Classic Car Collection Insurance

By Jon Merwin, Founder and CEO

Car collections have deep roots in New England. The Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline, Massachusetts, describes its carriage house collection, which began with an 1899 Winton, as America’s oldest car collection. Today’s collections are just as varied: a pair of British roadsters in a Seacoast garage, a row of muscle cars in a converted New Hampshire dairy barn, a pre-war touring car in a Connecticut carriage house, or a mix of air-cooled Porsches and vintage trucks spread across a home garage and a storage building down the road.

Once you own more than one or two collector cars, the insurance questions change. Values have to be tracked car by car, storage often spreads across more than one building, more people may drive the cars, and your liability exposure grows. This guide covers what’s specific to insuring a collection. For how collector insurance works in general, start with our classic and collector car insurance guide. We shop collector car coverage with carriers including Hagerty, J.C. Taylor, Liberty Mutual, Cincinnati and American Modern, and we’ll confirm eligibility for your vehicle before you rely on a policy.

When a few cars become a collection

There’s no official number of cars that makes a collection. In practice, we treat it as a collection when the cars start to need managing as a group: when renewal dates, values, buildings and drivers no longer fit on the back of an envelope. That’s also when small gaps tend to appear. A car bought last spring that never made it onto the policy, a value set years ago on a car that has since been restored, a barn that the insurer doesn’t know about, or a son or daughter who drives one of the cars to a cruise night but isn’t listed.

The fix is rarely complicated. It starts with one complete, current picture of every car, every building and every driver, and a policy structure that matches it.

One policy or several?

Most collector insurers can list several cars on one policy, each with its own agreed value and its own storage and use details. Keeping the collection together has real advantages:

• One renewal date to review every car and every value at the same time.
• Consistent terms on use, storage, drivers and deductibles across the collection.
• One place to add and remove cars as the collection changes.
• Easier coordination with your umbrella, which needs the same underlying liability limits on every vehicle.

Not every car belongs on the same policy, though. A heavily modified car may be insured under different rules (see modified car insurance). A modern exotic you drive often may fit better on a high-value auto policy (see exotic and high-value collector car insurance). And a classic you use for errands is usually a regular auto policy car. We look at each car before deciding how to set up the collection.

An agreed value for every car

Each car in a collection needs its own documented agreed value, the amount the insurer agrees to pay if the car is a covered total loss, less any deductible. Values in a collection rarely move together. One model’s market can climb quickly while another holds steady, and a car that just came back from a two-year restoration may be worth far more than the number on last year’s policy. Review every car at renewal, and call us after any restoration, repaint or major mechanical work. Our guide to agreed value car insurance explains how values are set and supported.

Marque guides can help with the details that drive value for specific cars: Porsche, Corvette, classic Mustang, Ferrari, Land Rover Defender, classic Bronco, classic Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin.

Keep a collection inventory

A simple inventory, kept up to date and stored somewhere other than the garage, makes renewals faster and claims far easier. For each car, include:

• Year, make, model, VIN and any build or production records
• Current photos of the exterior, interior, engine bay and undercarriage
• Restoration, parts and service receipts, plus the date of any appraisal
• Where the car is stored, summer and winter
• Accessories that travel with the car: hardtops, tonneau covers, tool kits, original wheels and the parts you removed during a restoration

Keep a digital copy in cloud storage or with someone you trust. If a fire or storm reaches the garage, the paperwork inside it may be lost with the cars.

Storage across more than one building

Few New England collections fit in one garage. We regularly see collections spread across a heated garage at the house, a barn or carriage house on the property, a rented bay at a storage facility, and sometimes a garage at a lake house in Maine or a winter home in Florida. Collector policies are commonly written around a locked, fully enclosed building, so the insurer needs to know about every location: where each car lives in summer and winter, how each building is locked and secured, and whether it has alarms, smoke detection or monitoring. If cars rotate between locations with the seasons, tell us that too. For winter storage practices, see collector car storage and winter lay-up.

Barns, carriage houses and outbuildings

The building that holds the cars is a separate insurance question from the cars themselves. A detached garage, barn or carriage house is usually insured under your home policy, often as an other structure, and its limit may be far below what it would cost to rebuild a restored barn with heat, lighting and a lift. Check that limit, and tell us about any workshop in the building. Old New England barns bring their own risks: aging wiring, space heaters, battery tenders on every car, and roofs carrying heavy snow. Good lighting, working smoke detection, fire extinguishers within reach and a clear path out of the building all help, both to prevent a loss and to support a claim. If one of your cars came out of a barn to begin with, see our barn find guide.

Storms, flooding and power outages

A nor’easter can bring flooding, falling trees and multi-day power outages to a garage full of cars. Coastal and riverside garages are most exposed to water, and a long outage can stop sump pumps, heaters and dehumidifiers. If you plan to run a generator, Ready.gov says to use it outdoors and at least 20 feet away from windows, doors and attached garages, never inside the building with the cars. Know which cars you would move first and where they would go. Our nor’easter prep checklist for collector cars walks through it, and if the garage is in a flood zone, ask us about flood insurance for the building.

Who drives the cars

A collection often has more than one driver. A spouse may take one car to a club drive while you take another, an adult child may help move cars between buildings, and a friend may drive a car at a show. Collector policies usually require every listed driver to have a regular-use vehicle for everyday driving, and insurers review each driver’s record. Tell us who drives which cars, including occasional drivers, and ask before you hand the keys to someone who isn’t listed. Collector policies are also written for hobby use, such as shows, club events, tours, parades and occasional pleasure drives, so let us know if any car is driven more than that.

