Tailoring The Arizona Auto Insurance Policy
To Meet Your Needs
The Arizona personal auto insurance policy can be tailored to meet your specific needs by endorsing or changing the basic
policy contract. However, while some endorsements are straight forward and expand coverage, others, when used incorrectly,
actually restrict coverage or put an unwanted limitation or your ability to be made whole after a loss.
This list is not meant to be all encompassing but instead a representative sample of ways that you can tailor your personal
auto insurance policy to meet your individual needs.
Suspension of Coverage - Seasonal Cars
Let's say you have car that you drive only in the spring and summer and park during the other months. You may not want to pay
for that vehicle year round. Instead of removing it from your policy and then adding it back on, you would be better off having
your insurance company issue a Suspension of Insurance Endorsement (when you look on your policy it will be form PP0201) and
safeguarding the car to make sure it doesn't move. Generally it is parked in a garage and the battery disconnected.
When you want to have the coverage started again in the spring and summer the best practice is to send our office an email and we
will endorse your policy with a Reinstatement of Insurance form (Form PP0202) and this will bind the insurance company into providing
coverage.
Please call our office at (480) 963-5622 or contact us to discuss this practice as
the norm will be that we will want to see pictures of the vehicle or inspect it to make sure that no damage has been done to the car.
If You Are Using Your Car to Deliver Mail
In rural areas it is not uncommon that an individual use his/her personal car to deliver mail. This presents a major problem for
your insurance company due to the fact that, unendorsed, they are providing coverage for the federal government and clearly not what
they were intending to do when they issued your personal auto insurance policy. That kind of liability will stop the heart of
virtually any insurance company underwriter.
If you have or are thinking about using your vehicle to deliver mail - please call our office at (480) 963-5622 or
contact us and we will speak to our insurance
company underwriter and ask them to properly endorse your policy to exclude all liability to the federal government by attaching
"Federal Employees Using Autos In Government Business" Endorsement (PP0301) to your policy.
Rental Reimbursement Coverage
If you have comprehensive and/or collision coverage on your personal auto policy and you suffer a loss that is covered under your
auto policy you may well have to rent a car. There is an endorsement you can add to your auto policy which will provide rental
reimbursement coverage for normally a 30 day maximum. Coverage limits start at $15/day or so and can go to $100/day and higher.
When you call our office we will go over these options with you, as well as discussing if your insurance company can be "direct
billed" which will mean that you do not have to lay out your money and then be reimbursed later.
Stated Amount Coverage - Be Careful Here
On the surface, this seems like a good deal. Your car is worth far more than other similar cars of the same make and model
so you ask your agent to set a "stated value" to it. This is a bad idea. This endorsement is restrictive. What it says is
that your insurance company will pay the lesser of the amount shown or the actual cash value. It goes on to say that coverage
is not provided on an "agreed value" basis.
As your agent we will work with you to make sure that your policy properly protects your car and gives you the coverage you are
seeking as opposed to restricting your ability to fully collect.
Excess Equipment Coverage
Your personal auto, before any endorsement, doesn't provide a lot of coverage for any electronic equipment in your car that is
not factory installed. Simply, if the manufacturer didn't put it in your car and it is a loss you don't want to pay out of
your pocket, call our office at (480) 963-5622 or contact us. If the electronic
equipment is permanently installed in your auto it is an auto claim and it has to be added to your auto policy.
If it is not permanently attached to your car - it is covered under your homeowners, condo owners or renters insurance policy
as property away from premises.
Coverage and claim misunderstandings are common here. Call our office at (480) 963-5622 or
contact us to discuss what you have in your car, and we will help
you determine how to best proceed.
Common areas of concern:
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Mobile GPS Devices
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Upgraded car stereos, speakers, etc
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Mobile Phones, Radar Detectors
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CD's, Ipods, etc.
