report good enough or do you need a town police report?

Also, if your deductible is high - then you can probably only recover if your bike goes missing.  Will you recover if there is no evidence of force?

It is not like once you have insurance you can bike around without locking your bike and leaving the keys in - I wish it was that simple. So you have to find out what duty you have (lock bike, police report, etc.) before you get reimbursed. I can see if you have house/car insurance costing a lot and you are a long-time good customer then they may be more lenient when reimbursing your bike. But if you just buy bike insurance and your bike mysteriously disappears without any sign of force that they may be more careful.

I usually try to self-insure - meaning not buy any insurance except for stuff that I can't afford to replace easily like a car or a house.

Maybe we should start another thread - how many people actually received an insurance payout after a bike is stolen and do they feel that the amount received was adequate considering the time and effort and money involved in getting insurance?

[Goosecreek]

I just priced bike insurance,  liability aside I can replace my bike every other year with enough money left for wings and beer and still be cheaper than the insurance.

[Tree]

I just priced bike insurance,  liability aside I can replace my bike every other year with enough money left for wings and beer and still be cheaper than the insurance.

What were you quoted on insurance and who did you contact, because that amount seems off dramatically. Are you really being quoted something like $1,000 a year, because that's insane.

With my premiums, it would take almost 13 YEARS of premiums to even come close to what my bike cost.

[tacomanatx]

I took my Gravel Bike to Mexico in the fall for a Bike Event and decided to get insurance for my bikes.

What I learned-
My Homeowners deductible basically matched the replacement cost of the bikes so basically it would be non covered if they took just the bikes
Its more expensive than I thought, but the gravel and MTB arent inexpensive either.
It was one payment for a year
State Farm wouldnt cover out of the country, i learned this after getting a policy and then reading the fine print.  So I ended up with Velosurance
I only insured the MTB and Gravel bike and left the Rad off the policy.

What I did get
A lot more peace of mind when I go places with a bike on the rack, if it gets damaged (wreck) or stolen... its covered.  I did a gravel ride this weekend and just left the bike on the rack while I ate lunch and the raffle.

[Goosecreek]

I did a quick quote from Velosurance, maybe I should look into it a bit more.