Whether buying aircraft insurance or auto insurance, many people don’t fully understand what they are buying. However, being under or over-insured on a plane can be much more costly than a car, especially if you have invested significant amounts of money and time in your aircraft. The worst time to find out that you don’t have enough insurance is when filing a claim. But you also don’t want to pay for coverage you don’t need.
So is your aircraft insured correctly? Do you have enough coverage to restore your aircraft to its current condition or replace it with a plane of the same value if you have an accident or some other incident damages your aircraft? Take these steps to determine if you are properly insured.
Is Your Aircraft Insured Correctly? Take These Steps To Ensure It Is
Aircraft insurance might seem complex, but ensuring you have the right coverage is straightforward if you take the proper steps. It only requires doing some homework, keeping accurate records, and staying in touch with your insurer.
Know the Type of Policy You Have and How It Works
All aircraft owners need to carry liability insurance. But you must also determine how much coverage you need for the aircraft itself.
Aircraft coverage is written as agreed value. This means that when you request an aircraft insurance quote with a certain value for your aircraft, if an insurance company offers a quote, they are agreeing with you that the aircraft is worth that amount. There is no depreciation or market value like in auto insurance.
It’s important to take some time and really evaluate how much you think it would cost to replace your aircraft and any installed equipment or upgrades when you request an aircraft insurance quote. In the event of an accident or incident, you will want to make sure that you are able to replace your aircraft (make you whole again) as close to what you had before the accident as possible.
The big mistake many aircraft owners make with agreed value policies is they don’t update the policy value each year for the current market value or keep the necessary records for proving the aircraft’s value.
Report Aircraft Upgrades and Improvements to Your Insurance Agent
If you think a stated value policy is the better choice for insuring your aircraft, you will likely need documentation to prove the value of your aircraft for an insurer to write the policy. So it is essential to keep documentation of any upgrades you make.
While standard maintenance is required to keep aircraft safe and flight-ready, you don’t need to report maintenance records to your insurer. However, if you upgrade your equipment or replace components, remodel your plane or make any other upgrades that increase its value, you should keep documentation of these updates and report them to your insurance broker.
Know that your insurance premiums may increase slightly because of these upgrades, but if you don’t report them and adjust the insured value of your aircraft, you likely will lose much more on your investment if you need to file a claim than what you’ll pay in slightly higher premiums.
Make Sure Aircraft Logs Are Complete and Backed Up
The insurance industry requires a lot of documentation for filed claims, especially for aircraft owners. It is vital to keep your aircraft logs current in case you need to file a claim. You could be denied or not receive full value if your logs are incomplete or inaccurate.
Make sure all current certifications, maintenance endorsements, and inspections are included and up to date. Also, make sure you have more than one copy of your logs. Keep one in your aircraft, but also have backup copies that you keep elsewhere in case the original is destroyed or damaged.
Consult Your Aircraft Insurance Agent to Ensure Correct Coverage
An aircraft insured correctly means you don’t have too little or too much coverage for any repairs or a replacement that may result from an accident or other damage-causing incident. It is best to consult your aircraft insurance agent to help you determine your coverage needs and what documentation you should report to ensure your policy will pay out at full value if you need it.
If you have questions or concerns regarding your aircraft insurance coverage, call BWI Aviation Insurance today at 800-666-4359 to speak with one of our aviation insurance professionals. We can walk you through your policy to help you determine if you are correctly insured.
Why choose BWI Aviation Insurance?
Over our 42 year history, BWI has built longstanding relationships with all of the above Aviation Insurance Companies. We work hand in hand with the above companies and leverage our experience to find the best market for your particular airplane insurance risk.
To ensure that you are getting the absolute lowest rate and best coverage with a rock solid A+ rated Aviation Insurance company, get a quote with BWI today. We specialize only in Airplane Insurance and our office is open 12 hours a day. Our agents are friendly and knowledgeable, and most importantly they are agents that you can trust to get you the best coverage for your needs. Aviation Insurance is all that we do and have done for 42 years.
Call 800.666.4359 today for a free Airplane Insurance Quote or Click Here to submit a quote request online.
BWI is the Nation’s Leader in Aviation Insurance, with offices based in Corona, CA and Anchorage, AK.
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