Model S Insurance

[daniel]

I think a rumor should be started out on the street that the nav displays inside Tesla EVs are electrified and when tampered with, produce an electric shock strong enough to incapacitate.

Actually, screw the rumor. I think the cars should just come with that as a standard option

Then people would be afraid to buy the car!

FWIW, I pay $975 per year for insurance on my Roadster. That includes $250 deductible on collision and $0 deductible on comp. State Farm, which I like because they've always treated me well when I've had claims. Some companies will give low rates and then make you fight to collect on claims. They've earned my loyalty by the way they've treated me. Some folks had trouble insuring their Zap Xebra, with only about 500 of the little things in the country. No problems with State Farm. It wasn't on their list, but they did the research and insured the car.

Of course, location, age and sex of driver, marital status, and driving history all affect rates.

 

[efusco]

Just got a preliminary quote from USAA for $588 for 6 months.

I'm a 32-year old married male, clean record (no claims), and the Model S will be the second car on the policy. I live in a suburban to rural area outside of Norfolk, VA, and expect to drive about 13,000 miles a year.

Edit: The operator on the phone didn't know what I was talking about. "Tefla, as in Foxtrot?" she asked.

"Tesla, as in Sierra" I responded.

"How many cylinders?"

"Zero, actually."

She said she was intrigued and then looked the car up on the internet...and said "it's a good looking car!"

Probably didn't decrease the wait time for the others on hold, but maybe just got someone else talking about the car. I love USAA...

Edit Again: This was for the 85kWh standard version (not performance).

Yipes, that's a bit higher than I would expect from USAA. I contacted them yesterday using the online chat, but the person I was on with was ridiculously slow to reply and I had to sign off before we were done, but the lady said she'd leave a message in my inbox on USAA's site...well, no message, so I guess I'll call. I'm 45 w/ clean driving record and 2 other cars so I'm hoping my rate is somewhat lower than yours.

 

[efusco]

Then people would be afraid to buy the car!

FWIW, I pay $975 per year for insurance on my Roadster. That includes $250 deductible on collision and $0 deductible on comp. State Farm, which I like because they've always treated me well when I've had claims. Some companies will give low rates and then make you fight to collect on claims. They've earned my loyalty by the way they've treated me. Some folks had trouble insuring their Zap Xebra, with only about 500 of the little things in the country. No problems with State Farm. It wasn't on their list, but they did the research and insured the car.

Of course, location, age and sex of driver, marital status, and driving history all affect rates.

You should increase those deductibles, Daniel. You have the cash to cover them and ultimately if it's a small fender bender you can pay cash and not need to make a claim and if it's a big damage you'll have saved more then cost of the deductible in a year or two in savings. I think ours are $1000.

 

[efusco]

Ok, finally had time to call USAA.
We'll be adding the Tesla as a 3rd vehicle. I told them 15k miles/year, dropping my Prius to 10k miles/yr (will become my wife's primary vehicle) and our Highlander Hybrid to 5k/yr.
$1000 deductible.

Our total premium for all 3 vehicles will go up to $905/6mo, an increase of $72/mo ($432/6mo for the Model S)....or $864/yr for the math inept.

Not as bad as some of the quotes above.

FWIW, she didn't ask if I was getting standard or performance.

 

[AndyM]

I got a State Farm quote last night for $1076 per year, 500 deductible, with multi-policy discounts applied.

 

[SCW-Greg]

I'm with Liberty Mutual and my agent actually recommend switching providers every few years to get the best rate. I guess things tend change, and if rates drop not all agencies pass that on to the customer.

This makes sense, as I was with Allstate for 20+ years, and the rates slowly crept up, so I jumped ship to Geico, and saved a bunch, then a year later my old Allstate agent called me back to see if he could get me back, and then he saved me even more than Geico did. So for now, I'm getting good rates.

 

[pete8314]

Shopping around insurance quotes in Europe (well, at least the UK), is standard practice, I used to do it every year, and save a bunch of money. Of course, all that normally involves is a couple of comparison websites (i.e. confused.com), but here in the US, even if you can find a good comparison site, you still have to talk to an agent in the end. Talking is so old school!

 

[nrcooled]

Who was that insurance company? Has anyone checked with usaa yet?

I called USAA and they don't have any record of Tesla in their database. So there is no way for them to quote me for the Model S.

Edit: It looks like people are getting quotes through USAA but the lady who helped me had no idea what to do with me. I guess I will call back once it's time to configure my Model S. I have plenty of time for them to get their act together.

