For a great number of people, the onset of winter means something more exciting than rising up in the wee hours the morning to shovel the driveway and drink hot cups of coffee. For snowmobilers, there is no better feeling than reveling on the powdery white snow across the plains and mountains on your snowmobile.
Snowmobiling is a fun activity for the entire family, but running on to a tree stump, or any other kind accident is fun – especially if you are not covered with snowmobile insurance.
To get some context about why you need snowmobile insurance, here are some interesting facts and statistics:
Snowmobiling is gaining popularity. Currently, there are over 1.4 million snowmobiles are registered in the USA, and this number keeps rising each year. An average snowmobiler rides about 920 miles per year across 225,000 miles of marked and maintained snowmobile trails in North America. With so many machines on the trails today, this has significantly increased the risk of accidents more particularly in protected areas such as national parks.
State laws require snowmobile owners to have snowmobile insurance. Though not all states, twenty-three states require snowmobilers to carry insurance. It is expected that other states will soon follow suit. Even if your state does not require you to carry insurance, you are likely to face problems when traveling across states that have insurance requirements. Moreover, having insurance not only protects your investment but also your well-being in the event of an accident that can harm you, a passenger, a hiker along the trail, another snowmobiler or any other property.
Liability: Liability insurance is used to cover damage caused by a rider to another vehicle, snowmobile, individual, or property when the accident is proven to be the rider’s fault. The property damage coverage on the other hand helps you pay the costs of repairs in case you cause accidental damage to someone else’s property while riding your snowmobile. It also covers the cost of repairs to damage done to another snowmobile.
Comprehensive and Collision: This coverage is meant for repair and replacement costs of your snowmachine following an accident, without consideration as to who is at fault. The cost of comprehensive and collision coverage is largely influenced by the value of the snowmobile.
Instances of fire, vandalism, theft, and weather damage, falling objects, smoke wind and sinking through the ice on a frozen river or lake are covered by comprehensive coverage, while collision coverage is used to fund repairs or replacement when the snowmobile is involved in a collision. You could be riding at a safe speed, and still hit objects like a stump, a rock, a fallen branch, a deer or collide with another snowmobile. The damage could be minimal, or extensive. Whichever the case, repairs can be expensive; having a collision cover will save you the agony of repair expenses or even having to buy a new snowmobile.
Medical Coverage (PIP): In some states insurance companies are required by law to include medical coverage in all snowmobile insurance policies, although the specifics involved in this coverage vary widely. Medical coverage is meant to cover medical bills resulting from an accident.
Underinsured and Uninsured Motorist: Underinsured and uninsured coverage is not typically mandated by law; however it’s a cheap and often very smart way to protect a rider against other riders who may not have sufficient coverage or any insurance coverage at all. Because it’s cheaper than the other parts of your insurance policy, uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is recommended by most road safety authorities.
If you are looking for state specific Snowmobile Insurance quotes, costs and information:
