The question of whether or not car insurance companies will cover performance parts relies very heavily on individual state regulations and the insurance policies of the drivers involved. It is a question that has no easy answer, as many car owners have discovered after having an accident in a modified vehicle. That said, this article will attempt to clarify some of the common components that go into factoring whether or not performance parts will be covered by your insurance company.
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First of all, performance parts are defined by the insurance industry as any after-market parts added to the vehicle in order to increase its performance in any way. Examples of performance parts include cold air intakes, sport wheels, and turbochargers. Even where after market parts are merely cosmetic, they are considered performance parts for the purposes of insurance coverage.
Do states require car insurance companies to cover performance parts?
State car insurance regulations regarding how insurance companies pay claims are usually based on one of two methods: replacement cost or cash value. In a replacement cost scenario, the insurance company is required to pay the claim based on what it would cost to return the car to the condition it was in before the accident. In the cash value scenario, the claim is paid out based upon the blue book value of that particular make and model. In either case, the insurance company has great latitude when considering the cost of performance parts.
There are a small handful of states that specifically mandate performance parts be replaced with the exact same part where possible. More often than not, the rest of the states simply say the damaged parts must be replaced with similar ones guaranteed by the repair shop to return the car to its previous level of performance. That may mean less costly and lower performance parts if a repair shop deems that any of your high performance parts did not significantly improve the car over its factory defaults.
What can I do to ensure my performance parts are covered?
Regardless of the laws in your state, you should always take a proactive approach and discuss performance parts with your insurance provider. Make sure that coverage for such parts is clearly spelled out in your policy in a manner that you can understand. The insurance company exists to make a profit and will most likely not cover performance parts if it is not required to do so. This isn’t a criticism of your insurance provider; it’s just a fact of life.
You should also always get and save receipts when modifying a vehicle with performance parts. Even in cases where your insurance policy spells out specific coverage for your modified car parts, you’ll experience resistance in paying higher claims if you cannot prove to the insurance company that you paid for and installed them. They will not necessarily take the word of the repair shop because there’s no way to verify where the parts came from, and whether or not they were added after an accident, without a sales receipt.
Can I get a special car insurance policy that covers performance parts?
Although it’s probably not possible to get a specific car insurance policy aimed at covering performance parts, you can find policies designed to cover high performance cars in their entirety. These policies are quite popular with car collectors and re-builders due to the fact that they invest so much money in their vehicles. Such specialty policies will generally cover the normal things like state liability minimums, as well as replacement value at current market prices. Even with specialized policies it’s still important to keep receipts.
When you purchase this kind of specialized insurance it’s also helpful to document your vehicle with photographs and videos. Insurance companies are more likely to be cooperative if they can see what it is they’re actually covering. Provide them with videos and pictures at the time the policy is written; you might even invite them to come out and take the pictures themselves. In the unfortunate circumstance where you must make a claim, include new pictures and videos showing the damage that’s been done. A combination of before and after images should clear up any disagreement over the claim payout.
High-performance parts can be a great addition to just about any vehicle. But since they generally are high investment items, it’s wise to make sure your insurance policy will cover them after an accident. Be diligent to address the issue with your insurance company sooner rather than later. You don’t want to find out after the fact that you performance parts are not going to be replaced.
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