Time to renew an aviation insurance policy?

schmookeeg

schmookeeg

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Alameda, CA
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Display name:
Mike Brannigan
Hello.

I am in the midst of renewing my plane's insurance.

Hull value has not changed even though the market is apparently on fire, and I think a notch up is prudent.

Pilots have not changed, they have just gotten more experienced. We are all in our 40s so we're not slamming into the age wall (yet? I hope :) )

I was asked for Pilot History Forms >3 months< in advance of our renewal date.

Our current policy expires next week.

I have no quote.

I have a lame note from my broker whimpering about how long everything is taking in insurance and how they're doing their best.

I am about to relocate the plane, so I would have enjoyed time to consider a hull value change, the relocation cost, and possibly reducing the approved pilots on the list.

My question:

How long are you guys' renewals taking? 3 months? more?



My broker is well-regarded, but my spidey sense tingles a little bit here. The whole scenario benefits him.

We will be quoted with times from 3+ months ago, not current times ( = potentially higher premiums)

I certainly won't have time to shop another broker, even though it wouldn't change the quotes

I certainly won't have much time to push back on any underwriter demands that I disagree with.

When I received the whinge-o-gram last Friday, I popped off a quote request to Avemco on Friday evening (late), got a call Monday morning, and a quote Monday afternoon. It's a 15% increase, but that's about what I'm braced for anyway. My questions were answered, the call was friendly, they're ready to cash my check and get me insurance. You know, how it is supposed to work?

So it's possible to do normal insurance business right now. It's not like they made 100,000 new planes last year that all need underwriting.

Please let me know if I'm holding it wrong, if my broker sucks, or the market is really this stupid right now. :D

Cheers,

- Mike
 
I can't speak to other insurance companies or brokers, but after reading horror stories I called Avemco (who had my policy) a little early before my renewal came due and after answering some questions on the phone (updating my current hours/experience), they gave me a quote that I accepted to renew the policy. That was back in February.
 
I've heard nothing but horror stories about this year's aviation insurance market. I know a couple guys who had to give up their airplanes as they were no longer insurable. I'm waiting with baited breath for my own quote. I think it will be ugly.
 
Just a thought…11 weeks into a 12-week process isn’t “in the midst”. Your broker can’t get the job done. The reason is largely irrelevant at this point.
 
I renewed a couple weeks ago. I sent in the questionnaire about 60 days out, got the binder about 30 days out and the actual policy about a week later. Increase was only $10 so no complaints.

Broker is USAA (which is actually Falcon) and policy is with USAIG.

I think you are right to be annoyed, your broker should have something for you. a week is not enough time to do much beyond sign.
 
Avemco might not be the cheapest for everyone, they were for me, but they are super responsive to any questions or requests.
 
I have insured or been named insured on several airplanes in the last six months. There has been no trouble getting insured and no long waiting times to get quotes or bind coverage. I suspect your broker/agent is just falling behind?

Prices for policies is another matter. But even in the current market we haven’t been hit too hard.
 
mondtster said:
I suspect your broker/agent is just falling behind?
Click to expand...

Yes, I am mounting in suspicion that my broker's office just can't keep up, and he's laying the blame on the underwriters. That's more odious to me than any "look we are swamped' that he might have shared in embarassment. I need my insurance professionals playing straight and narrow on my behalf and CERTAINLY not misrepresenting things.

Hmpf. Avemco may get a spite check from me.
 
yeah mine blew me off for a couple months too. I had to reach out by email 30 days out to get them to actually send me renewal options after I had sent the renewal application months in advance. Rates keep going up. I had to finally up the hull value based on what things are going for out there in the resale space, gave up territorial coverage (no more Caribbean crossings for me UFN) to just to keep it at the 2020 renewal rate. They didn't even send me multiples, just send the current one and told me that's that. This is AP, the alter ego of the former AOPA brokerage. I'm a bit antagonized by the back-handed treatment of the last two years, but captive audience dynamics.

That said, if people have better recommendations when it comes to aviation insurance brokerage, I'm open to recommendations for my CY22 renewal. Ditto since I'm hoping to add a second (EAB) airplane to my plate.
 
