Bike Insurance Coverage?

Sorry not gear related, but it seemed like a techy topic and I didn't see a better sub-forum to post in.

My home insurance used to cover our bikes up to $250K along with the contents of the house with no limitations. That was great because I own bikes, sports/camping gear and some nice computers....thieves can have the rest of my junk. Anyways last year they put a limit on bike coverage to $5K per bike. Not ideal as I own a number of bikes that would have replacement value over $5K, but I figured if thieves cleared my garage out of 5 sweet bikes and I got $25K I'd replace 4 of them and that would be fine. This year they dropped bike coverage to $1.5K per bike which is a joke.

So I need new insurance.

If you have at least $5K coverage per bike on your home insurance can you post up who you use as your broker and insurance company? Feel free to PM me if you want that to stay private.

Thanks!

BTW - I need coverage for ~10 bikes between my GF and I. So policies where you have to pay extra to cover each bike don't work due to cost.

TD Meloche Monnex - $7k/bike

+1 for TD Meloche Monnex.  No limit on bike (subject to limit of entire policy obviously though).  Also, coverage is for replacement value of NEW equivalent bike, not depreciated value.

I switched from BCAA to TD last year because one of my bikes is over $6k replacement value. There are several options, you can schedule individual bikes on cheaper plans, or you can have some luxury goods rider that covers up to $50k by class of item (including sports goods) as an example. Give them a call.

Posted by: Taz123

TD Meloche Monnex - $7k/bike

Did you get that $7k limit specified as my policy limit is $6k per item (not bike specific)? 

I did ask TDMM to increase the coverage to $7.5k per item but the price increase was stupidly expensive...

Posted by: Bushpilot

+1 for TD Meloche Monnex.  No limit on bike (subject to limit of entire policy obviously though).  Also, coverage is for replacement value of NEW equivalent bike, not depreciated value.

You sure about that? As I understand it, there is a defined limit for total contents and a "all risks" limit of $6k for any one item. Agreed about the 'new for old' part though!

(I have condo insurance so contents only as my strata is responsible for the actual building)

Posted by: Vikb

....This year they dropped bike coverage to $1.5K per bike which is a joke.

Did you call them up and ask for a specific rider from the underwriters? May be worth a phone call....

I'm with TD too and echo the 6k limit as that's what I recall from my policy. Never had to claim.

Posted by: SixZeroSixOne

Posted by: Taz123

TD Meloche Monnex - $7k/bike

Did you get that $7k limit specified as my policy limit is $6k per item (not bike specific)? 

I did ask TDMM to increase the coverage to $7.5k per item but the price increase was stupidly expensive...

When I set it up, they quoted the $7k number (this was around 7 years ago), but I don't recall seeing any reduction in coverage over the years - I do check at renewal times. My policy was rolled over from our previous house in Alberta, so we may have had a different deal from Alberta rolled over.

Posted by: SixZeroSixOne

Posted by: Bushpilot

+1 for TD Meloche Monnex. No limit on bike (subject to limit of entire policy obviously though). Also, coverage is for replacement value of NEW equivalent bike, not depreciated value.

You sure about that? As I understand it, there is a defined limit for total contents and a "all risks" limit of $6k for any one item. Agreed about the 'new for old' part though!

(I have condo insurance so contents only as my strata is responsible for the actual building)

Every time I renew (annually) I confirm that my coverage has not changed and that the only limit is the limit of my entire policy. I was advised that I would have to pay a $1,000 deductible if I made a claim though. I'm sure coverage is not standard across the board. I have whatever their platinum plus (or whatever they call it) policy is. I confirmed all of this again when I renewed in April 2020.

But...now I'm going to call them tomorrow to ask for a copy of my policy. I specifically have them confirm the above every time I renew. It is possible that the salesperson misrepresented the coverage.  This is also my 8th year with this coverage and so it is also possible that I have some kind of grandfathered policy I guess.

I'm with TD too, but I can't recall what my coverage is for bikes.  TD has a lot of Alumni / Professional Association / Group coverage packages, and bumping the coverage limit on things like bikes is often the sort of "bonus" that they throw in to those.  So, if you're on a deal like that, it's worth asking them to clarify exactly what your limits are.

