Tandem Cycling - Liability and Property insurance?

We really don't need comprehensive homeowner's insurance, but would like some theft/damage insurance for our new Speedster and some liability insurance for when we run down the stupid human's Chihuahua. Are there insurance companies that will insure a bike in the same way they would insure a car?

Cheers!

These links may be helpful...
http://www.velonews.com/article/71286/legally-speaking---insurance-for-your-bike
http://www.velonews.com/article/71711/legally-speaking---with-bob-mionske-more-insurance-questions

Wow. Not good news at all. Perhaps it's time for a bicycle lobby for rational insurance? In the meantime, I'll look into homeowners...

As the Velonews link points out, Renters Inusrance will cover your personal liability (If you have, or will have anything in the way of assets, you'll also want a personal umbrella policy.)


As for theft/damage insurance, you really don't want that anyway. The number one principal of insurance is "Never insure against a risk you can afford to absorb."

If your tandem was stolen you could absorb it; i.e. buy a new one, or do without for a while until you could buy a new one. (if the loss of the bike would destroy your personal finances, I'd suggest you spent too big a percentage of your assets on it in the first place.)

The reason you don't insure against risks you can afford to absorb is because on average you lose by doing so.

The amount you pay the insurance company, plus the time value of the money (or investment income) will always exceed the amount that is paid out on average in claims. Thus, statistically you come out behind buying insurance. (This is why the Insurance company sells it, to make a profit.)

Thus you are better off "self insuring" i.e., saving the premium, earning the return, and covering your own losses as they occur. On average you will come out ahead in the long run.

You can't do this on risks you can't afford to absorb, (or aren't allowed to by the terms of your loan agreement.) Thus you need to insure against your house, which you have a mortgage on, being destroyed, or your new car that is financed with an auto loan. In those cases, the loss of the asset would leave your writing a check to the Mortgagor that you probably can't afford. Thus you insure those things.

But there's no reason to insure against the loss of a bike. And doing so is throwing money to an insurance company unecessarily

Some honeowner/renter policies will cover for theft; or get a rider on you policy just as you would for valuable jewelry.
Some auto insurance will cover you as a 'vehicle;' most chihuahuas don't have insurance.
Throw your money into some nice accessories instead!
Just enjoy the rideTWOgether!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

As the Velonews link points out, Renters Inusrance will cover your personal liability (If you have, or will have anything in the way of assets, you'll also want a personal umbrella policy.)


As for theft/damage insurance, you really don't want that anyway. The number one principal of insurance is "Never insure against a risk you can afford to absorb."

If your tandem was stolen you could absorb it; i.e. buy a new one, or do without for a while until you could buy a new one. (if the loss of the bike would destroy your personal finances, I'd suggest you spent too big a percentage of your assets on it in the first place.)

The reason you don't insure against risks you can afford to absorb is because on average you lose by doing so.

The amount you pay the insurance company, plus the time value of the money (or investment income) will always exceed the amount that is paid out on average in claims. Thus, statistically you come out behind buying insurance. (This is why the Insurance company sells it, to make a profit.)

Thus you are better off "self insuring" i.e., saving the premium, earning the return, and covering your own losses as they occur. On average you will come out ahead in the long run.

You can't do this on risks you can't afford to absorb, (or aren't allowed to by the terms of your loan agreement.) Thus you need to insure against your house, which you have a mortgage on, being destroyed, or your new car that is financed with an auto loan. In those cases, the loss of the asset would leave your writing a check to the Mortgagor that you probably can't afford. Thus you insure those things.

But there's no reason to insure against the loss of a bike. And doing so is throwing money to an insurance company unecessarily

Excellent points, and I totally agree. The thing to be concerned with is liability. If you caused (for example) an auto accident, the bucks could mount up real fast. In Utah, the minimum auto liability insurance required by law is only $50,000 (real stupid). I have a friend, who along with his girlfriend, was in a motorcycle accident. The young automobile driver who hit them (using her mother's car and totally her fault) only had the minimum $50K coverage.

Within two days, the $50K was gone. Both the girl and her parents had to end up filing bankruptsy. The whole thing ended up costing over $200K and that was 11 years ago! Moral of the story; if you have assets you care to protect, get an umbrella policy for a couple million or so. If you don't have squat, don't bother, unless you care about being a responsible citizen. Umbrellas are pretty cheap.