If you spend a considerable amount of time in a year traveling in your RV, you might need to buy insurance for your home on wheels, just like for your regular daily commuter.
The premium that you have to pay, if you are required at all by law, can vary widely depending on a number of factors, like the type of RV you own.
Read on to learn about the average travel trailer insurance cost for different classes of RVs, what a policy typically covers, as well as pro tips on saving money on your insurance policy.
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You May Or May Not Need Insurance On Your RV
The country and state you live in may have its own regulations as to whether a certain type of recreational vehicle must be insured by law.
In most cases, a motorhome, that is one that you would be driving inside the vehicle itself, is self-propelled, so it is a complete vehicle and thus always needs insurance as any other motor vehicle.
Meanwhile, a travel trailer or a fifth-wheel is not drivable itself, since it needs to be towed by another vehicle. In this case, the towing vehicle must be insured, while the trailer or fifth-wheel may not require its own policy in most cases.
In the United States, most states do not require a travel trailer, fifth wheel or toy hauler to be covered by a separate insurance policy from the towing vehicle. The insurance that covers the towing vehicle should extend to the towed RV.
Even in the rare cases that a state requires all types of RV to be insured, in general only liability coverage is required. This is the most basic level of protection that is also expected on most regular automobiles, and is fairly affordable.
Factors The Decide Your Travel Trailer Insurance Cost
Travel trailer insurance rates vary widely depending on a number of factors, including the type of your RV, its resale value, age and condition, how often you live in it during a year, where you live, your driving experience, record and claims history.
RV Class, Age and Condition
Motorhomes are generally more expensive to insure than travel trailers and fifth wheels. Motorhomes are drivable themselves and therefore require liability coverage just like any regular vehicle.
In addition, motorhomes, especially the luxury Class A and Class C motorhomes, are more expensive than most travel trailers, fifth wheels (except for the largest models), pop-up campers and toy haulers.
As you might have expected, the higher resale value of a vehicle is, the higher its insurance premium, since in the case of an accident or other damages, the insurer would need to pay more to cover the losses or damages.
How Often You Travel
In most cases, insurers would charge you a higher rate if you travel in your RV more, since this means higher risk of mishaps. If you use your RV only recreationally, that is for less than six months out of the year, you may still need to tell your insurer approximately how many days you use your RV annually.
Otherwise, if you travel and live in your RV for at least six months during a year, then your RV is considered by law your permanent residence. In this case, depending on your state law, you may be required to purchase additional coverage so that your RV is essentially covered by something similar to a homeowners insurance policy.
This means you will need a more comprehensive coverage that extends beyond the minimum liability coverage, including personal liability, contents coverage, medical payments, and loss assessment coverage.
Where You Live
As with regular auto insurance, insurance rates for recreational vehicles vary depending on your state and ZIP code. In general, locations that are prone to natural disasters or at least turbulent weather means higher risk and thus higher premium.
Similarly, highly populated metropolises also have higher risk for road accidents and vehicle theft, thus if you live there, your RV insurance will be more expensive.
Driving Experience, Record and Claims
Another deciding factor is whether you’re a seasoned driver familiar with handling an RV. Whether it is driving a gigantic motorhome or towing a trailer or fifth wheel behind your pickup, this is very different from and much harder than driving a regular family commuter.
Therefore, veteran RV drivers with a clean driving record and a clean insurance claims history generally pay less for insurance than inexperienced drivers or those who prove to have been a risk on the road.
Any insurance companies would run a thorough check of your driving record and claims history to price your policy accordingly. If you have a clean report, you will most likely earn a more competitive rate and might even be eligible for a discount, depending on the insurer.
Related: How Much Does It Cost to Live in an RV Park?
Average RV Insurance Cost
So how much does travel trailer insurance cost? There’s no clear cut answer for this question, as the price range is enormous, since it depends on so many factors and each can vary wildly.
But worry not, as most insurance companies would have a price calculator on their website that will let you input important information and give you an estimation of your costs, depending on what types of coverage you need.
This general guide might not extend to your specific situation, but as a rough guide for RV trailer insurance cost as of 2024, you can expect to pay at least $120 per year for the cheapest liability-only policies.
Meanwhile, if you require more comprehensive coverage, you will be paying from $500 per year for a travel trailer, fifth wheel, toy hauler or Class B minivan. If you own a motorhome, the average RV insurance cost would start from $850 per year.
In addition to the above factors, clearly the more comprehensive your insurance policy is, the higher price you’ll need to pay, since it will cover a wider variety of mishaps and accidents.
You can handpick the types of protection you want depending on your situation. The next section will provide a full list of the common items that RV owners might need.
What Travel Trailer Insurance Typically Covers
Liability Coverage
Liability insurance is often the bare minimum that an automobile policy would offer. For an old rig with a short remaining service life and little resale value, it makes more sense to only apply for liability coverage.
