Motorcycle Insurance Through the Seasons (Are You Overpaying?)

The following post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga.

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Bikers, winter’s blast is just around the corner. Sorry for this obvious (and depressing) bit of non-news.

But even if you can’t zip down south for sunnier climes (and motorcycling all day, every day), there’s good news.

Did you know you can adjust your coverage and save during colder months?

Why spend extra money if your poor Harley’s gathering dust in its garage stall? Here’s what you need to know about saving — and your risks of overpaying — throughout the seasons.

Motorcycle Insurance for Warmer Months

You’ll hear a lot of the same lingo for motorcycle insurance that’s similar for auto insurance. To break it down in simple language, motorcycle insurance includes several types of coverage:

Liability coverage: If you’re at fault in an accident, a liability policy helps cover the cost of damage to others’ property, as well as their bodily injuries.
Comprehensive coverage: Comprehensive coverage covers your motorcycle for theft and other things that aren’t your fault, like vandalism, fire and hail damage.
Uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage: This type of coverage covers damage to your motorcycle and injury to yourself caused by someone who doesn’t have sufficient insurance or any at all.

Did you know you can customize your policy with a variety of coverage options? You can! Many motorcyclists add collision coverage. This type of coverage helps you if you damage your own motorcycle by, say, hitting another parked vehicle or a stationary object like a fence or (yikes!) a tree.

You can also get towing and roadside assistance coverage or bodily injury coverage for any of your passengers. You may also be able to get coverage for your accessories, which can include saddlebags, safety apparel and custom parts.

Check with your insurance carrier to learn more about your insurance coverage options. Find out how you can cover your motorcycle for unexpected events such as theft, fire and damaging weather.

Motorcycle Insurance for Colder Months

It might be tempting to quit insurance cold turkey during the winter months. But what if something happens to your motorcycle during that time? Just because you’re not zipping through a canyon doesn’t mean something can’t happen to it while it’s parked in the garage.

Think through a few worst-case scenarios that could befall your bike:

• Theft
• Vandalism
• Fire
• Storm damage

That’s why it’s a good idea to maintain comprehensive coverage, which protects you against events not related to a collision, such as theft, vandalism or other similar incident that might occur while your bike is in storage.

Think about this: Canceling your motorcycle insurance means that you have to foot the bill for the total cost of repairing or replacing the motorcycle. As you might imagine, paying for motorcycle damage from your own wallet is pricey.

Also, remember that unseasonably warm day last December when you tested your heated grips and cold-weather riding gear? Getting on your motorcycle for a few hours was a major thrill after two weeks of solid snow, right?

If you cancel your insurance, you won’t be able to enjoy the day on your motorcycle (and you can’t send Snaps to your other biker friends to brag about your adventures).

Despite these warnings, you can tap into a few solutions to save money:

Check with your insurer to find out about something called “lay-up” or “laid up” insurance. These policies temporarily stop parts of your coverage that won’t generate a claim if your motorcycle’s not used.
Find out whether you can lower your premium. Many insurance carriers will not allow you to remove all collision and liability, but your insurer might allow you to reduce coverage to your state’s minimums to lower your premium during that time.
Take a look at your deductible. You can also look at your policy deductibles and consider raising those during the winter months.

In other words, find out about temporary reductions of coverages on your own policy. (Just be sure to reinstate all your coverages before you get back on the bike in the spring.)

If you do decide to cancel altogether during the winter months, make sure you’re not on the hook for paying fees or penalties.

Motorcycle Insurance Quotes

There’s no law that says you have to stick with your current insurance company if your current company doesn’t offer a layup policy or another, more flexible option during the winter months. Shop around for quotes from multiple insurers — it’s the best way to see what's available to you.

Target carriers that offer a layup option during the winter months or look for coverage options that fit your wallet and offer any other ways for you to save with the best motorcycle insurance companies.

Get the Right Insurance for Chilly Months

Even if you can’t roam the open road right now, you can still find a reason to smile: Saving money right now lets you park your money in a fund for a motorcycle trip during the spring or summer.

It’s best to look for those silver linings. Get a quick comparison quote.

The preceding post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga. Although the piece is not and should not be construed as editorial content, the sponsored content team works to ensure that any and all information contained within is true and accurate to the best of their knowledge and research. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice.