# Where can I find campervan insurance in the US?



## Seph Reed

I'm searching for a way to insure a campervan, and Google is yielding only UK based results. I've already been told by AAA and USAA that by sleeping in a vehicle I am liable to not be insured in an accident, not that that makes any sense. Anyways, if they can bone me, they will, and I don't really feel like paying for them to do it. So how do you cover yourself?

Any stories would be much appreciated.

Thank you,
Seph


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## tobepxt

there's auto insurance and then rv insurance.. what particular vehicle do you got? 
links might help:
- https://www.progressive.com/lp/rv 
- https://www.geico.com/getaquote/rv/
- https://www.esurance.com/insurance/rv


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## Deleted member 20

Do you plan on buying a vehicle & driving in the US on a visa? I see that you are in Austin, Texas & that you just joined STP. I can only guess that you are from the UK & visiting the US on a visa? Is that why google was giving you UK results? I am unsure what type of visa you have or if you are a US citizen etc but from what I do know I will guess. This link mentions a lot of the issues faced but doesnt clear up each individual states laws regarding this topic. http://myj1usa.com/can-j1-students-drive-us/


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## Seph Reed

No, I'm from the US. And RV insurance doesn't cover things without running water, and auto doesn't cover things with a bed. I've talked to all the major US insurance providers, none of them have a campervan insurance, so far all of them have told me that by removing the seats from my van and putting in a bed I've made it into something else.

I'm driving an Oldsmobile Silhouette.


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## ottawafm

It doesn't matter what services the rv has! It's what is on the title that determines its status! Period! If your using a car as a camper, then it's what kind of car the title is titled in that determines the kind of insurance you'll need.
The title is for the frame and body of the vehicle! As long as you don't modify the frame or body, then it doesn't matter what you do to the contents of the inside. 
I've had friends that removed their damaged radio, does that have anything to do with the frame or body? NO!


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## Deleted member 20

Its a passenger vehicle every which way till sunday!!! & there is prob no way to title it as a motorhome ever & or need RV insurance. Why wouldnt you just register & insure with the basic coverage that is required to drive in the US???? Regular car insurance for limited liability never inspect your vehicle take photos etc. Is there a loan on the vehicle that requires extra insurance? A minivan aint an RV regardless if you put a composting toilet & a build out a plywood bed; its still a van.


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## Seph Reed

ottawafm said:


> It doesn't matter what services the rv has! It's what is on the title that determines its status! Period! If your using a car as a camp...



That's exactly what I thought, but I literally had my insurance cancelled when I told them I was sleeping in it. They even told me that if I got in an accident and someone saw I'd been sleeping inside, I might not get covered. The telling them was a mistake, but the no coverage thing made me think "well, maybe I had the wrong insurance." 

I guess this is more a case where I'll have to work with them and say whatever it is they need me to say, though I then will have lied on my insurance which is twice the grounds for not getting coverage. 

I'm guessing the next time I call they'll say something ridiculous, it'll all work out, and it'll make all make a story not worth telling anyone.


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## ottawafm

If they ask what your using it for, tell em' your going to work and that you only drive about 10-12 miles a day. If they ask where you work, make something up. They don't need to know!


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## Matt Derrick

Seph Reed said:


> And RV insurance doesn't cover things without running water, and auto doesn't cover things with a bed.



that's not exactly true. i had a school bus for 2 years that i registered as an rv and it didn't have either of those things (at first).



Seph Reed said:


> That's exactly what I thought, but I literally had my insurance cancelled when I told them I was sleeping in it. They even told me that if I got in an accident and someone saw I'd been sleeping inside, I might not get covered. The telling them was a mistake, but the no coverage thing made me think "well, maybe I had the wrong insurance."
> 
> I guess this is more a case where I'll have to work with them and say whatever it is they need me to say, though I then will have lied on my insurance which is twice the grounds for not getting coverage.
> 
> I'm guessing the next time I call they'll say something ridiculous, it'll all work out, and it'll make all make a story not worth telling anyone.



look, here's how to deal with your insurance company. first off, you need to realize that insurance companies are your best friends until you get into an accident. then, no matter what, they're going to try and fuck you as hard as they can. so don't feel bad about lying to them, or doing anything else they think isn't "legal"; insurance is a racketeering scam that unfortunately got legalized back in the 70's.

so first off, i had to google your vehicle type to find out that it's a mini-van. you could register it as an rv, but it would probably just be less hassle to register it as a regular vehicle then insure it as such. unless you tell the insurance company otherwise, they don't know shit about your car, meaning they just look at the registration and see it's an rv, so they will accept that that's what it is. meaning, registering your vehicle and insuring it are two different things.

i registered my school bus as an RV (recreational vehicle) by giving my mom power of attorney and having her register the vehicle in her home town (which is quite small, in the boonies of washington). i did this because i bought the bus in illinois, and was living in new orleans, and i sure as hell wasn't going to drive 3,000 miles just to register a vechicle in washington (i keep my residency there).

so, my point is that when i went to get insurance, i told them it was an RV, because, at that point is was, and there's no fucking reason the insurance company needs to be questioning me on that (and they won't).

when it comes to everything else, you really need to shut the fuck up and stop telling them everything you do with your vehicle. the best policy is to tell them as little as possible. remember THEY ARE TRYING TO FUCK YOU AS HARD AS THEY CAN. it's how they make money. so don't feel bad about lying.

