Forums > General > Traveling Mexico

robt65

Mar 16, 2011, 3:53 PM

Post #1 of 9 (4698 views)

Shortcut

Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

Hello All,

Time to renew the car insurance again. This time I am shopping around for several reasons. I would appreciate some input from others that have Mexican insurance on their NOB plated car. I am looking for a "A" plus rated carrier and my car (2008 Tahoe) and 5 year old cargo trailer have a combined (Kelly Blue Book) value of $40,000. This is what is called “ACV” with the insurance companies n Mexico. It stands for Actual cash value for private trade-in allowance and taken from the Kelly Blue Book for Mexican insurance companies.

Since (as a disabled veteran with complete VA care at no cost to me) I have to return to the USA about every 3 to 4 months for about a one to two month period, I hesitate to buy an annual policy. On the other hand an annual policy appears to cost $60 to $70 more. It is kind of like being caught between a rock and a hard place. Evidently, as one company explained to me, insurance in Mexico is almost a mirror image (opposite) than here in the USA. In the USA it is the accident that takes up the bulk of the American insurance. In Mexico it is theft. In Mexico if someone takes your car and it is found at a later date with (say) the wheels missing , stereo gone and or the transmission gone, it is not classified as a theft, but only vandalism and the insured gets less compensation even if (as here in the USA ) it would be considered a total loss theft . . . . . not so in Mexico.
So given my personal needs, does anyone have any suggestions of the best, most economic insurance for me to buy? By the way, I did find out that the cartels really do not like Dodge vehicles, even crew cabs and four wheel drive pickups.
Thanks for any suggestions.
Robt65

DavidHF

Mar 16, 2011, 6:30 PM

Post #2 of 9 (4673 views)

Shortcut

Re: [robt65] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

Robert,
The "best" is hard to define; IMHO, get the best agent you can find, based on recommendations of people you trust. The companies are pretty much all the same, as are the costs.

mexliving

Mar 16, 2011, 6:31 PM

Post #3 of 9 (4672 views)

Shortcut

Re: [robt65] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

san xavier is very cheap... you can google nogales mexico car insurance san xavier

robt65

Mar 18, 2011, 5:44 PM

Post #4 of 9 (4575 views)

Shortcut

Re: [mexliving] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

Hi David & Mexliving,

and Chinagringo (for your PM)

Thanks for your feedback. I appreciate the comments. I did check 5 or 6 different Mexican insurance companies including San Xavier. All of them have approximately the same rates that varied little from a low of $30 to a high of $75 difference. One of them (and I do believe that one was either yours Mexliving or yours chinagringo) would not insure for less than $300,000 liability. All the rest had a choice of three levels. $50,000, $100,000 or what is called the "Platinum" level of liability.

There is also a big difference in what we (NOB) consider theft (and would expect to be reimbursed for and what the Mexican insurance companies actually insure for if your car is stolen. In the USA evidently, vandalism takes the biggest chunk of insurance company payouts. In Mexico it is car theft. However here is the kicker. In Mexico, if your car is stolen and it is fond weeks later with say the wheels stolen and the transmission missing the Mexican will not write off your car and will only pay for the tow and any damage or (wheels / transmission) loss. The car will NOT be written off as a total loss unless it is not recovered at all, in a certain number of weeks.

Then we have what is called the "ACV" (actual cash value) of the car and in my case also the trailer. Using Mexican insurance none of the contents of the trailer are covered with few exceptions. Also that "ACV" is computed using the Kelly Blue Book "trade in value” by a private party. The combination of the preceding points establishes the actual costs of the insurance. The differences ($30 to $75) I stated seems to be some additional (agent costs) added in to the total cost of the actual Mexican Insurance Policy.

The other trick is to ask the insurance company if the company they are selling you is an A+ (plus) Mexican insurance company. Several other companies I checked would tell me their company was "the largest Mexican Insurance Company" but they would not answer if it was indeed an A+ rated Mexican insurance company or not.

The end result, I do definitely trust my original Mexican insurance agent (Lyndon) of "The Mexican Insurance Store". http://mexicaninsurancestore.com/

He has always been 100% honest with me and now I am absolutely positive that my agent does not put any "add-ons" on to my Mexican insurance policy. I have once again renewed my annual Mexican insurance with him again. by the way . . . . . you might also ask the company you are finding a quote from, if you bought another different car to replace the car on your current Mexican insurance company, would they simply endorse that new vehicle and charge the difference if the new car has a higher "ACV". That should also open your eyes as to the actual worth of your Mexican insurance agent.