Adding, selling and swapping cars

Collections are rarely static. Call us the day you buy a car, or before the sale or auction closes, so it’s insured from the moment you own it. Many collector policies give a short window to add a newly acquired car, but the length and terms vary, so it’s safer not to rely on it. When you sell, keep coverage in place until the car has left and the title has changed hands. If a car is going to a dealer or auction house on consignment, ask what their coverage includes and tell us where the car is and for how long. If you trailer cars to shows or between buildings, see car shows and trailering.

Parts, tools and automobilia

Collections collect things. Spare engines and transmissions, extra sets of wheels, hardtops, original parts removed during a restoration, shop tools, and automobilia such as porcelain signs, gas pumps and vintage displays. Some collector policies include limited coverage for spare parts and automobilia, but the limits are often modest, and tools and shop equipment are usually covered as personal property under your home policy. Valuable automobilia may need to be listed separately. Photograph it, keep receipts and tell us what you have. If a car is mid-restoration with parts spread across shelves, see restoration and project car insurance.

Liability, umbrella and the rest of your insurance

Every car you own can cause an accident, so a larger collection means more liability exposure. Carry liability limits on each collector car that match your other vehicles, and put an umbrella policy over all of it. Umbrella insurers usually require certain underlying liability limits on every vehicle, so a single car with lower limits can create a gap. Collectors with significant collections often have several homes, boats and other valuables, too. Coordinating all of it in one place is the idea behind our high net worth insurance work.

Collections in more than one state

Plenty of collectors split their year between states: summers in New Hampshire or Maine and winters in Florida, or a primary home in Connecticut and a summer place on the Seacoast. Insurers need to know where each car is garaged and registered, and registration and plate rules differ by state. We’re licensed in 10 states, including every New England state and Florida. Our state guides cover the local rules for New Hampshire, Maine and Connecticut.

We also insure collector cars for Massachusetts collectors. See our Massachusetts collector car guide for the state’s antique plate and registration rules.

Planning for the future of a collection

Collections often outlive the people who built them. If cars will pass to children, be sold by an estate or donated to a museum, current values and documentation make that much easier for everyone involved. If any of your cars are titled to a trust or an LLC, tell us, so the policy names the right owner. And if you’re slowly selling down a collection, review the policy each time a car leaves so you aren’t insuring cars you no longer own.

Why work with an independent agency

Specialty insurers look at collections differently, and their rules on storage, drivers, use and values change over time. An independent agency can compare them side by side and coordinate the collector policy with your daily-driver auto insurance, your home insurance and your umbrella policy, so liability limits line up and nothing falls through the gaps.

Portsmouth Atlantic Insurance is a family-owned independent agency founded in 2005. Our 15 employees work from our Portsmouth, NH office and a Connecticut office, we are licensed in 10 states, and we work with 40+ carriers. We are New Hampshire’s highest-rated agency on Google, with 1,000+ Google reviews and over 2,000 testimonials, and we don’t charge any fees.

Frequently asked questions

Can I put all of my collector cars on one policy?

Usually, yes. Most collector insurers can list several cars on one policy, each with its own agreed value. Some cars may fit better elsewhere, such as a heavily modified car, a modern exotic you drive often or a classic used as a daily driver, so we look at each car before deciding how to set it up.

Does every car in my collection need its own agreed value?

Yes. Each car is valued on its own, with its own photos, receipts and comparable sales. Values in a collection rarely move together, so review every car at renewal and update any car that has been restored, repainted or has climbed in the market.

What happens when I add a car to my collection?

Call us the day you buy it, or before the auction or sale closes. Many collector policies give a short window to add a newly acquired car, but the length and terms vary, so don’t rely on it. We’ll add the car with its own agreed value and storage details.

Are my garage, tools and automobilia covered by the collector policy?

Not usually. The garage or barn is generally insured under your home policy or a separate property policy, and tools are usually personal property there. Some collector policies include limited coverage for spare parts and automobilia, and valuable signs or pumps may need to be listed separately. We’ll check all of it together.

Can my family members drive the cars in my collection?

They can if they are listed and the insurer accepts them. Collector policies usually require every listed driver to have a regular-use vehicle for everyday driving, and insurers review each driver’s record. Tell us who will drive which cars, including adult children and friends at club events.

What if my cars are stored in more than one place?

Tell us where each car is kept, summer and winter, and how each building is secured. Many collector policies are written around a locked, enclosed building, and the insurer needs to know every location, including an off-site storage facility or a second home in another state.

What our clients say

From our client surveys. Comments are lightly edited for typos only.

“

Jon is super helpful and amazingly communicative. He responds fast with well thought out answers making the process of getting insurance for my home and car super simple.

“

Very informative, responsive, and helpful with answering any questions we had. Helped us get the best deal and coverage, explained the differences between coverage options, and let us choose what worked best for us. Highly recommend!

“

Excellent guidance on insurance options and fantastic quoting and onboarding experience. We trust their recommendations and feel that we have best coverage for peace of mind at best possible cost.

Read more client testimonials

Sources

• Larz Anderson Auto Museum: The Collection
• Ready.gov: Power Outages