Here in Ontario, Canada, some car insurance companies (e.g. State Farm) started a "war" with modified cars. They send a rather rude letter (see below) to car owners that supposedly have a modified car, and they cancel the policy.
My car is 99% stock as of now, but I don't think these practices are fair, nor justified. I think they should cut down on people using cell phones while driving, instead...
Are you guys in US getting the same treatment? Is anybody going to do something about it, or the fate of modified cars is going to be same as of muscle cars?





quote from:
http://racing.kos.net/soloforums/sho...&threadid=2344

quote:
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Altered Vehicles

With the help of your buddies and a good mechanic, you've customized your car. Your car may be the envy of the neighborhood (HOW DID THEY KNOW?) but it may no longer be insured. Alterations can cause the vehicle top react differently from original manufacturer's intentions, or affect the engineering of the vehicle so that it may not perform safely. For these reasons, we don't provide coverage for such vehicles. Altered vehicles are those physically or mechanically altered in any of the following manners:

Contours changed in any significant fashion from manufacturer's design.
Centre of gravity/normal body "level" has been materially changed.
Equipped with non-standard accelerating devices or equipment designed for unusual performance, (ie nitrous oxide).
An engine not available from the manufacturer as a standard option for the year and model.
Extra-wide treaded tires designed and normally used for racing.

If your vehicle has been altered, you must notify your agent who can arrange for alternate coverage. If in doubt, play it safe – call your State Farm® agent!

 

I haven't seen anything like that here *yet*.

The fact that that letter is from State Farm (bunch of *&^%$#^$%^# *****) does not suprise me in the least.

I can certainly understand their intent (lord knows there are a lot of "modified" cars out there that have been made unsafe tards with bling intentions), but it is unfair to paint everyone with such a large brushstroke.

I guess I'm still OK, since my car is "Bone-Stock"

 

I have State Farm and haven't heard of this before. I wouldn't be too concerned but a call to your agent might be a wise idea. I read it this way,
"body kits"
"cut springs"
"nitrous and backyard turbo conversions"
"engine swaps" (951 in a 944 would be OK the way this is worded)
"R-compound track tires shouldn't be used on a street car"

It sounds like they're going after the ricers (read; poorly performed mods), a mildly modded Porsche shouldn't be an issue.

 

I received the same letter from them. But having been with them for over 15 years, I know that this is not a new policy. Any modifications had to have been (technically) approved by the agent even 10 years ago. In order to get modified cars insured you had to go into "Facility" which are the highest rates available. That being said reasonable changes usually do get approved. Unfortunately if you want to be covered you have to play by the rules. You don't want to get into an accident and have your insurance company say that you are not covered because of mods you made to your car.

R.B.

 

I also have State Farm and regardless of who they are going after, letting this happen is (IMHO) a bad idea. Give them an inch... You never know, this could be the initial foothold to mandating that to be insured, you only drive a certain "approved" car......

 

I read something that the Escalade was the most stolen vehicle. Im not sure if that was just the NY area. Most escalades are running 20" chrome rims that spin backwards.

Dont the ricers put prelude motors in civics, and body kits.

the insurance co is targeting a group of people. we refer to them as ricers, and hip hoppers.

How many accidents or theft claims are from cars parked at the train, or driving casually down the boulevard? How many are because payments couldnt be made, the car is due back from the lease, the motor blew while getting juiced.

We all have to absorb the higher premiums. Remember I caused your rates to go up because I fought GEICO for more $$ when my S2 was stolen. Thanks for the $$

GEICO had to pay me for my boxster rims. they never added the value of the rims to my rate. bet they were pissed I put new rims on the car.

Bet they wouldnt want to pay me for the suspension on the mullet, even though it was available from the factory a few years later, it increases the value of my car.

 

and at the rate things are going that certain "approved" vehicle is going to be an M1A1 abrams tank without the gun on top!!!

 

Tom R:
I don't know the true motivation of car insurance companies, but excluding cars equipped with body kits for the soul purpose of improving the financial gains of the insurance company is NOT a sound reason. I don't think a properly installed spoiler or a wing creates a road hazard.
I believe practices of car insurance companies should be closely monitored by the government. If they have legitimate reasons, a solution should be found, but letting them maximize the profit at any cost will hurt people in the long run.
I'm not a ricer, I don't like those cars myself, but I respect others - if they like it, it's their business, not mine.

 

I'm really not sure what direction you were headed in there. What are you trying to say exactly? Every time I looked at your post it got longer. Are ya done addin' to it?

 

In real estate they call it redlining. They can't not insure certain groups, but they can not insure what certain groups buy. Who puts big spoilers on their honda? Who puts big chrome rims on their escalade.

Takes the no one under 25 insured one step further.

 

Look at it this way Stan, if a plain old civic takes a hit the insurance company pays to fix it up to the value of the car, few year old civic=few thousand dollars. OTOH, a 5 year old civic with 140k on it, a few grand for a bodykit and a few more for the custom paint job and then what does the insurance company pay? Here, Insurance companies are required to use certain parts when a repair is made, if that civic gets rear-ended does the insurance supply a new stockbumper cover or the body kit part?
On the low end of the rice scale, there is some pretty bad backyard engineering going on. Do you want to pay the same premiums as the kid with the cut down springs and 40 lb blingin wheels that doesnt see the problem that driving on R-compounds in the rain might cause?

 

Gotcha. Is that something akin to "racial profiling", more like "age profiling"?

 

You have a point Dave, but shouldn't a policy premium take it into account? How about if your car is modified (body kit, fancy wheels, etc.), your premium should increase or you waive the right to collect money if you take a hit. To some degree the blue-book value of your car influences your premium, so it might be possible to do same for aftermarket modifications.

You are right on R-compound tires on street cars, but these are strictly speaking illegal already. I think car insurance campanies can (if they are not, they should be able to) deny paying money if modifications are not DOT approved, and R-compound tires are ILLEGAL on the street. It's up to police to enforce it.

and like I said earlier, it's good to be tolerant. "Car culture" is something that kids will be learning at school one day.

 

Some R-compounds are DOT approved, does that not qualify them as legal for the street? If not, why would you need DOT approval for the track??? Also all R-compounds do not go to heck in wet weather. I would argue that regular bald street tires are worse in the rain than my RA-1's (R-Compound) at full tread depth. The compound of the tire has does not determine it's wet weather ability.

EDIT: I am not advocating using R-compounds for street use, use the proper tire for the proper situation. One does not need to have r-compound levels of grip on the street. And if you are driving that way in public, you should know better.

 

The policy premium can only take the modifications into account if the company knows about the mods, I think the piont of this is to get customers to list their mods and in some cases they will be bumped to higher premiums which is covered under the last paragraph of the letter.
My R-compounds (autox tires) are DOT approved, they don't meet tread depth requirements after the first 20 miles but they have a DOT number on them. They are still intended for use only in certain conditions, I wouldn't use them in the rain but I'll bet there are kids that would!