[Richard230]

I was surprised and delighted that the yearly insurance premium for my 2011 Bullet has dropped from $56 last year to only $22 this year.  Apparently Progressive insurance believes that the Bullet and I are at a low risk for causing up to $500K in damages to whomever I smash into. I guess they don't know how sturdy the lump can be when it runs into modern plastic car fenders and big American butts.   

[hpwaco]

Just changed from Dairyland to AARP Foremost on my 14GT.   Saved $26 and got free road service.   However it still cost $79 including mandatory Texas passenger liability.    Geico quite was considerably more.

[Ove]

Just over £100 in the UK. I thought you were the land of lawsuits and high insurance premiums! 

[Bilgemaster]

I was surprised and delighted that the yearly insurance premium for my 2011 Bullet has dropped from $56 last year to only $22 this year.  Apparently Progressive insurance believes that the Bullet and I are at a low risk for causing up to $500K in damages to whomever I smash into. I guess they don't know how sturdy the lump can be when it runs into modern plastic car fenders and big American butts.   

Well, that's the kind of news you like to hear.

[axman88]

What is going on vis a vis insurance companies and motorcycling?  All the big events and even some of the relatively small local swap meets I've gone to in the last couple of years have major presence by multiple insurance companies.   Big booths staffed by attractive people, free tote bags, the usual trade show stuff.

The huge MotoBlot event I attended last summer had Progressive insurance as a major sponsor.  I haven't stopped at any of the booths to talk to the pretty girls, so I don't know what story they would have told.

Have they figured out that we as a group are an easy mark, or what is going on?  It doesn't seem like selling life insurance or even liability to a population at relatively high risk is a brilliant business model to me.   This seems like a relatively new thing.  Have you guys noticed this too?

[diogo_sergio]

As a 22 year old i was paying about 400 euros a year for my 2013 b5. After passing the bike to my father's name, and listing me as an ocasional rider i'm still paying about 150 euros a year, despite it beeing listed as his 2nd bike.

[Richard230]

What is going on vis a vis insurance companies and motorcycling?  All the big events and even some of the relatively small local swap meets I've gone to in the last couple of years have major presence by multiple insurance companies.   Big booths staffed by attractive people, free tote bags, the usual trade show stuff.

The huge MotoBlot event I attended last summer had Progressive insurance as a major sponsor.  I haven't stopped at any of the booths to talk to the pretty girls, so I don't know what story they would have told.

Have they figured out that we as a group are an easy mark, or what is going on?  It doesn't seem like selling life insurance or even liability to a population at relatively high risk is a brilliant business model to me.   This seems like a relatively new thing.  Have you guys noticed this too?

Well, they must be making money off of someone, just not me.     My guess is that auto insurance is the big cash cow for Progressive.  However, I am not quite sure what they get out of motorcycle owners.   

BTW, my Zero electric motorcycle insurance, which is on the same policy, increased from $72 to $79 this year.  But keep in mind that I am self-insured for everything, including uninsured driver insurance, other than third-party liability insurance that will protect my assets should I cause an accident.

[darmahman]

Does this include comprehensive and collision??? If so, what is your deductible?

I was surprised and delighted that the yearly insurance premium for my 2011 Bullet has dropped from $56 last year to only $22 this year.  Apparently Progressive insurance believes that the Bullet and I are at a low risk for causing up to $500K in damages to whomever I smash into. I guess they don't know how sturdy the lump can be when it runs into modern plastic car fenders and big American butts.   

[Richard230]

Does this include comprehensive and collision??? If so, what is your deductible?

I do not have comprehensive or collision insurance.  As I said, I am self-insured for those issues.

[darmahman]

Thanks

[swamp2]

I've had Progressive for years.  They'll let you have 4 bikes on one policy, so I have my '12 C5, '72 BMW R75/5, '02 Victory V92C and '90 BMW K100LT on right now.  No collision on any of them, comp on the C5 and V92C only as the other bikes are too old.  For all 4 - $75 a year total.  Hard to beat that.

[darmahman]

I have had Progressive for 20-25 years. Just dropped all collision but kept comp and and saved 300 bucks on my 6 bikes. Thanks for the idea.

[Bilgemaster]

Just over £100 in the UK. I thought you were the land of lawsuits and high insurance premiums!

I believe this might be a case of Apples and Oranges. Admittedly, the last time I insured a bike in Britain (specifically Scotland) was about 1980, so things may well have changed. At that time the minimum requirements for a motor insurance policy were "Third Party, Fire and Theft", where "Third Party" would be roughly the equivalent of what we call "Liability" on this side of the Pond. Over here the requirements vary state by state. Some, like New Hampshire, do not even require vehicle insurance as such, but most only require some form of Liability (Third Party) Insurance, the minimum coverage of which varies by state. I personally know of no state that requires those "Fire and Theft" kickers, and seeing as how by all accounts motorcycle theft appears to have devolved into a popular form of yobbish folk sport since I last resided on your Sceptered Isle, I cannot say I'm surprised you're forking out about five times what I have to pony up.

But all this talk of insurance or "assurance," if you will, is growing dull. Time for a rousing interlude!

[Richard230]

If you have a loan on your bike the loan company will require you to take out comprehensive and collision insurance and will leave liability and uninsured motorist insurance up to you and your state's requirements.  That collision insurance is what will really sock it to you.  Since I have been riding for 58 years, I bet I have saved tens of thousands of dollars by not insuring my motorcycles for that coverage because I always save up the price of the motorcycle before I buy it and pay cash. Therefore I can save enough on insurance premiums to put the extra money back into my motorcycle buying savings account.   