This type of coverage will pay for any damages caused to another party in the event of an accident, but doesn’t cover the damages done to your RV and doesn’t protect you in case the person who damages your rig is under- or uninsured.
Collision Coverage
This type of insurance covers damages incurred to your travel trailer in the case of an accident, regardless of who is at fault, and regardless of whether both vehicles are moving or one of them is parked.
Comprehensive Coverage
There are many cases where your RV can be damaged even when no accident has taken place. This includes fire, theft, natural disaster and catastrophic weather conditions, or random events like vandalism or falling trees.
True to its name, this coverage is pretty comprehensive and will protect you from a large number of unwanted incidences. If you have a newly purchased and expensive luxury RV, paying for the comprehensive coverage will be worth it.
Cargo Coverage
This is a necessary coverage that you should include in your policy if you will be hauling costly cargo on a regular basis, such as sports equipment or any other consumer goods that will be expensive to repair and replace.
With a cargo coverage, you will receive a payout to repair or replace anything carried inside your travel trailer in case of an accident.
This coverage usually is quite affordable, but if you travel in your trailer for recreational purposes and have no need for it, do check if your policy includes it and make sure to remove it to reduce your overall premium.
Contents Coverage
Even if you’re not hauling goods with high commercial value, you might be bringing along expensive personal belongings like PCs, laptops, TVs, and expensive electronic appliances.
A content coverage will protect you from losses due to theft or other accident-related damages, but do note that some personal items may be already covered under a comprehensive or collision coverage and some others may be already covered under your homeowner’s insurance.
Others
Medical Payments Coverage
While liability policy pays for the damages incurred to the other vehicle and its occupants in the event of a road accident, medical payments coverage will cover the medical costs for you or your passengers when you are at fault in the accident and also injured.
Underinsured or Uninsured Coverage
This is supplemental coverage to cover your losses in case of an accident where you are not at fault, but the other driver is not insured or his insurance isn’t sufficient to cover the damages caused to you.
Campsite and Vacation Liability
Do check if your comprehensive or collision policies may already include campsite coverage. This policy will pay for medical or other expenses in case that another camper in the same campground gets injured around or inside your rig, for instance from getting hit by a falling TV satellite dish that’s not secured properly.
Emergency Expenses Coverage
This policy is for the unfortunate events when the door of your home on wheels simply won’t open or for some reason you can no longer sleep in your rig and access your belongings. Emergency expenses coverage will then cover accommodation and other essential living costs.
Health Insurance and Pet Insurance
While not directly related to your home on wheels, health insurance is important if you travel for months at a time or travel full time.
And if you bring along your four-legged best friends, many insurers offer policies for your pet that will help them get home safely if you are injured or for other reasons unable to care for them, and cover the cost of veterinary services and pet sitters if the need arises.
Read more: How Much Does It Cost To Rent An RV?
Tips To Save Money On Your Travel Trailer Insurance Cost
Only pay for what you need
There may be many items in an insurance policy, and your insurer may have upgrades to their policies. Not all are necessary, so make sure you consider your situation and only handpick the coverage that you need.
For instance, if you have an old travel trailer that is basically worth nothing and if you only travel occasionally in it, a comprehensive policy is definitely not worth it.
Bundling insurance policies
When comparing different insurance providers, ask if they offer discounts in case you hold more than one policy with them. If you own a travel trailer or fifth wheel, then you must also own a towing vehicle. Even those who travel in a motorhome might tow a compact vehicle along for excursions and running errands.
Therefore, most insurers these days would offer bundles that insure both your RV and your regular automobile at a discount. Depending on the insurance company, you might be able to also bundle with another policy on your other assets like boats, or your homeowners insurance and even life insurance policies.
Pay your premium up front
Just like with mortgages, whenever you have extra cash on hand, try to pay as much as possible up front to cut down the cost.
Get your co-owner to get quotes too
One person’s insurance premium can look completely different from someone else’s. This is because insurance companies will look into your driving experience, driving records and insurance claims history, as well as your credit score. Someone with a poor credit score will be charged a higher premium.
So if you share ownership of your RV with someone else, both of you should shop around and apply for insurance policies, and see if one can get a cheaper quote.
Raise your deductible
Deductible is the amount you pay in an accident before insurance kicks in, and paying a higher deductible will reduce your premium payments, but remember to set a realistic deductible amount so that when it’s time to pay, you will be able to afford it.
Companies That Insure RVs
So where can you buy insurance for your home on wheels?
The big names that offer insurance policies for travel trailers and RVs in the United States are Progressive Insurance, State Farms, Geico, Good Sam Insurance, Nationwide Insurance, National General Insurance, and The Hartford Company.