Uh, WHAT!? Insurance...

[uavmx]

So I'm interesting in buying an experimental aircraft and decided to start getting some quotes on insurance. I'm a low time pilot (around 95 hours), but this shocked me! I'm not sure which site I went though (avemco or aopa) but I got a quote from Falcon for $6500/yr!? That was for 85k hull coverage and liability. I used a velocity 173RG as my example aircraft.

Is there something wrong with my hours? The aircraft I chose? I expected it to be higher for at least the first year, but not way in heck $6500.

Needless to say, I'm searching around more.

[Kyle Boatright]

There are a number of brokers out there who shop all of the markets. Give one of them a call and have them bid your coverage out to more than one insurance company. That way, you'll find out where the market really is for the combination of you and that airplane. I suspect your hours and the high performance of the Velocity drove the high rates, but that estimate sounds ridiculous.

[Bill Berson]

Costs more with retracts.
100 hours in type is also helpful.

[1600vw]

I was quoted 800 a year for Non-in-motion coverage. These insurance companies are out of thier flipping minds. I say they do not want our biss. The best way to keep from having us as customers, price us out by making really high quotes no one will purchase.

Bogus practices in my book.

Tony

[martymayes]

I don't think the quote is really out of line. Based on the type aircraft, number of aircraft in service and their history, ~6% of the hull value for the hull premium for someone starting with zero time in type. Yup. Pick a more conventional type with fixed gear, etc, and it will likely be more reasonable.

[CarlOrton]

I built a Sonex taildragger. I had zero Sonex hours at the time of my first flight. My first Sonex flight was also my first solo tail wheel flight. I had liability only for the first 40 hrs (full hull value for not in motion). It was about 800 for the first 40 then went to $1600. I have a private certificate and 300 hrs.

Go with a smaller agent. They're hungrier to get your business.

[FlyingRon]

Falcon is a broker. AOPA is essentially tied to a single underwriter and Avemco is a underwriter who sells directly.

Is this "from the first flight" coverage for a new homebulit or are you getting quotes on a homebuilt you are envisioning buying already built?

[rleffler]

For your time and zero time in type, the quote doesn't surprise me at all. In a RV-10, the sweet spot is 300 hours and a IFR rating to get reasonable insurance rates. For RV-10s, I've seen rates rise this past year for a variety of attributes.

1. Two underwriters withdrew from the market
2. Some stopped covering first flights
3. Some stopped covering Phase I
4. Increase numbers for transition training. (one friend was with 150 hours was required to get 15 hours transition training and got a rather larger premium to go with it) (six months before, the same company required zero time for me, but I had almost 400 hours and an IFR rating)

If there is any good news, second years rates seem to drop quite a bit assuming that you get through Phase I in the first year. Also, because of Phase I, most of us get at least another 100 hours in type which helps too.

I can't speak to other experimental models, since I only collect data on RV-10s. I've seen RV-10 quotes north of $5k for low time pilots. Most are in the $2.4k to $3.5k range, with $150k - $200k hull. The extra two seats, high performance rating, and the hull value really drives the premium up.

My only advice to find an underwriter that insures a significant model of the aircraft you are interested in purchasing. They will most likely provide the best premiums. For example, I know that Jenny at NationAir (broker) tracks RV rates with each underwriter. They may track other aircraft as well.

[Bill Berson]

The insurance company looks at cost of repairs. If parts or special repairs specialists are hard to find the only option for them is to total the ship for even a minor damage.

[gbrasch]

Try NationAir....and as said above, go with a more conventional aircraft.