 

[AndyM]

State Farm's system is fully-aware. Model year 2012, maker Tesla, model Model S, and 6 different types of Model S (40kWh, 60kWh, 85kWh, Performance, Signature, and Signature Performance) are available on pull-downs on the web site when you auto-generate a new quote.

 

[AustinPowers]

The biggest difference is the medical cost. In Europe it's not necessary to sue in order to figure out IF the medical bills are going to be paid. Our auto insurance rates could go down dramatically if all we were insuring was the value of the car!

Actually, here in Germany compulsory car insurance consists of two components: an insurance premium that covers the cost of damages to one's own as well as the opponent's car (if the accident involves more than one's own vehicle), and a separate insurance premium that covers the cost of health bills, damages etc. that you cause another person by involving him in an accident with your car - e.g. running over a cyclist, pedestrian or injuring anyone sitting in the other car(s) involved in your accident.
Still, even those two premiums combined don't usually cost as much as you quoted for the Model S.

I wonder, anyone know what the insurance premiums for the Roadster are in Germany? (Sorry for the OT question, just curious)

 

[AndyM]

I'm sure Germany's rates are lower due to better driver education requirements. I've known/heard from several friends who have lived there, that compared to Germany, American drivers are - on the whole - trained poorly. I venture to say everyone on this forum is excluded, of course. An example to prove my point: Any four-way stop in the US, you're bound to see everyone waving at each other to figure out who's going first. this is not an issue in Germany. If the path to the right is open, the right of way is yours. Done.

Back on thread: US insurance rates are higher in the US due to lower driver skills, among other factors.

 

[Robert.Boston]

*State Farm does not actively market new business in Massachusetts and Rhode Island at this time.

 

[olanmills]

The real risk of theft will be when the car gets hacked. Imagine if someone makes an easily reproduceable device that spoofs the key fob.

 

[jerry33]

The real risk of theft will be when the car gets hacked. Imagine if someone makes an easily reproduceable device that spoofs the key fob.

People have been saying this ever since there were remote garage door openers (long before fobs). So far there have been zero thefts from hacked cars or hacked garage openers. Basically, if you have the smarts to hack the device you can make more at a job than you can stealing cars.

 

[pguerra]

I had a different experience. My state farm agent quoted me in the mid 700's, less if not primary vehicle. That was for a non-performance 85kwh. Think you need to shop around...

That's the quote I received also, about $750.

 

[kevincwelch]

That's the quote I received also, about $750.

Still, at $750/6mo, this alone is more expensive than it costs me to insure TWO cars per six months.

However, that's better than Farmer's suggesting I pay $1700/6mo for the vehicle.

 

[AndyM]

That's the quote I received also, about $750.

Discounts for multiple policies (not just cars) definitely drop me down a bit. Shop around, though.

 

[AustinPowers]

People have been saying this ever since there were remote garage door openers (long before fobs). So far there have been zero thefts from hacked cars or hacked garage openers. Basically, if you have the smarts to hack the device you can make more at a job than you can stealing cars.

Plus, a Tesla has to be serviced annually, and I would think Tesla knows their customers better than almost any other carmaker - due to the low numbers (even 20.000 cars per year isn't that much) - so If a thief should turn up for service, Tesla would check the car data and see that it is not the proper owner. Call the cops, done.

 

[ElSupreme]

People have been saying this ever since there were remote garage door openers (long before fobs). So far there have been zero thefts from hacked cars or hacked garage openers. Basically, if you have the smarts to hack the device you can make more at a job than you can stealing cars.

Well I never stole anything. But one summer I 'hacked' my garage remote to open my neighbors garage. But that was before rolling code so it was only 9 bits. And I did it brute force ... I was bored a lot as a child.

 

[daniel]

Plus, a Tesla has to be serviced annually, and I would think Tesla knows their customers better than almost any other carmaker - due to the low numbers (even 20.000 cars per year isn't that much) - so If a thief should turn up for service, Tesla would check the car data and see that it is not the proper owner. Call the cops, done.

I doubt a thief is going to take the car in for service. Don't most stolen cars get chopped or sent overseas? (Unless it's a joyrider who takes a ride and then abandons it.) But if you have the remote diagnostic turned on, I think they can locate the car. Of course, at some point, the thieves will know enough about the car to turn that off. But I think fobs nowadays are hard enough to spoof that thieves stick with easier cars. There are already several cars that have been using fobs for years. I presume there are theft statistics for them.