Insuring your bikes

[Dogmama]

Take pictures of your bike too.

My State Farm guy said homeowners covers it - and - he was also surprised that a bike would cost over $4K. My bike is custom, so no serial numbers. I have the original sales invoice that describes the components. He said that would suffice. I have replacement insurance.

[Irulan]

One thing we;ve done with our newer bikes is gone to the manufacturer's website and printed out the spec sheet. This will always have an image with it too. Then I staple the receipt to the printout, and write the serial number down. Voila, great record, no having to figure out what components were on it.

We recently had a bike theft - my son. I got a great tip. If you don't have your serial number, many times the shop you purchased from will have it on record.

[Aggie_Ama]

Oddly I have to have a rider for my engagement and wedding rings (value approx $5k) but not the bikes (value of $10k combined). We have pictures, receipts and SN on all the bikes. Except my Craigslist Mountain Bike where I have SN and pictures.

I asked my agent specifically would it cover these high end bikes and told him I we paid about $2,000 EACH for the bikes. This is Texas where people spend a ton on guns, bows (my friend has a $1,800 one) and who know what else my agent didn't even bat an eye. It covers replacement cost minus deductible. I think it varies by state and even company. Talk to your agent and be very specific on what you are asking.

[uforgot]

Thanks for all the great advice. I'm going to read my policy. Taking pics is a great idea, and I have already taken them. I also registered with the National Bike Registry, and I think it's good for something like 10 years. Printing out the spec sheet won't help since I moved some of my Shimano 105 components over from another bike and he built the rest up, including the wheels. That's part of my concern, I just can't call up someone and replace the parts I chose!

Thanks again! I can always count on TE.

[Aggie_Ama]

I have also read some LBS will help write up the specs and how much the bike would cost to build. In the case of the Surly I wouldn't think this would be a big issue to do since they can be sold as frame and build?

[Blueberry]

I'm at my LBS so much they could probably write an estimate of my bike from memory

Seriously, I have lots of pictures. And serial numbers (except for my cannondale - which requires deconstruction to get it).

CA

[TxDoc]

Thanks for all the great advice. I'm going to read my policy. Taking pics is a great idea, and I have already taken them. I also registered with the National Bike Registry, and I think it's good for something like 10 years. Printing out the spec sheet won't help since I moved some of my Shimano 105 components over from another bike and he built the rest up, including the wheels.

The standard spec sheet does not help in your case, but you can always write down the specs for your bike (with the components you used to build it) and give it to your agent with the pictures (take some close ups showing the components too). This is what my agent asked me to do, just to make sure that mor expensive components would not be replaced with a standard build.
Hope this helps. Also she said to take a picture where the bike registry # shows, one with the serial #, and one of the bike license # if you city has registration.

[aicabsolut]

My renter's insurance covers my bike and all my expensive sporting equipment. It even covers it when it is in my car and stolen or damaged due to an accident where I'm at fault (which my auto insurance won't cover--my liability insurance only covers other people's property in/on my car in that case).

[boy in a kilt]

SGTiger was quite specific about ensuring both of our bikes were covered on our homeowners policy. Get this, they cover actual cost of replacement.

[Mr. Bloom]

My State Farm guy said homeowners covers it

That's good...my deductible is $2,500 ($40,000 for earthquakes)...how much is yours?

[boy in a kilt]

That's a big deductible for someone in the mid-west. Do you live anywhere near New Madrid?

[Mr. Bloom]

That's a big deductible for someone in the mid-west. Do you live anywhere near New Madrid?

Yep...with lots of unfavorable and unshielding geology in between...

[boy in a kilt]

Ahh. So you live in a place where if you do get an earthquake, it's gonna make a horrible mess. We studied that in my Geological Oceanography class in Grad school. Prof wanted to show us that the big, messy quakes don't always happen where you think. Also, I watched one of those alarmist science shows a while back that showed what might happen if the New Madrid fault cuts loose again. Things weren't looking good for Kansas City or St. Louis.

Given where we live, I would be interested to see what our deductible is. We do have the Cascadia Subduction zone sitting about 100 miles off the coast and when that thing lets go, it's gonna be a monster. I hope my bike survives if it does.

[Mr. Bloom]

I hope my bike survives if it does.

Me too...it will be the only way to get around.

[ilima]

Because of the unconsolidated soils in the east (e.g., Mississippi River system floodplains), the effects of an earthquake are felt much further away than most earthquakes in the west.

In the PNW I'd probably be more worried about lahars coming off Rainier when it blows or even a tsunami from the Cascadia subduction zone if you live on the coast.