Aircraft insurance rates are increasing! By now you’ve heard this phrase from more pilots than you’ve wanted to. Yes, it’s true, insurance rates are going through the roof and in some cases, renewal rates are increasing 50-75% in each year!
Not only are rates increasing; underwriters are adding pilot requirements, increasing deductibles and declining to offer quotes.
The current market trend shows that these price hikes will continue over the next 2-4 years.
In times like these, saving money on aircraft insurance and getting the lowest rates and best coverages is absolutely critical.
These are the 5 best ways to save money on aircraft insurance:
1. Get the easy discounts
Most aviation insurance companies offer discounts or lower rates if you qualify. These are some typical discounts offered: 1. IFR rating discount. 2. Aircraft hangared discount. 3. AOPA member discount. 4. Multi-aircraft discounts (more than 1 plane on a policy)
2. Build make and model hours
One of the most important underwriting factors used to determine rates is the number of PIC hours you have in the make and model aircraft you are insuring. It’s definitely ok to transition into an aircraft with 0-10 hours in make and model, although the first year premium will be very high. Once you’ve built 200-300 hours in that aircraft, you can expect to save hundreds or thousands of dollars on your insurance cost.
3. Only pay for the coverage you need
Unless you own a 737, your aircraft typically doesn’t fly everyday. You are typically allowed to change the coverage on your policy (twice) during a 1 year policy period. If your aircraft is in storage for several months during the winter, it’s a great idea to change the coverage and save some money.
There are 3 different coverage types:
- Full Flight Hull: Covers your aircraft on the ground and in flight (Most expensive)
- Ground Not In Motion: Covers your aircraft on the ground only (about 60% of the cost of full flight hull)
- Liability Only: No hull coverage for the aircraft itself, only liability coverage (about 15% of the cost of full flight)
4. Make sure your broker shops every year.
Each year about 90 days before your insurance renewal date, your broker should reach out to you to gather updated aircraft and pilot information. Getting this information back to your broker is step 1 and very important. Step 2 is when your broker steps in, reviews the information and works to obtain quotes from all the insurance markets.
Based on your updated information, the results of all the market rates, your broker can advise you if it’s best to stay with your current company (and why) or if there is an option to switch to another company and save money.
The shopping process is extremely important and something we take very seriously at BWI.
5. Switch to BWI.
Save money by switching to a broker who puts the extra time in, each and every year to conduct a full policy review and shop the entire market. At BWI, we have developed innovative technologies that enable our professional agents to shop more markets, faster and more accurately. Our team consists of knowledgable aviation insurance professionals who can expertly can guide you through the process of insuring your aircraft.
To get a quote, call our new business line at 800.296.8595 or submit a quote request online (in under 5 minutes) at www.bwifly.com
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