Motorhome and caravan insurance - is it worth it?

A camper or trailer is a serious expense. Therefore, it is worth taking care of them, starting with insurance . And it turns out that there are virtually no policies dedicated to caravanners on the Polish market. In fact, most popular comparison websites do not even include this type of cars in their calculators.

Many insurance agents or brokers, when asked about the offer of insurance for motorhomes , throw up their hands helplessly, admitting that, unfortunately, they are not specialists in this industry. They offer standard products that do not fit perfectly.

Why insure?

One thing is the lack of a specific offer on the insurance market. What is completely different is the lack of awareness and general knowledge about insurance. Many of us believe that paying premiums regularly is a waste of money because it does not reduce the likelihood of an accident or theft. Moreover, the opinion that "nothing ever happens to me" is equally common, and if it does, it is not worth overpaying for insurance against something that happens, for example, once every fifteen years. Assuming that I am a good driver (and who thinks otherwise?) and I have never caused a road accident, there is a good chance that I will not cause one again, because the skills will remain. Therefore, third party liability insurance is enough and preferably as cheap as possible.

Well, not entirely, and we find this out most often when "something" happens, e.g. someone hits us abroad, and suddenly we have to take the car off the highway and spend the night somewhere, and hopefully it won't be the nearest hospital. Then it turns out that insurance is essential and allows you to save several thousand euros. We are responsible for ourselves, not for others. It is impossible to predict when a branch will fall, a storm will break out and damage the car, or a vandal will break off a side mirror. The old saying goes that "accidents happen to people" and all we can do, apart from being careful, is to insure our goods. It is often impossible to avoid unpleasant situations, but their financial consequences can be counteracted.

What do you know about insurance?

Every driver knows that third party liability insurance is needed. Its scope is regulated by law and everyone who wants to drive on Polish roads must have it because it is mandatory. A car without third party liability insurance cannot drive or even park in a parking lot . Theoretically, if we do not have valid insurance for even 24 hours, we can expect a financial penalty of up to PLN 7,800, depending on how our vehicle is registered. But don't worry, the third party liability insurance policy renews automatically - if we don't terminate it, the insurance company will extend it for us for another year. The exception is the policy that we purchase when purchasing a used camper van and short-term third-party liability insurance . If you deregister a vehicle that is still in our garage or temporarily deregister it, you only pay part of the amount (5%), but you still have to pay the amount due.

Third party liability insurance provides compensation for damage caused by the vehicle driver to third parties. These are damages related not only to damage to another vehicle, but also to the health of the injured and damage to other property. Important note here. Third party liability insurance does not cover the losses of the person who caused the accident. In such a case, you should purchase AC (Autocasco).

Third party liability insurance is purchased for the vehicle, not for the person. If, for example, we borrowed an insured camper from our mother, the policy is definitely valid. When we sell a car, the policy changes hands along with the vehicle. A caravan and a car are two different third party liability insurance.

Compensation from third party liability insurance may be granted to the owner of the vehicle that was damaged, all persons injured in the accident (passengers, pedestrians, etc.) and all persons who suffered losses in the collision (e.g. the owner of a café garden). The guaranteed amounts in third party liability insurance, i.e. the maximum amounts of compensation that can be paid under the third party liability insurance policy, are the equivalent of EUR 5.21 million in the case of personal injury and EUR 1.05 million in the case of property damage .

There are also situations in which third party liability insurance will not work . This includes: a situation when, causing the damage, we were under the influence of alcohol , drugs or intoxicants (according to Polish law - in the case of alcohol, the limit is 0.2 per mille!!!). In addition, we can say goodbye to third-party liability insurance in the event of escaping from the scene of an accident, lacking the right to drive a given motor vehicle, intentionally causing damage or causing a collision outside the European Union, without the so-called Green Card. The fact of having third party liability insurance does not exempt us from liability for the damage caused. If we do not have insurance or it did not work, e.g. because our car did not have valid technical inspections, then we are responsible for paying compensation. If we do not have third party liability insurance, the Insurance Guarantee Fund will do it for us, but will demand a refund of the compensation paid and will additionally impose a penalty on us for the lack of third party liability insurance . The injured party may also demand compensation directly from us if our insurer delays payment. Sometimes you need to consider whether the cheapest third party liability insurance is always as good as the slightly more expensive one from a good insurer.

A green card is a document confirming that you have valid third party liability insurance outside the country. We do not have to have it in the European Union or European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries. It is required in 14 countries. These are: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Macedonia, Turkey, Iran, Israel, Tunisia, Morocco. If there is no document on site, we will have to purchase additional border insurance.

Auto insurance for a camper

Autocasco insurance, i.e. the popular AC insurance, is voluntary insurance of motor vehicles (e.g. campers, scooters) against accidental events. Thanks to having AC , we can receive compensation if we cause an accident , our camper disappears in unexplained circumstances or a branch falls on it. The scope of insurance and prices of comprehensive insurance vary (sometimes even in the same insurance company), so before choosing it, please read the General Terms and Conditions of Insurance. Particular attention should be paid to the issue of exclusions of liability of the insurance company and the obligations of the policyholder. AC is often sold in a package with compulsory third party liability insurance and other motor insurance such as personal accident insurance or assistance.

