Page 16 - AAA Every Day – AAA Hudson Valley – November/December 2022

INSURANCE NEWS
Another gift-giving season is upon us. An exciting and impressive gifting idea is the electric bike, or e-bike, whose popularity is ever-growing. E-bikes are bicycles with an electric motor meant to help cyclists by giving extra thrust when on or approaching an incline. Not only is this great for extra assistance while exercising, but it also helps provide the ability to ride longer and farther. Perhaps this is why it is such an appealing gift idea.
With all this in mind, e-bikes can have a huge price range, some initially costing thousands of dollars. When considering a purchase for yourself or as a gift, your next thought should be whether or not it needs to be insured, and if so, how. There are a limited number of insurance carriers that will offer coverage for e-bikes in New York State, however, there are some. Markel Insurance specializes in a variety of products and is considered one of the best options for insuring e-bikes. This is because they offer stand-alone policies, meaning you don’t have to have any other insurance policies insured through them in order to have a bicycle insurance policy.
Markel’s policy states that they will pay for the amount necessary to repair or replace the insured bicycle with like kind and quality, less the deductible and up to the insured value shown on the declarations page. Primary coverage for the cost to repair or replace the cycle (including fixed accessories and components) is up to the policy limit, because of sudden, accidental direct physical loss or damage to the cycle. This coverage applies if the insured bicycle is involved in a collision, fire, theft, vandalism or
Shutterstock: Markus Mainka
hitting another object, and includes protection while the bicycle is in transit (land or air) to and from any location in the U.S. or Canada.
While some may think that an average home/renters policy has coverage for e-bikes, there are usually several restrictions on such things as the value of the buy and types of losses that would be covered. Crash damage, theft coverage, vehicle contact protection, as well as coverage when in transit are just some of the items
for which home/renters policies have extremely limited coverage or none at all. Bicycle Insurance policies with Markel would have coverage (up to a limit) with all the aforementioned items, along with additional coverages included at no additional cost, such as:
• Rental Reimbursement
• Competitive Event Fee Reimbursement
• Spare Parts
• Cycle Apparel
Unlike a personal auto policy, one unique offering
on a Markel bicycle insurance policy is the existence
of coverage while competing. Competitions included are triathlons and bicycle races. Most of the coverages purchased on a Markel bicycle insurance policy are in force while the person is competing in an event.
If you are considering purchasing an e-bike or are already the proud owner of one, contact the AAA Hudson Valley Insurance Agency at 518-649-1717 to receive a quote or to find out more about what Markel has to offer for Bicycle insurance coverage.
Eman Badr is a Certified Professional Insurance Agent and Manager of AAA Hudson Valley Insurance Agency.
16 I NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2022
Electronic Bicycle Insurance 101