Whether you travel the country full-time or only on vacation, you need to protect your RV and yourself. You have a number of options for RV or camper insurance, and what you need varies both on how you use it and what kind you have.
When is RV and Camper Insurance Required?
There are three common situations where you may be required to carry RV and camper insurance.
- When you’re driving on public roads, the law generally requires you to carry minimum liability coverage the same as if you were driving a car.
- When you use a loan to buy your RV or camper, the lender will usually require you to carry collision and comprehensive coverage so that the lender is guaranteed to be repaid if your RV is destroyed in an accident or other disaster.
- Some campgrounds may require proof of insurance for you to park there.
Keep in mind that insurance requirements are usually to protect others rather than yourself. It often makes sense to carry additional coverages or higher limits than the minimums.
What Kind of Insurance is There for RVs and Campers?
RV and camper insurance is its own kind of insurance. These policies provide a mix of coverages that work similarly to both auto insurance and homeowners’ insurance to protect your RV and its contents as well as to cover your potential liability. If you have a camper trailer, you might use a trailer policy instead of the insurance on the truck you use to tow it extends liability protection.
Standard Auto Coverages
The first set of insurance coverages for an RV or camper is the same coverages you’d expect to see in a car insurance policy.
- Collision coverage pays for damage resulting from an accident.
- Comprehensive coverage pays for damage resulting from things that aren’t accidents such as storms, fires, and thefts.
- Medical payments can help cover your medical bills and supplement or replace your health insurance if you or a passenger is injured in an accident.
- Uninsured and underinsured motorist gives you the coverage the other driver should have been carrying if they chose not to buy insurance or had a policy with inadequate limits.
Total Loss Replacement
RVs and campers come with high sticker prices and can start to depreciate as soon as you drive them home. If your RV gets totaled, the insurance company paying its current value may not be enough for you to buy an identical replacement. Total loss replacement helps you cover this difference. It can also help you if you took out a long-term loan or used a low down payment and you owe more than what your RV is worth.
Personal Property
You may have some coverage for your personal property built into your comprehensive and collision coverage, but it’s usually only a few thousand dollars. That’s often nowhere near enough for everything you have inside of your RV — clothes, electronics, cooking appliances, recreational gear, etc.
Personal property coverage covers damage and theft to these items within your RV, and you can opt for a limit that covers their full value. If you also opt for replacement cost, that value can be what it costs to go to the store and buy a new one instead of a depreciated used value.
Vacation Liability
When you park at a campsite, there’s a chance that you could injure someone or cause damage just like you could at home. Someone walking by might trip on your hose, your dog might bite someone, or you might throw a baseball through someone’s windshield. Vacation liability provides coverage for these types of incidents similarly to how the liability portion of your homeowners’ insurance protects you at home.
Emergency Expenses
If your RV breaks down or is damaged, emergency expenses coverage can pay for things like towing, lodging, and alternate transportation. While many car drivers skip this coverage, when you drive an RV, you’re often much farther away from home and relying on it almost completely. Emergency expenses can be much more than they would be in a car, so you want to strongly consider this coverage.
What About Camper Trailers?
If you have a trailer that you tow instead of an RV that you drive under its own power, you still probably need the above coverages. How you get them is slightly different.
- Liability may fall under the auto insurance you carry on your truck. You will need to review that policy for whether towing is covered and any limits. If you don’t have adequate coverage, you can ask your insurance agent how to add it.
- Damage to your trailer or personal items usually needs a separate policy. Your truck’s auto insurance may provide some coverage, but it often won’t be enough to cover your trailer’s value or everything in it.
- Special coverages, such as vacation liability and emergency expenses, are usually not available in a standard auto insurance policy.
How is RV and Camper Insurance Priced?
Prices for RV and camper insurance vary based on your driving record and the size and type of camper you have. Some insurance companies may consider how much driving you do in it. You may also be eligible for standard auto insurance discounts such as being a safe driver.
Talk to Your Insurance Agent
What type of insurance you need and how to get the best price varies widely based on what kind of RV you have and how you use it. There are also many different insurance companies ranging from major auto insurance providers to those who only work in certain camping niches. Guidotti Insurance in Eloy, AZ, can help you navigate everything so you can find what you need at the right price.