If your Vehicle is Customized In Any Way
If your vehicle is customized in any way - heed this advice. It used to be vans with murals on the side and a bar in the back,
now it's more of ground effects and body kits, customized rims and spinners - but the underlying lesson is the same. He who
documents best - wins. In the event of a claim, you never, ever want the insurance claim adjuster to use his or her imagination
for what you had in your car prior to the loss. Your reality and their imagination will meld into your ongoing claim nightmare.
There is an endorsement which we will add to protect you (Customizing Equipment Coverage PP 0318), but you will want pictures,
and receipts provided to our office which we will attach to your permanent file. We will then send you in writing with a legally
binding signature confirmation that we have reviewed your documentation and have endorsed the policy accordingly.
Without this kind of documentation, you are not properly protected.
Other insurance companies may give you a different answer or tell you not to worry. This rule never changes - he who documents
best wins. This is how to correctly address the unique exposure you face.
At Michael Bott Agency, we are local Chandler personal auto insurance experts. Our job is to protect the things which matter
most to you - and to protect them correctly.
If You Own A Car With Someone To Whom You Are Not Married
Off the shelf, your Arizona personal auto insurance policy doesn't recognize joint ownership of a vehicle other
than husband or wife. However, by applying an endorsement, there is a cost savings which can be had for a number of
people - most specifically - those people living together who are not married.
Here's how. By applying the "Joint Ownership Coverage (PP0334) to the policy - boyfriend and girlfriend living together
or engaged can have 1 auto policy, enjoy the multi car discount associated with it, and get only 1 bill.
There are plusses and minuses to this scenario as the vehicles are titled jointly and it is a scenario you would want to
call our office at (480) 963-5622 or contact us to discuss.
This endorsement allows for coverage for:
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Resident relatives other than husband and wife
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Resident individuals
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Nonresident relatives
Our job is to offer you every opportunity to save, without giving up coverage. This is an area where many agents will never
discuss with you, not because they don't want to, but because it is an "out of the box" solution for a common situation. We take
the job of protecting you and the trust you place in us is our highest priority.
If You Finance or Lease Your Car - Read This
Many people choose to either finance or lease an automobile. Cars are expensive and this is a simple reality today. As cars
have become more expensive, many people have chosen to increase the length of time they are making payments to 60 months or
more. Since the car is depreciating faster than the loan/lease is being satisfied, if there was a total loss you could end
up with no car and still having to write a big check to the finance company or leasing company. There is coverage for this -
Guaranteed Auto Protection or GAP coverage. This coverage has become popular on many leases, but if your finance company or
leasing company doesn't offer it there is an endorsement to add to your policy (Auto Loan/Lease Coverage (PP0335) to address
this all too common financial loss. Generally it only applies to new cars and has to be added within 30 days of leasing or
financing.
If you don't have GAP coverage in your lease or financing with your lender this coverage can protect you from a situation
where you end up with no car and having to pay for something you don't have any longer.
As a matter of practice, we recommend that you confirm in writing with your lease or finance company that you have this coverage.
Again, he who documents best - wins.
Miscellaneous Vehicles Added to Your Arizona Personal Auto Insurance Policy
For many people getting around town is not just limited to what the insurance industry has historically termed "autos". It includes
motor homes, motorcycles, ATV's, dune buggies and golf carts. All of these can be added to your personal auto insurance policy by
endorsement and as long as the insurance company's underwriter agrees.
For many of these types of vehicles there are specialty policies which may better address your exposure and coverage concerns but
we suggest that the best way to determine how to best proceed is to call our office to discuss your options.
We're Just a Phone Call or Click Away
Your time is your most valuable resource. When you need us, we will respond. In a few quick
minutes we can give you a free
AZ Auto Insurance Quote,
AZ Motorcycle Insurance Quote or
AZ RV & Motorhome Insurance Quote.
Call us at (480) 963-5622 or
contact us for answers to your Chandler Arizona Auto Insurance
questions and a fast and easy auto insurance quote for your car, truck, motorcycle or RV.
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