Insurance
Checkup
Your
GTO Is Worth More Today Than Ever Before-
Make
Sure Your Insurance Coverage Reflects It
by
Tom Szymczyk
If you watched the Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction back in January, you know that GTO prices, and
musclecars in general, continue to rise. Some
examples include a 1964 four-speed convertible for $51,000, a 1965 Tn-Power, four-speed convertible with factory air and Hurst
wheels for $70,000, a 1966 convertible with Tn-Power,
four-speed, and factory air for $63,500, and a 1970 Ram Air III Judge hardtop
for $47,500. (Note: these are hammer prices — buyers actually paid
8% premium on top of this and sellers paid another 8% premium to the auction
house. Now you know why Craig Jackson is always smiling when you see him on
TV.)
While the dollars exchanged in
Scottsdale may be somewhat extravagant, it is
safe to say that your GTO is worth
considerably more today than it was 3 or 4 years ago. A $12,000 GTO from a
couple years ago is probably worth close to $18,000 today. and
a car that was $25,000 a while back goes for well over $30,000 now. Even Old
Cars Price Guide, which lags
the market by a couple months, will give you prices considerably higher than
those of 2001, though maybe not the stratospheric numbers you saw at
Barrett-Jackson.
Nevertheless, out here in the real
world, it’s time to check and see how much insurance coverage you have on your
favorite old goat. If you haven’t raised your agreed value amount lately, it’s
definitely time to do so. At six or seven dollars per thousand, raising your
coverage from $18,000 to $24,000 is only going to cost about $40 per year.
That’s a minimal amount compared to the value of your collectible Pontiac.
It makes sense to shoot for the
highest value you can get from your insurer. Some companies may require you to
submit new photos of the car if you are increasing the value substantially.
Having up-to-date photos is never a bad idea anyway. Getting your agent to
check out the Old Cars Price Guide is a good
idea. Old Cars Weekly regularly
prints auction results from around the country, as does Hemmings
Motor News.
I asked a representative from a
major classic insurer how much winning a Concours
Gold Award
from GTOAA or POCI or AACA might be worth. She replied
that national level awards go a long way toward
establishing that your car is really in #1 condition and worthy of the highest
value attributed to your year and model. Such awards establish the credibility
of your request for the absolute maximum coverage, so while they don’t increase
value, they certainly substantiate it.
Keep in mind that in the case of an
actual claim, you may be dealing with the “other guy’s” insurance carrier,
which probably won’t be a classic or antique car insurance company. In such
cases, current photos, price guides, auction results, and other documentation
are even more important.
To sum things up, here are four
things to keep in mind relative to insuring your GTO:
I) Insure your car for
the current market value, updating your coverage yearly. It is easier to
convince your carrier to add $2,000 or $3,000 a year rather than $10,000 all at
once. If you have the same value on your car as you did four years ago, you are
probably under-insured.
2) Photograph your car regularly. You need to
prove the condition of the car as close as possible to a claim, not what it
looked like 3 or 4 years ago or when you first got it.
3) Document expenses. You may have just
repainted the car for $5,000 or had the engine rebuilt for $3,000, neither of
which may be apparent from photographs. Make sure your agreed value reflects
such upgrades.
4) If you are dealing with a non-classic insurer
(possibly the other driver’s) make sure you educate them about classic cars.
Copy articles from magazines. Old Car Weekly. Hernrnings, or other
hobby publications that emphasize the value of your restored Pontiac.
You’ve spent a lot of time, effort,
and money on your classic Pontiac. Take a few minutes each year to make certain
that you have protected your investment by keeping your insurance coverage up
to date and reflective of your vehicle’s value.
Reprint from
March 2004 GTOAA Legend Newsletter