I might add that I once inquired about full insurance coverage for just my 2002 Yamaha FZ1 at a motorcycle show and was told the the yearly premium would be $3,000! (The bike cost $8,500 when new.) That really convinced me that being self-insured was a great idea.

[Ove]

Yep, not like for like comparison, my price was for full all risks cover, including replacement bike. Covers the whole of the EU for European trips, I think up to 30 days each time. So, I suppose not so bad.

Bike thefts, I've never met anyone who's experienced it. But I expect it would be a worry in big cities. Premiums are higher there. I am required by my policy, when it's at home, to store the bike overnight in a locked garage with the steering lock engaged. I didnt declare the house and outbuildings security system, just in case I forget / it fails.   

Honestly, over here, since the power of the internet kicked in, buying insurance each year is 50 questions and you almost come away feeling guilty and grateful they've taken your money!

[Arizoni]

For people in the US who have "uninsured motorist insurance" you might consider dropping it if you never have any passengers on board.

That uninsured motorist insurance only covers medical expenses for passengers if the other vehicle doesn't also cover their medical costs.  In other words, it does absolutely nothing for you the driver or for your motorcycle.

A few States require you to have it but if your State doesn't, drop it.  It is a total waste of money.

[suitcasejefferson]

When I bought my 2013 B5, I financed it because RE had a 0% interest rate financing plan going on. But of course it required full coverage. Dairyland/Sentry, who I have been with for at least 35 years, wanted almost $700 a year to insure it. I immediately paid it off and got liability only for less than $50 a year. It is now under $35 a year, partly because I have 7 bikes insured, and am 61 years old, with perfect credit and a perfect record. Insurance is a crazy ripoff if you go beyond basic liability. No Royal Enfield is worth paying $700 a year to insure. Just take care of it, and never leave it in a place where it could be stolen, like a parking lot.

[Ove]

Or park it next to a more valuable bike. Not difficult to find

[Richard230]

Or park it next to a more valuable bike. Not difficult to find

Or a faster bike.  Also not difficult to find.   

[Ove]

Or one that will start 1st time.... 

[Karl Fenn]

God insurance in the US is cheap, but don't forget in the UK we have to pay all the staff perks and other additional costs like bumper profits it only costs me £100 for my 650 but l have got a proven 45 years no claims on paper, in some cases UK insurance is a scam take those with protected no claims people like me have to foot the bill for it despite the fact they have had a string of accidents, the one thing you could argue is the range of perks and big retirement pensions is not payed by them but the likes of you and me.

[suitcasejefferson]

I've heard it's even worse in Canada.

[JohnnieK]

Or a faster bike.  Also not difficult to find.   

I will we tough to find a better looking one to park next to though.

[JohnnieK]

On topic: Here in South Africa you get what's called third party, fire and theft only insurance. They don't pay out for repairs on your vehicle in case of an accident, but they pay the costs for medical and the other party. It is quite cheap. I pay R59 per month (US$4) for my 2011 C5. I have it just in case a Porsche outbrakes me.

[Richard230]

On topic: Here in South Africa you get what's called third party, fire and theft only insurance. They don't pay out for repairs on your vehicle in case of an accident, but they pay the costs for medical and the other party. It is quite cheap. I pay R59 per month (US$4) for my 2011 C5. I have it just in case a Porsche outbrakes me.

That is the type of insurance that I have on my Bullet in the amount of $250K per party, up to $500K total per accident. But what I pay is even less than you do. I am paying $36 per year ($3 a month) for that coverage. I guess my insurance company figures that my RE can't go fast enough to cause much injury to a third party. 

[ThirdChild]

You can't simply draw a line and erase the importance of ensuring your motorcycle. I get that some insurances can be worse than others, but this is something you should really research and pay attention to in order to avoid getting a disadvantageous one. I love reading reports about the Insurance industry as my brother is a broker, and I love playing the smart one in our conversations. The more informed you are on a topic, the better undoubtedly!

[fressko]

It is absolute daylight robbery in Europe.
-over 40 yo
-no previous claims whatsoever, bikes or cars.
-had medium and high capacity motorcycles since basically forever
-already have another 1000cc plus bike, have had it for years.

Cheapest third party insurance I could find was 135 euro...
A couple of years ago I was paying 300 plus for a beastly GSXR (albeit 20 yo). I find 135 euro for a bullet to be absolute robbery. But then again, being a mandatory insurance in a "socialist paradise", it will be abused.

[Richard230]

The cheapest third-party liability insurance (I self-insure for all other risks) premium that I have ever paid was to Progressive Insurance in 2010. It was for a $250K/$500K policy for my (1cc) 2009 Electric Motorsport GPR-S electric motorcycle. The premium for an entire year was only $5! What a deal.    Over the years the premium for my electric motorcycles has slowly climbed until it is now more than the premium that I pay for my 2016 BMW R1200RS at something like $110 a year.   

[cupoftee]

Ive just been quoted by a company called go skippy and they quoted £560 for the Himalayan 

[wr6133]

Ive just been quoted by a company called go skippy and they quoted £560 for the Himalayan 

That's bonkers my GSXR1000 costs me under £90 a year and all 3 Enfields total under 190.

High vehicle crime area?