skimomma Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 Anyone else thinking of temporarily dropping a car off of insurance? Our income suddenly dropped to 1/3 and we have a car that has not been started in over a month. Our insurance rate is really high because we have a 16 yo driver in the house. Since restrictions of some form or another are likely to go on for at least months, it seems like a smart move. But we've never done this before so I don't know if there are drawbacks I am not thinking of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree Frog Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 We briefly considered doing that, too. But our insurance company credited about 20% back because so many vehicles aren't being used. Can you call your agent and ask about repercussions? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted April 20, 2020 Author Share Posted April 20, 2020 14 minutes ago, wilrunner said: We briefly considered doing that, too. But our insurance company credited about 20% back because so many vehicles aren't being used. Can you call your agent and ask about repercussions? I have left a message so just waiting. We would leave our older car on with no collision. That should drop our bill by more than half. Our insurance company has not offered any rebates yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acorn Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 (edited) I thought about it, but had reasons that made it hard to decide which vehicle. Only one has a trunk which is great for curbside pickup groceries. The other is better suited to my work commute and needs a recall issue fixed. I think I can drop it off at the dealer and pick up few days later. Then our car insurance offered 20% off, so I’m going to leave them both covered. Edited April 20, 2020 by Acorn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 We are getting some percentage of premiums rebated. I haven't explored taking a break from insurance, because like Acorn, I don't know which car I'd drop. We are still driving though not much, someone goes out every week or two. I also believe in being ready for emergencies. My daughter is comfortable driving only one of our cars; I wouldn't want to make that one unavailable. Etc. It probably sounds stupid to anyone who doesn't live here/know my family, but it makes sense to me not to drop any. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted April 21, 2020 Author Share Posted April 21, 2020 Thanks all. So no one has mentioned anything about costs or hassles with taking a car off and having to put it back on later. I am assuming there are no costs or risks. I have left another message but I believe my agent is working from home and they still have not called back. In our case, it is easy to determine which car to drop. One is more versatile in every way and is our family car that the 16yo can drive comfortably. The other one is a commuter car that really has no purpose right now. Even if restrictions are relaxed, with one unemployed person and the other working from home, we have no foreseeable need for the second car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted April 21, 2020 Share Posted April 21, 2020 2 hours ago, skimomma said: Thanks all. So no one has mentioned anything about costs or hassles with taking a car off and having to put it back on later. I am assuming there are no costs or risks. I have left another message but I believe my agent is working from home and they still have not called back. In our case, it is easy to determine which car to drop. One is more versatile in every way and is our family car that the 16yo can drive comfortably. The other one is a commuter car that really has no purpose right now. Even if restrictions are relaxed, with one unemployed person and the other working from home, we have no foreseeable need for the second car. I wouldn't necessarily assume that. Our insurance company gives a discount for multiple vehicles, so taking off a vehicle could affect that. It may also not be easy to get coverage again - I mean, I hope it would! I didn't explore it with my insurance company after deciding it probably wasn't practical for us anyway. I hope it works out well for you and that you report back! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted April 21, 2020 Share Posted April 21, 2020 Definitely find out what the agent says. I know someone who does this periodically to save money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted April 22, 2020 Author Share Posted April 22, 2020 I finally got through! It is super easy to put a car on a "storage plan," which is about 1/6 of the full coverage cost. So, the car is still insured should a tree fall on it in the driveway or it gets stolen. But we cannot drive it. A single phone call can have it back to fully insured at any time and it still qualifies for the multi-car discount. All in all, we are saving $800 should it stay this way for the full 6 months of this coverage period. For us, even when restrictions are lifted, we likely still won't need it due to what is likely to be a long period of unemployment. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyoffive Posted April 22, 2020 Share Posted April 22, 2020 4 minutes ago, skimomma said: I finally got through! It is super easy to put a car on a "storage plan," which is about 1/6 of the full coverage cost. So, the car is still insured should a tree fall on it in the driveway or it gets stolen. But we cannot drive it. A single phone call can have it back to fully insured at any time and it still qualifies for the multi-car discount. All in all, we are saving $800 should it stay this way for the full 6 months of this coverage period. For us, even when restrictions are lifted, we likely still won't need it due to what is likely to be a long period of unemployment. Wow, glad you got through. That is a HUGE Savings! From what I have read, make sure you still start your car once a week and let it run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted April 22, 2020 Author Share Posted April 22, 2020 1 minute ago, mommyoffive said: Wow, glad you got through. That is a HUGE Savings! From what I have read, make sure you still start your car once a week and let it run. Yeah. 16yo drivers are very expensive! We do start it once a week or so but dh says that it really isn't necessary....which I have to believe because we once inherited a car that had been parked for over three years and it started/ran just fine, aside from the flat tires and a few dried out belts. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted April 22, 2020 Share Posted April 22, 2020 (edited) @skimomma Thanks for the update! And, I'm sorry about the prospect of long-term unemployment. Edited April 22, 2020 by marbel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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