Teardrop Trailers and Rental Insurance

In a previous post, I talked about insuring your teardrop trailer. However, what if you want to rent a teardrop trailer for a trial run or if you want to rent out your own teardrop trailer? What insurance issues should you keep in mind?

Renting a teardrop trailer:

If you are renting a teardrop trailer for a test drive or weekend getaway, the liability coverage is tied to your tow vehicle and your existing policy. You should have liability coverage on your tow vehicle by law. Some rental companies will require that you show your proof of insurance and you can request that from your insurance agent. This proof of insurance is called a binder and can be printed or emailed to the rental company. The amount of coverage will depend on your type of insurance account.

Supplemental insurance might also be a good idea. This type of insurance might be offered by the rental company and it will provide additional coverage for bodily injuries or property damage if these are not covered under your current insurance. At the same time, you can also purchase Personal Effect and Personal Accident Insurance for your own personal possessions, e.g. just in case something is stolen from the rental trailer.


Renting out your own teardrop trailer:

Renting out your own teardrop trailer is a different story. Most insurance companies will not cover your trailer if you decide to rent it out to someone with an unknown (to you) driving history. For this case, you will need to contact a local insurance broker to purchase insurance specifically for renting out your trailer.

These types of brokers are familiar with businesses who regularly rent out campers, trailers, moving vans and other mobile units. The type of insurance they will recommend and sell you will have a different kind of liability coverage and will consider more moral logistics like the safety qualifications of your own trailer and the driving history of your customers.

I spoke to a representative at my own insurance company, Geico, and they said that if this type of insurance is purchased for a trailer—they will remove the trailer from the current vehicle insurance since they do not insure for rental businesses. Keep this in mind if you decide to rent out your personal teardrop trailer.

Insuring Your Teardrop Trailer

I'm sorry for the lack of posts lately. I've been getting over a cold and have been catching up with work. Speaking of sick...keeping your teardrop trailer healthy also includes having it insured—just like your own body. I highly recommend getting insurance for your teardrop trailer either as a rider under your current vehicle insurance or on your homeowner's insurance.

When we purchased insurance, we were mostly concerned with a car accident, damage (or total loss) to the trailer and liability and destruction of someone's property, so we opted to insure it with our car insurance. The trailer is insured with Geico, our vehicle insurance, for its value of $5,000 and the insurance costs us an extra $150 a year.

I had to call up our insurance agent and describe the trailer in detail. This is where the humor comes in again. Just like my DMV registration visit, the agent had no idea what I was talking about and she could not imagine a camping trailer less than 8 feet long speeding down the highway or being insured by her company. Once I explained what it was, she got a better idea and did not have to send an agent out to inspect the trailer. She did say that the trailer was only covered if it is attached to the primary towing vehicle, so if we were to lend the teardrop out to someone, extra insurance by the renter or borrower would need to be purchased.

We don't have the teardrop insured with our homeowners insurance in case of theft. In fact, I was curious if there are any insurance experts out there know if the trailer is covered for theft from a parking lot or campground?

In addition, I have heard that if your teardrop trailer is homemade, you may have a more difficult time finding an insurance company who will cover the trailer. You may have to call around or check out this post in the TNTTT Forum.

Photo by Adventure Duo