I have both renters and plane insurance with Avemco. My rates have been stable for the past three years even though I’m a geezer. Just renewed the renter policy (I use it when the plane’s in for annual or other maintenance and just last weekend I flew 6 hours getting my ASES while flying another plane).

They let me know a month in advance and a simple phone call or web entry renews things.

Cheers
 
20% bump in my premium this year - renewed in May. I got my renewal/pilot forms in April, waited a couple weeks, filled it out, and had the policy renewed within days.

www.air-pros.com
 
steingar said:
I've heard nothing but horror stories about this year's aviation insurance market. I know a couple guys who had to give up their airplanes as they were no longer insurable. I'm waiting with baited breath for my own quote. I think it will be ugly.
Click to expand...

What made them no longer insurable?
 
60 days questionnaire completed
30 days from renewal, a listing of all companies (10) they asked for quotes with their restrictions/pricing.
If I got pricing within only 1 week of renewal, I'd be thinking they engineered that in order to limit my options - so I agree with your comments.
My best price was 20% higher and I grabbed it. Not only are prices higher but I am hearing more and more 'refused to quote' going on out there.
 
Well, if you can't identify the aircraft that would probably make it uninsurable.
 
Hit up Parker Woodruff with Airspeed Insurance….knows the insurance companies down to recognizing quotes from different underwriters at the same company. In full disclosure, I got a t-shirt.
 
masloki said:
Hit up Parker Woodruff with Airspeed Insurance….knows the insurance companies down to recognizing quotes from different underwriters at the same company. In full disclosure, I got a t-shirt.
Click to expand...
He’d have to do paperwork to change brokers, since the underwriters won’t quote the same airplane to two different brokers.
 
Mine took a solid month from the time I filled the currency form out and mailed it back. Never fails, every year it comes down to the wire. I think they do it on purpose so you can’t shop around. Lol. Mine went up another $200 so I dropped it down to just liability.
 
Mine took about a month. Got the notice in January, completed a new application and got the quote maybe a week later. 25% increase in premiums for a fixed gear, fixed pitched 191 AG5B Tiger with no accidents or incidents or violations. I was told by the broker if I wanted to whine - go ahead. But I should know that the year prior, 3 companies quoted a premium for the coverage; this year only 1 responded which was my current insurer. It’s not a good time for sure. And to compound my misery, I apparently thought it was a good idea to calculate my hourly costs for 2020 so I could gauge the COVID impact. To use one of @eman1200 favorite sayings, it would have paid for a lot of “hookers and blow”.
 
Jumpmaster said:
...I apparently thought it was a good idea to calculate my hourly costs for 2020 so I could gauge the COVID impact. To use one of @eman1200 favorite sayings, it would have paid for a lot of “hookers and blow”.
Click to expand...

for the record, there was zero impact to my hourly costs for hookers and blow OR my plane due to covid.
 
Filled out my online renewal form about 6 weeks ago. Called about four weeks ago and was told they would get to me when my policy was out 30 days to renewal. I'm at about 21 days today and called again and was told I was on today's contact list so that worked well. Received my quote and was offered a chance to bind over the phone. I'm not at home so can't say for sure but I think I had a small decrease this year again ~ $100...
 
masloki said:
Hit up Parker Woodruff with Airspeed Insurance….knows the insurance companies down to recognizing quotes from different underwriters at the same company. In full disclosure, I got a t-shirt.
Click to expand...
I second that...
 
Circling back to this...

I asked to make a tweak to my quote last week, and to add a new pilot (potential partner). Still haven't heard anything back.

In that time:

Avemco has quoted me 4 different scenarios.

The potential aircraft partner quoted MY plane from scratch in under 24 hours with a carrier that my broker claimed had "declined to quote"

I have run across another similar post about my broker on a different forum, from another Baron owner, who was loudly unhappy about service levels.

I queried my broker about the timing of my intended changes (since my policy expires tomorrow at 11:59pm), he actually replied with "you could always fall back on that avemco quote" :eek:

...I think I understand the problem now, and my path forward -- loud and clear. Wow.



Thank you all for the data points. :D

- Mike
 
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