I chatted with TD. They offered $6K/bike and due to the fact I had a number of bikes wanted each bike recorded and appraised. The policy is what I would call a premium policy and costs ~2.25 times as much as the home insurance I currently have. You do get more coverage for that price, but it's a lot more than I am currently paying.

BCAA is offering $5K/bike without having to list any bikes at ~1.75 times what my current insurance costs. Bikes don't have to be recorded or apprised. I would just have to provide some proof of their existence and an appraisal at time of claim. I get a free BCAA membership as well.

I talked to my current insurance broker and explained the problem. She mentioned having one other customer call due to the changes in the policy who really was "into" bikes. She says she was able to put together something price competitive that covered his bikes well. After reviewing my account she thought I would be eligible for the same deal. I should know today. Back when I first got insured through this broker I cut my home insurance costs by 50% and improved my bike coverage. So I'm hoping to not have to go back to "expensive" insurance to get bike coverage I can live with. If she comes back with something better than TD or BCAA I'll update this thread.

I am currently debating between keeping the cheap policy and self-insuring my bikes vs. paying a lot more to get protected. In 33 years of riding I've had one MTB stolen and I think it was a cokehead roommate who was responsible! So on one hand the risk is low. On the other hand if my garage was cleared out I would be out ~$30K in bikes and my GF probably ~$15K. I can afford to buy a couple new bikes so I wouldn't be hiking the trails, but that would sting. I drive a F150 and took off everything, but liability a while a go to save $$. So my brain says we are talking the same sort of $$ if it was stolen or I crashed it. Thing is I don't feel attached to a vehicle the way I do my bikes.

At the TD insurance price vs. taking the cheap insurance and investing the price difference I'd save enough to replace the coverage differential on a $7K bike every ~5 years. So it's not chump change.

Once I get things locked down I'll circle back with an update. My insurance expires on the 18th of June so I don't have a lot of time to figure this out [just got my policy details in the mail last Friday!]. So I may pick a temporary option for this year and then I have time to find something better for the longer term.

Thanks for the tip on TD. The coverage is definitely the best so far.

A friend of mine had his commuter  ebike stolen in front of Lynn valley mall  in broad daylight a month after he bought it. Luckily the credit card company he bought it on replaced it. Fuckers cut the lock with a disc grinder and nobody did shit.

Posted by: Bushpilot

Posted by: SixZeroSixOne

Posted by: Bushpilot

+1 for TD Meloche Monnex. No limit on bike (subject to limit of entire policy obviously though). Also, coverage is for replacement value of NEW equivalent bike, not depreciated value.

You sure about that? As I understand it, there is a defined limit for total contents and a "all risks" limit of $6k for any one item. Agreed about the 'new for old' part though!

(I have condo insurance so contents only as my strata is responsible for the actual building)

Every time I renew (annually) I confirm that my coverage has not changed and that the only limit is the limit of my entire policy. I was advised that I would have to pay a $1,000 deductible if I made a claim though. I'm sure coverage is not standard across the board. I have whatever their platinum plus (or whatever they call it) policy is. I confirmed all of this again when I renewed in April 2020.

But...now I'm going to call them tomorrow to ask for a copy of my policy. I specifically have them confirm the above every time I renew. It is possible that the salesperson misrepresented the coverage. This is also my 8th year with this coverage and so it is also possible that I have some kind of grandfathered policy I guess.

I spoke with TD / Meloche Monnex this morning. The agent confirmed there is a $6,000 limit unless the bike is appraised at a higher value by a "certified bicycle appraiser". Then, once an appraisal is provided, it would be covered under my global contents limit but that my global contents limit would likely increase by the amount my bike exceeds $6,000.

I'm quite disappointed because they have represented to me over the phone annually (for 7 or 8 years) that my limit for a stolen bike is my entire contents limit and that no exclusion applied (subject to my $1,000 deductible). I have requested the transcripts of my conversations with them, which he told me they keep. I'm not very happy about it.

More importantly though, does anyone know where to find a "certified" bicycle appraiser? The agent told me the appraiser needs a stamp bearing his or her certification, like an official seal. I used to work in a bike shop and never heard of such a thing. I called a few bike shops and an auction house this morning and they all told me they had never heard of such a thing. I used to prepare bike appraisals for people for insurance purposes and all the shops I spoke with do too. But this "certified" and/or official stamp requirement is surprising to me and to the shops I spoke with.