NY to FL Insurance Doubles!

[OldHiker]

I am in the process of establishing myself in Florida for residency and I am blown away by my insurance coverages for car & rv. So far, Progressive and GMAC (Good Sam/FMCA) costs are more than double what I paid in New York. I am also a full timer which eliminates some other companies.

Who are you with and what are your costs>

[WheelingIt]

Are you using FL only as a fulltime RV residence (i.e. you don't actually own property there)? If so I'd suggest checking out TX (Escapees) & SD (Alternative Resources, MyDakota Mailbox etc.). Shop all 3 states and compare (health insurance, car insurance, RV insurance, registration costs etc.). Our insurance rates in SD were substantially lower than the other spots and was one of the reasons we decided to establish residency there.

[OldHiker]

They are all asking where I garage it. I told them I will only be in Florida for the winter and travel the warmer months. Full timing also seems to be one of the problems.

[WheelingIt]

I don't know what the residency rules are for FL (i.e. how long you stay in state before you're considered a "resident"), but spending a couple of months there in the winter *may* not eliminate you from being able to establish residency elsewhere (TX or SD). I'd look into that just to keep your options open.

Also this may not necessarily help lower your costs but you can try some of the insurance agents that specialize in RVs (and fulltimers)

Farm & City 800-331-1520
Gilbert RV Insurance 888-784-6787
Miller RV Insurance 800-622-6347

[keithc290]

Originally Posted by WheelingIt

I don't know what the residency rules are for FL (i.e. how long you stay in state before you're considered a "resident"), but spending a couple of months there in the winter *may* not eliminate you from being able to establish residency elsewhere (TX or SD). I'd look into that just to keep your options open.

Also this may not necessarily help lower your costs but you can try some of the insurance agents that specialize in RVs (and fulltimers)

Farm & City 800-331-1520
Gilbert RV Insurance 888-784-6787
Miller RV Insurance 800-622-6347

Thinking seriously about a similar move I can't help wonder if there are any sites that provide a total costs comparison on a city by city basis

[OldHiker]

Gilbert, thru Progressive, has my RV. They quoted me over $4000, up from $1900! Allstate has my cars and I'm waiting for the numbers.

[WheelingIt]

Originally Posted by keithc290

Thinking seriously about a similar move I can't help wonder if there are any sites that provide a total costs comparison on a city by city basis

Unfortunately insurance quotes are VERY local...they can vary even county to county. So, when we were looking around the only way we could figure out apples-to-apples costs was to physically go get insurance rates at each of the domicile spots we were considering. We got quotes for health & car/RV insurance as well as registration costs.

[WheelingIt]

Originally Posted by OldHiker

Gilbert, thru Progressive, has my RV. They quoted me over $4000, up from $1900! Allstate has my cars and I'm waiting for the numbers.

I'd get a quote from ALL three agents above. Also try Geico...not always the cheapest option, but in SD they were $400 below any other quote we got. And they do cover fulltimers.

Our insurance in SD costs ~$1,300/year (2008 Honda CRV plus 2008 Holiday Rambler RV).

[WeatherTodd]

I would find a "local" agent with the same company so you can get a "fair" quote.
800 numbers and over the phone quotes tend to be extremely high.

I find its easiest to send prospective agents your current coverages. If anything it keeps my agent honest!

[corjaguar]

We just switched over from Progressive because they were getting expensive......we just signed on with Good Sam 6 month is 882.30 dollars. That was a saving of over 300.00 dollars/6 months.

bodily.........250,000
Property......100,000
Medical.......1,000
Uninsured....250,000
Personal......Basic
Other than Collision....1,000 deductible
Collision ...................1,000 deductible
Personal effects..........3,000
other than Collision- Replacement......1,000 deductible
Collision Replacement cost ...............1,000 deductible

that includes hurricane catastropic fund

[OldHiker]

Good Sam, FMCA and USAA all use Progressive for their RV insurance. So far, USAA has quoted car coverage that is equal to Allstate in New York. Waiting for Allstate in Florida to quote my present policy.

[Gary RVRoamer]

I wonder if they quoted you based on an area like Miami/Dade or Ft Lauderdale, where rates are sky high. We live in Florida and my total RV insurance cost is under $1000 (National Interstate). Your Essex is newer, so sure to be higher than mine, but $4000 seems way out of line.

[OldHiker]

Quoting me where they are garaged - Daytona. I use Good Sam mail forwarding out of Crestview that is not cheaper.

[corjaguar]

Originally Posted by OldHiker

Good Sam, FMCA and USAA all use Progressive for their RV insurance. So far, USAA has quoted car coverage that is equal to Allstate in New York. Waiting for Allstate in Florida to quote my present policy.

I thought this was about RV insurance......and as I said in my post, Progressive was 300.00 dollars per 6 months HIGHER than GMAC?Good Sam.

We live in Boca Raton.........so that is south Fl.