Assistance for campers

Assistance insurance is intended to provide the insured person with technical, medical, informational and legal assistance in an emergency situation, e.g. when you go on holiday in a camper and suddenly the engine stops in a remote area and further travel is impossible. Then all you need to do is call the insurer and they will organize appropriate help. The hotline is usually open 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, including holidays. It is often added to third party liability insurance or AC, but its scope may then be very narrow and limited, for example, only to collisions. Assistance, even purchased separately, also has its scope. Let's pay attention to whether a specific insurance offer covers assistance only in Poland or also abroad, and what are the limits regarding, for example, the length of towing. When we go abroad, it is worth considering an option that provides assistance, e.g. with a translator or lawyer, as well as, for example, a hotel for us and our family while the camper is being repaired. It is worth noting that assistance for motorhomes is rare, as insurers often exclude special vehicles from their offers. It is therefore necessary to purchase a dedicated package.

NNW

Personal accident insurance (NNW) is insurance related to a person/persons, not a vehicle. Applies to the vehicle driver and its passengers. Depending on the amount of the purchased package, the insurance money will cover, among others: medical assistance, hospital stay and care, rehabilitation, financial assistance in the event of temporary or permanent inability to work, vocational training for disabled people, benefits in the event of death as a result of an accident including the cost of transporting the body and organizing the funeral. It is worth remembering that personal accident insurance, which is part of the AC and third party liability insurance package, usually has a very limited scope and a low guarantee sum.

Accident insurance covers not only accidents while driving, but also damage caused when getting in and out of the car, loading or unloading, parking, parking or repairing the vehicle on the roadside. The insurance does not exclude the use of other policies, so it is independent of receiving compensation from other sources, e.g. additional policies or ZUS.

GAP insurance for motorhomes

GAP insurance means payment of additional funds (beyond AC insurance) in the event of total destruction or loss of the camper. This insurance has many variants. It can be a product that protects our liability to the bank if we finance a camper (the difference between the amount due and what was paid from the AC is then paid). It can also provide us with payment of the difference between the current market value of our vehicle at the time of damage and the amount we paid at the time of its purchase (so-called Invoice GAP). Here is an example: Mr. Mariusz took out a loan for PLN 200,000 (the entire value of the vehicle) to purchase his dream camper. After four years, the car was stolen. Only PLN 75,000 was paid from the AC policy, which was the market value of the camper on the day the damage occurred. The difference of PLN 125,000 between the market value of the car and the compensation amount was covered by GAP. In this way, there was compensation from the policy, intended to repay the remaining loan installments, and an additional surplus allowing for the down payment for another vehicle.

Extended warranty for the camper

An extended warranty will be useful if the customer would like to extend the manufacturer's warranty for the vehicle, offered at the time of sale. They can then purchase an extended warranty for a new or used vehicle. Depending on the age of the vehicle, the warranty applies to specified parts or components. In this case, the car is protected for a longer period than specified in the standard warranty contract. Here you should also check the scope of the contract. However, the extended warranty always covers only the base car, not the camper body.

Legal protection insurance

Legal protection insurance - in the case of campers, it provides reimbursement (usually not small) of costs incurred for the services of a lawyer, legal advisor and other legal assistance in a situation where they concern events related to a camper or trailer, e.g. wrongful withholding of a driving license or registration certificate, defense in unintentional criminal and misdemeanor cases for the driver and passengers, or a dispute with the insurance company of the perpetrator of the collision or with a dishonest workshop. If we have legal expenses insurance, we usually also receive access to legal advice by telephone. It is particularly important abroad because waiting for consulate assistance may be significantly longer.

Travel insurance

Travel insurance - when traveling abroad, we should remember to always have the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) with us, which confirms the right to use necessary health services at the expense of the National Health Fund during a temporary stay in another EU/EFTA member state. However, we will encounter problems here, because firstly, it covers only EU and EFTA countries, and secondly, the concept of "necessary" for the National Health Fund may mean something different than for us and the doctor. It may turn out that, according to the fund, the appendix surgery was not necessary, because after taking the medicines you could reach the nearest Polish hospital... The EHIC card will not cover the costs of the rescue helicopter that took us off the slope after a complicated fracture.

This is where additional travel insurance becomes necessary, which usually includes medical cost insurance (KL) and assistance (organization of medical assistance and transport of the insured person). Therefore, in such a situation, the appendix will be operated on at the insurer's expense. They will also fold our hand, stitch the wound, and even leave us for observation in the hospital. We can also easily make an outpatient visit. The policy often includes luggage insurance, as well as insurance for cancellation of participation or shortening of an organized trip due to the organizer's or your own fault. Of course, here too the scope and amount depend on the size of the package. It is best to choose it each time to suit your needs.

With this article we start our mini-insurance academy for caravanning enthusiasts. In subsequent publications, we will take a closer look at each of the above-mentioned insurance policies and consider what you should pay special attention to when choosing an offer for yourself.

The article was created in cooperation with specialists dealing with insurance for caravanners from the website ubezpieczkampera.pl - what distinguishes them on the insurance market is that all of them have been driving motorhomes for many years and are professionally involved in insurance.