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Insurance oddity

osbornk

Old man in the mountains
I decided to get a scooter to replace my R80RT due to my short inseam and age. The BMW scooter is too tall so I bought a Burgman 400 (used). I transferred the tags and insurance today. Progressive told me that the liability insurance is going to be an additional $12 until renewal next August. They go from insuring a 800cc motorcycle to a 400cc scooter and increase the premium? The increases in the past have always been explained as being because of a larger engine and/or a higher risk type of bike. To me, this makes no sense.
 
Is the scooter worth more? Maybe their insuring a more expensive piece of property?

This is for liability only that only covers the damage you do to others. How a scooter with 1/2 the engine and less weight s a higher risk is beyond me.
 
I'd ask the agent to break down the components of both premiums so I could compare them.

There's nothing to break down. 100/300k bodily injury and 50k property damage along with uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
 
They are taking into account that, statistically, scooter operators and their scooter cause more damage claims that operators of an R80ST. Relatively speaking, the average Bergman operator is less likely to be a responsible operator, or that is what their pricing is saying......A 100cc increase between my '09 K1300S and my '00 K1200RS certainly doesn't account for a 400% increase in liability.....must be the different operators I become on each...
 
That sounds logical to me. Insurance rate is partly based on crash statistics. My guess is smaller cc scooters crash more. And, how many scooter riders do you see in safety classes ? The riders typically see them as toys.
 
Did I read this correctly? A $12 dollar per year increase?

No. It's $12 until renewal in August. It will be a little more annually. It was not the amount as much as the convoluted logic she used in trying to explain the increase. It was obvious she had no clue and was simply quoting the price the computer said. When someone tells me that the liability exposure is higher because the bike is newer is clearly confused.
 
That sounds logical to me. Insurance rate is partly based on crash statistics. My guess is smaller cc scooters crash more. And, how many scooter riders do you see in safety classes ? The riders typically see them as toys.

But mine is not a little scooter. It weighs well over 400 pounds, will cruise at interstate speeds all day and will run over 100 MPH. The Maxi-scooters are more motorcycle than scooter. My airhead will fit in the back of my truck with the tailgate closed and the Burgman is longer and will not.
 
No. It's $12 until renewal in August. It will be a little more annually. It was not the amount as much as the convoluted logic she used in trying to explain the increase. It was obvious she had no clue and was simply quoting the price the computer said. When someone tells me that the liability exposure is higher because the bike is newer is clearly confused.

Forget about the insurance. It's a change fee for altering your contract outside of the annual renewal cycle.

Now does it make sense?
 
It's possible (likely) that your bike insurance was going to go up by the same amount (or more) when your renewal comes around... and has nothing to do with the vehicle (s) you are insuring.

Our auto insurance went up last month, so I had a series of discussions with my agent and then the Farmers corporate reps trying to get to the bottom of it (we had no accidents, no new vehicles, etc- I would have thought our rates would have remained static). Their best explanation was that they raised their statewide rate earlier in the year ("...the cost of doing business has increased", they said), increasing the premium for all customers regardless of claims history, vehicles, etc. Needless to say I wasn't thrilled...
 
They are taking into account that, statistically, scooter operators and their scooter cause more damage claims that operators of an R80ST. Relatively speaking, the average Bergman operator is less likely to be a responsible operator, or that is what their pricing is saying......A 100cc increase between my '09 K1300S and my '00 K1200RS certainly doesn't account for a 400% increase in liability.....must be the different operators I become on each...
The above plus maybe they lump the big scoots with the little 49cc ones, which are often ridden by newbie first vehicle type riders on their way to HS/college/fast food job/girl/boy friends house/mall. Plus , it seems mine all goes up every time the seasons change? I got a letter from Farm Bureau the other day saying they were increasing my deductible from $300 to $500 & I never had $300 in my life on anything-they also included a list with my tornado roof claim,last 3 car "events"-none were my fault- and a speeding ticket for 70/55 x 2. I guess I've been bad?
 
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