In this episode, Chris Paradiso, owner of Paradiso Insurance, and Tanya Morin, one of our Personal Lines Insurance Agents at Paradiso Insurance, sit down to discuss the differences between classic car insurance and regular auto insurance.
Chris: Welcome to our next episode, today we’re gonna be talking about classic car insurance, uh we have a special guest here, we have Tanya Morin from Paradiso Insurance.
How many years have you been licensed?
Tanya: Oh my gosh- over 20.
Chris: Over 20 years, uh Tanya, her father owned an agency, out in Manchester, Connecticut, recently sold it and moved up North-
Tanya: Yes.
Chris: And uh, been an insurance agent for 40 plus years I believe.
Tanya: Yes.
Chris: So today we’re gonna have, which we’ve been getting a lot of questions, absolutely beautiful the past 4 days, I think like something happened here we went from 30 degrees and snowing to 60 degrees and it’s like perfect. So, the classic car insurance questions popped up in the last couple of days. First and foremost, Tanya could you just explain the difference between a classic car insurancepolicy and just putting it on a standard, regular auto policy?
Tanya: On a standard auto policy you are looking at actual cash value, which you might lose out on classic car-
Chris: Sure.
Tanya: Where somebody’s put all their heart and soul, and money into a vehicle. Probably rebuilding it and babying it, and you insure that to value on a classic car insurance policy. They usually ask for pictures if you have an appraisal on it, that is helpful, as well. Um rather than actually having-
Chris: So maybe a quick example would be you have a 1970 Cadillac that’s worth $15,000 and you put it on your standard Traveler’s Hartford, your standard policy and uh, it’s your fault when you crash, and you have comp and collision, what do you think they’re giving you for that?
Tanya: Probably nothing.
Chris: Yeah. At best, maybe $500, at best, um so the difference would be if you have insured on a classic um policy, whether it’s Hagerty or uh Condon Skelly, some other classic car insurance. If it was worth $15,000 and was a 1970s Cadillac, um and with a $500 deductible, and it was their fault how much will they get?
Tanya: They would get the $15,000 minus their $500 deductible.
Chris: So, they would get the $14,500?
Tanya: Yes.
Chris: So, the real difference between a classic car insurance policy and the standard is really the agreed upon value median. If you total your car it’s worth something on a classic car insurance policy. If you total your car on a standard policy, it’s really not worth anything.
Tanya: Correct.
Chris: So, if you have a classic car out there, and you don’t have a policy as such with Hagerty or a true writing classic car insurance company, please call us. We insure hundreds and hundreds of classic cars, we will help you understand the difference, we will also make sure that uh, very important to have in most cases seven pictures.
One of each side, which is two, one of the front and back, which is two, one of the inside, and one of the motor. Six to seven pictures is what it will take and um, most people don’t realize.
Let’s talk about cost because a lot of people say, “Hey I got a $35,000 car”. You know how many thousands of dollars that’s gonna cost you to insure the right way? What’s the answer to that?
Tanya: It is very reasonable because they take into account somebody who’s put this passion into this vehicle is not gonna be driving it all winter in the snow.
Chris: Sure, sure.
Tanya: Um, they’re probably gonna be driving it to different shows, maybe out to the ice cream parlor as they call it.
Chris: Yeah.
Tanya: Umm, I actually just wrote a policy last week. I had two $18,000 vehicles for fair lanes. It was just over $300.
Chris: That’s for a year.
Tanya: For full coverage for the year.
Chris: And the reason being like you said, I don’t think people really realize that um, as a collector myself, if it’s raining outside, I can be you those cars aren’t going out.
Tanya: Right.
Chris: Certainly, if there’s any sand on the road as you know, we’re going into the transition from winter into the warmer weather, um when there’s stuff on the road people don’t drive them. They baby these cars, including myself. So, that’s what comes at the cost. So, take the time, I promise you, insure them the proper way and you win in the end of it. It’s less expensive and you have the right coverage, God forbid something happens.
Tanya: Absolutely.
Chris: So, that’s today’s tip on classic car insurance, we hope that you keep emailing us questions we’d love to hear what ideas or what questions you might have when it comes to insurance.
We would like to go over a couple of unbelievable great events coming up. First and foremost, I went to this as a kid, and that’s probaly showing my age as if the gray hair here didn’t show it. Um, the 72nd Fishing Game Derby at Stafford Fishing Game, an amazing club, um run by a really good guy, he’s an amazing guy, really taking the club to a whole family oriented level, and I highly recommend you getting up there, uh anybody interested in joining the club.
But that is May 6th at 9:00 AM, the event is free for kids, 12 and under. Like I said to you, I went there and my father was a part of the Fish & Game Club, life member from the very, very begging. Absolutely amazing family event. If you want a family event that’s free, uh donations are accepted because everybody wins.
Everybody’s gonna, and every kid under the age of 12 is gonna walk away with something. There’s free fishing poles, there is just, unbelievable. Rob Wilson has done an unbelievable job, here’s running it again this year. Um, if you don’t know, Rob and his wife, they’re extremely committed to the community because he’s running that and the following week is the Mother-Son Dance hosted by Pack 50, run by Rob Wilson’s wife.
And the Wilson family is absolutely giving back to this unbelievable community. That is gonna be run on May 12th from 5:30PM to 7:30PM at Stafford Elementary School. Mothers, Aunts, Grandmothers, are all welcome. The cost is $15 per couple, and $5 extra per child that you may be bringing. Um, absolutely went last year. It was the first time they put it back in many years, Rob and his wife did an unbelievable job. Um, definitely already bought my tickets, gonna be there. I hope to see more mothers and sons, it’s a great family event. Again, that’s what it’s all about, and very inexpensive.
We also have the Superhero 5K Run which is Journey Found, um my father was one of the co-founders of Journey Found, which helps people like my sister who um unfortunately, are labelled as intellectually disabled because of their handicap. They live in group homes, and Journey Found absolutely amazing event.
It’s a 5K run, we were, most of us were there last year. We had a lot of fun um, there was uh, sneaker stores that were there. I forget, New Balance store from South Windsor set out there. Walk, run, however, you wanna do it, come out. We’d love to see all of the participants receive a superhero cape, and proceeds all go to a great cause which is Journey Found. Um, I don’t know what the cost is, I believe it’s $20 to run or walk uh, once again that’s at Nevers Park in South Windsor on May 20th at 9:00 AM, all participants are welcome, great, great charity, and last but not least, our Flag Day Barbecue uh, Flag Week is always the week of 14th, which Flag Day’s the 14th, which is a Thursday this year um, I’m hoping that people with classic cars come out. We wanna line the street up uh, can’t thank the Fire Department enough they volunteer their time. They will hang a 30’ by 60’ flag, if you haven’t’ seen anything more impressive, I promise you that alone is worth coming down. Free food- there will be hotdogs, hamburgers, uh, a very large piece of meat of roast beef being cooked, probably 50 to 100 pounds.
Everything is on our dime because we really want to celebrate Flag Day, and what it stands for. There will be free t-shirts, and we also have a true patriot Colin Rice, who own 98.3 radio station. He is a guy who gives back to veterans, so we always love to have him. 98.3 will be joining us again this year, and we hope you can join us.
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