DO NOT tell them you're sleeping in it. i mean, really, what makes you think they would be okay with that? increasing the amount of time a human body occupies a potentially insured vehicle from a few hours to nearly 24/7 increases their risk by about 10000% so fucking lie.

the reality of insurance is that it's a 'protection racket' where if you don't buy their services you go to jail. so fuck them. also, realize that if you DO get into an accident you're fucked anyways. a car like that ain't expensive and is going to be totaled in almost any kind of accident, so the only reason to have insurance is to not go to jail.

next time you apply for insurance, don't tell them shit. it's just a car you go to work in. that's it. fuck them, cause they're certainly fucking you.


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## Odin

Matt Derrick said:


> look, here's how to deal with your insurance company. first off, you need to realize that insurance companies are your best friends until you get into an accident. then, no matter what, they're going to try and fuck you as hard as they can. so don't feel bad about lying to them, or doing anything else they think isn't "legal"; insurance is a racketeering scam that unfortunately got legalized back in the 70's.





Matt Derrick said:


> when it comes to everything else, you really need to shut the fuck up and stop telling them everything you do with your vehicle. the best policy is to tell them as little as possible. remember THEY ARE TRYING TO FUCK YOU AS HARD AS THEY CAN. it's how they make money. so don't feel bad about lying.



Thank you Matt Derrick... I'm saving your post.


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## Andrea Van Scoyoc

All this information is so awesome. Depending on my situation, I won't be able to afford insurance...at least not for long, but will have my dog, so traveling by foot, isn't an option.

If it were just me, I'd walk everywhere. My comfort isn't important, but my dog is my life and all I care about.

Anyway, thanks for the awesome advice, y'all. I have a lot to think about and a lot of plans to make.

Y'all are the best...thanks so much for sharing your expertise.


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## Matt Derrick

Andrea Van Scoyoc said:


> I won't be able to afford insurance...at least not for long,



just pay it. just because it's a racketeering scam doesn't mean you don't have to pay it. the alternative is losing your home/transportation, so don't fuck around. i know people with whole school buses they've invested thousands into that are too stupid to pay their insurance because of the 'principles' involved, but sorry, principles don't keep your house out of the man's hands. the alternative isn't worth it.


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## Matt Derrick

Seph Reed said:


> No, I'm from the US. And RV insurance doesn't cover things without running water, and auto doesn't cover things with a bed. I've talked to all the major US insurance providers, none of them have a campervan insurance, so far all of them have told me that by removing the seats from my van and putting in a bed I've made it into something else.



on a side note, GMAC will cover bus conversions, but you have to keep calling them until you get an agent that will say yes. if they say no just keep calling back until you get one that says yes.

now i didn't have much luck at first, so i ended up calling a company called poliseek, which turns out is just a re-seller of insurance for GMAC. they didn't really care that it was a bus conversion unless i was transporting people, so i told them i removed the seats already and they gave me insurance that i used for the next 2 years i had the bus (approximately $250 every 6 months).


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## Andrea Van Scoyoc

Matt Derrick said:


> just pay it. just because it's a racketeering scam doesn't mean you don't have to pay it. the alternative is losing your home/transportation, so don't fuck around. i know people with whole school buses they've invested thousands into that are too stupid to pay their insurance because of the 'principles' involved, but sorry, principles don't keep your house out of the man's hands. the alternative isn't worth it.




I hear you, Matt. I have to put her, first, so I'll do what I have to.

Saving, saving...so at least I'll have some money, ahead.


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## Seph Reed

So, I thought I might share my whole story here. I ended up in a massive flood during a festival and vanhome (my van) got a bit wet. Not up to the motor, but mildew and wet books, laundry and power washers, hydrogen peroxide and baking soda, FUN. 

I thought it might be done for so I called my insurance and they came to look at it. They were pretty rushed due to the amount of flooded cars that weekend so it was basically "where's the water line?" totalled. Even though it ran fine.

A couple days later the insurance company called to ask where to mail my check and where they could pick up my van. I told them I live in the thing, it still runs, you may not have it. So they let me keep it saying "this is a one time deal" and told me to go to the DMV and give it a flood title.

They also gave me the full cost of the vehicle.

Yesterday I went to get insurance again (for residency) and I found the loop hole. Just go wherever immigrants go. Basically, if you're living in a van, you're an alien. And that works especially well for me because my van has kind of a sacred spaceship theme and I hate people anyways.

The point is, I paid 75 for 6 months to insurance, they were dicks, a flood came, they gave me 3600 and the car is fine and has no flood damage listed on it... sometimes things work out.

Oh, and if you want to move through the grid, first update your licence (you'll be good for years with that), then start getting your mail forwarded to a Mailing Service (I used Pak Mail). Then get a bank account, which you can do now that the patriot act has expired and use the local mailbox for the address. Once you get some official mail in there, you can use that as proof of residence... it's a pain in the ass, but fuck it. Butt fuck it.

P.S. (why, hullo there)


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