I hope this helps some of you all, . . . . . . it sure did me. By the way, my policy for $100,000 policy based on my personal cash values of both my Tahoe and my Cargo trailer only cost me a total of $514 USD for one year.

robt65

(This post was edited by robt65 on Mar 18, 2011, 5:47 PM)

chinagringo

Mar 18, 2011, 6:07 PM

Post #5 of 9 (4567 views)

Shortcut

Re: [robt65] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

Glad to see that you resolved this issue to your own personal satisfaction! We all have our own personal "comfort zones" and what may be right for one person may not qualify for another. I am often amazed by those questioning the cost of Mexico Auto Insurance that seem to indicate that cheapest is best. Naturally, they will be the first to complain (and I could have used a stronger descriptor) when their claims are not resolved to their satisfaction.

Some time back, I looked into rental cars out of the airport in Guadalajara. Even the franchises of the major American companies could not or would not provide me with copies of exactly what their add-on policies would cover. The net result of my research was that the only agency that could satisfy my "comfort zone" wasn't one of the airport franchises. Between their policy and the additional coverage from AMEX, I finally reached a decision. I don't need cheapest when it may cause me headaches down the road!
Regards,
Neil
Albuquerque, NM

robt65

Mar 18, 2011, 6:28 PM

Post #6 of 9 (4561 views)

Shortcut

Re: [chinagringo] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

Hi Chinagringo,

After reading your response, I believe you are absolutely correct, and that is one factor I did not take into consideration. We all have our own needs and "comfort level". I couldn't agree with you more. I really got more ticked off at learning that some of these companies "add on" an additional $30 to $75 unnecessarily for every policy they write when they already make their commission through the Mexican insurance companies. Just plain greed in my books. The platinum level policies certainly does add more in some categories and then some other amenities in other areas not offered in the $50,000 and $100,000 levels . . . . . . . no doubt about that, but for my needs and that of my family they didn't add up to being necessary. So thanks for bringing up that additional equation of "personal comfort level" in finding which policy would be best. It should be considered as a factor.

robt65

chinagringo

Mar 18, 2011, 6:43 PM

Post #7 of 9 (4558 views)

Shortcut

Re: [robt65] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

robt65:

My comments were not directed at the equation that you used! When we make one of our typical two to three week drives into Mexico, my evaluation is that I want the best available coverage for the period we are going to me in Mexico. Big deal if it costs me a bit more for max coverage as I know we are covered as much as available. We do not need headaches or complications from the cheapest marginal insurance. Might we be overpaying? Certainly! Your situation is different since you spend longer period in MX and your "comfort level" may be different.

As an aside to this conversation, we are Costco members and they had policies available. Just prior to one of our trips SOB, they offered a "kick ass policy" that was hands down the best I could find and we chose them for that trip. On the next trip, I returned to their offering and the terms/conditions had changed dramatically and it was no longer a great or even passable coverage in my book.
Regards,
Neil
Albuquerque, NM

Moisheh

Mar 20, 2011, 5:07 PM

Post #8 of 9 (4480 views)

Shortcut

Re: [chinagringo] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

Hi Robt. Sorry I did not see this thread. As you may have discovered not all Mexican insurance is equal. Some have huge deductables and a copay. You have to read the whole policy. Some of the liability amounts are a joke. We have used Lewis and Lewis for over 20 years. Their policy is one of the best. Do not over valuate your vehicle. Mexican insurance companies usually use low book value. Much less than trade in value.

Moisheh

(This post was edited by Moisheh on Mar 20, 2011, 5:08 PM)

donemry

Mar 21, 2011, 9:05 AM

Post #9 of 9 (4434 views)

Shortcut

Re: [Moisheh] Best Auto Insurance for NOB Plated Vehicle

Can't Post | Private Reply

We have always used Lewis & Lewis. Last year we had to file a claim. No issues at all with the insurance company. Some communication issues with the Toyota dealer, but the car was fixed properly and we only paid the deductible. That is the test for a good insurance company, not the price.