When purchasing campervan insurance, there will be certain minimum legal requirements, such as those covered by basic auto insurance. In addition, there is a range of additional insurance provisions available to suit your particular campervan, taking into account its additional value, the difference in your use of it in comparison to a car, and the value of possessions you keep in it.
Legal requirements for vehicle insurance
Vehicle insurance is a legal requirement for driving a campervan in most countries, and in many countries it is a legal requirement to be able to produce proof in the form of a certificate of insurance on demand by a police or customs officer.
Minimum legal requirements for auto insurance will vary from one country to another. For example, in the UK, the minimum legal requirement is Third Party cover, which covers damage caused by the insured motorist to other people (including the insured driver’s passengers), the other driver’s vehicle, or other people’s property in an accident. No coverage is extended to the insured driver or their own car under Third Party insurance.
In the USA, each state mandates its own legal minimum coverage requirements for liability for bodily injury, property damage and uninsured and underinsured coverage.
Minimum auto insurance requirements in Canada include liability coverage for damage caused to others, and coverage for the driver’s own medical expenses and loss of income resulting from driving-related injuries.
Legally required insurance for travel in foreign countries
If you are travelling in Europe outside the country where the insurance was issued, you will need a ‘Green Card’ certificate of insurance, which states the vehicle registration number, the name and address of the insured, the countries in which the insurance is valid, and the dates of validity. You should also check with your insurance company that their insurance covers the countries you intend to visit.
Information about the Green Card system can be found here: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/Motorinsurance/DG_067624
For travel in Mexico, Mexican law does not accept any foreign auto insurance policies. So if you drive in Mexico without obtaining a Mexican auto insurance policy and are then involved in an at-fault road traffic accident claim, you run the risk of being detained in jail until you prove you can cover the costs to the people and vehicles involved in the accident, which may include the livelihood of the families of those injured as well.
Campervan Insurance or Car Insurance?
The best option varies with different types of recreational vehicle.
If you do not keep anything of value in your campervan, and mostly use it as a car, you may feel that auto insurance provides enough coverage for your needs, so you can either take out car insurance for it or add it to your existing vehicle insurance policy.
To protect yourself from additional losses not covered by a standard car insurance policy, consider taking out specialist campervan / RV insurance.
Basically, the benefits of buying specialist insurance increase as the following factors increase:
- Its financial value
- The amount of time you spend camping or living in it
- The value of its contents
Specialist Campervan Insurance: Additional Benefits
Depending on your policy details, some of the additional coverage offered by specialist campervan insurance may include:
- Loss or damage to your campervan’s contents
Depending on your policy limits, this contents insurance may include spare parts and accessories, such as awnings and steps, valuables stored in your camper, such as camcorders, and even the replacement cost of travel documents, food and supplies. - Liability for accidents and injuries occurring in the area around your vehicle at campsites
- Pet injury insurance, in case your pets are injured while travelling in your motorhome.
- Roadside assistance, extending to any vehicles being towed by an RV
- Temporary replacements for transport (ie rental cars) and accommodation if you are on holiday or living in your RV.
- Transport or towing to return your motor home to your home address if it is no longer drivable or roadworthy.
- Depreciation cover (Full Replacement Coverage)
This coverage can be added for brand new RVs in the first few years of ownership, and protects owners from losing the difference between the purchase price and depreciated value of an RV or campervan that is written off or stolen. Instead of receiving the depreciated price as compensation, you would be entitled to a brand new replacement.
So do I need Campervan Insurance?
So if you’re still asking yourself, ‘is campervan insurance worth it?’, as you can see, the benefits of insurance depend on your vehicle’s value, your financial risks, and how you use it. If it is a budget campervan that you don’t store anything in and mostly use as a vehicle, your standard auto insurance may provide all the coverage you need. However, if it is an expensive or brand new vehicle with valuable contents, or you do a lot of camping, or even live in it, then a specialist RV / campervan insurance policy would be well worth considering.
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[...] 10.Campervan Insurance: Do I really need it? | Campervan Insurance Is campervan insurance really necessary? What are the legal requirements, and when is a campervan insurance policy a better choice than standard auto insurance? … If it is a budget campervan that you don’t store anything in and mostly use as a vehicle, your standard auto insurance may provide all the coverage you need. http://www.campervaninsuranceonline.com/campervan-insurance/who-needs-campervan-insurance/ [...]