Many used cars are sold on a daily basis and used car dealers sell and buy used cars to make money. In this business, they can often face loss if the parts of the vehicle get damaged or broken in an accident. So, to avoid these kinds of losses or to minimize them, used car dealer goes for insurance. In this article, we will thoroughly understand what used car dealer insurance is, What are its costs, and what are the factors that affect its costs.
What Is Used Car Dealer Insurance?
If a person is running a business by selling or buying used cars, he may need insurance for his used car dealership. This kind of insurance may include The coverage of loss that may include any theft, or property loss caused due to any natural disaster. It also covers the insurance of the vehicle, third party, and the employees working at your dealership. Moreover, it also includes the insurance of the place where you are operating your used car insurance dealership. It is the type of insurance that provides protection to your business and tends to make things easy for you.
Types of coverage needed for used car dealers:
When a used car dealer gets insurance done they can enjoy the pleasure of the following coverages:
General liability coverage:
If you are dealing with cars, whenever a customer approaches you for buying a vehicle they are allowed to have a test drive so that they can estimate the fact if they want to buy a car or not. In doing so, some drivers get into an accident and suffer from an injury. General liability coverage is insurance that helps you to cover the expenses of the injury and pays for their medical bills.
Workers compensation insurance:
This insurance pays for the damages that can occur to any employee working at your dealership. These losses may include the physical injury caused to any employee because of an accident caused in the garage, sickness of the employees, and salaries that have not been given. It covers the medical bills of the employees in case they get harmed at work.
Business Owners Policy(BOP):
Business owner policy includes general liability coverage and commercial property insurance at a time. As it covers two types at a time it is generally cost-effective for the car dealers because it covers medical expenses as well as the costs of the loss caused to property.
Garage liability insurance:
This is the type of insurance that includes the cost of the mishaps that can occur at your place of used car dealership. It also covers the lawsuit against you by the customers who undergo any type of accident at your place. These accidents may include injuries during test drives or if any person falls because of something on the floor and gets injured.
Costs of used car dealer insurance:
The cost of insurance can be on the basis of the coverage that you are asking for such as:
- In the case of General liability insurance can range from $50 per month to $576 per year.
- In the case of a Business owner policy, insurance premiums can range from $120 per month to $1422 per year.
Factors affecting the costs:
As we have discussed the cost of insurance, now we will discuss the factors that affect the cost of Insurance:
Location:
Location plays an integral part in deciding the cost of Insurance for car dealerships.
- If you are in an urban area. Your insurance costs will be high. It is because there is more hustle and bustle in an urban area. There are more people and vehicles on the road so are the more chance of any accident occurring in your place and the vehicle. Increased chances of accidents also increase the rate of insurance.
- If you are from any rural area you can have the privilege of low costs. Its reason is that rural areas usually have low chances of accidents as there is less traffic in rural areas as compared to cities and urban localities.
Types of dealership:
The type of cars sold and bought at your car dealership can also affect the costs of Insurance:
- Used car insurance usually has lower costs of insurance than new cars. This is because used cars have reduced prices than new ones. But in the case of dealing with used cars, a person has to face many complaints regarding the old parts not working properly and many more.
- Luxury car dealerships have to face high costs of Insurance as luxury cars are the most expensive ones. Luxury cars are mostly high speeding cars and are most susceptible to accidents. Moreover, if any luxury car meets an accident and gets damaged its parts are very expensive and its recovery costs are much higher.
Size of the dealership:
The size of the dealership means the number of cars standing in your garage and the number of employees working in your dealership. The more the number of cars and employees. the more will be the insurance premium for your car dealership because more cars are at risk of facing accidents.
Previous Claims:
If your used car dealership has a history record of a lot of claims. It means that you have to face high premiums for insurance because, with every new claim. there are chances of an increase in the costs of insurance for the next claim. So Insurance companies consider that you are more in hazard of facing accidents.
Insurance coverages:
- If you are asking for different extra coverages for different chances of calamities that may include insurance coverages for your employees and third parties. Your insurance premiums will go up automatically.
- But if you are going for minimal and basic coverages and high deductibles. The rate of the Insurance will be less. But in case of an accident, you will have to pay for the losses from your own pocket.
Conclusion:
Used car dealer deals with used cars to make money. These kinds of businesses also need insurance to protect themselves from facing any severe financial loss in case of any calamity. Different types of insurance deal with them and provide coverage for many losses. But there are also some factors that affect the cost of insurance and can tend to make rates go up or down. These factors are usually location, previous claims, coverage types, and types of cars. Used car dealer Insurance needs to keep these things in mind while they are thinking about estimating the insurance costs.
FAQs:
What do new car dealers need to insure?
New car dealers have to buy insurance because in most states it is legally required to get your car dealer insurance done. If you don’t get your car dealer insurance you may breach a law which may result in serious results. These results can be in the form of severe penalties and heavy fines.
What risks do used car dealers face?
Used car dealers may have to face risks of accidents, or theft of the vehicles. Vehicles can also be damaged in case of any natural disaster such as earthquakes and floods etc. Their garage can also be damaged in an accident caused by a driver in driving-test. Moreover, they can also face the injuries and illness issues of their employees. So, to manage and avoid the costs of all the above-mentioned problems. It is preferable for used car dealers to buy insurance. Additionally, used car dealers also face complaints regarding the wear and tear of different cars.
What are some tips for buying used car dealer insurance?
If you are a used car dealer and are searching for a reliable and professional insurance company you need to consider these things.
- Whenever you want to get your insurance done. You should shop around and search for the best insurance company in the town by comparing quotes and policies of different insurers.
- You also need to keep in mind what types of coverage are needed by you and choose those coverages only to avoid extra charges.
- Then talk to your insurer in detail about every policy and remove any policies if needed. It is very necessary to make everything clear before signing an agreement.
Does every car dealer need insurance?
Yes, every car dealer needs insurance regardless of the fact that they are selling new or old cars as insurance protects a person from facing serious financial losses as it will help you manage the costs of the losses in case of any accidents. Whenever there is loss caused due to any inconvenience, a person goes through many challenges including mental pressure. At such times, it is helpful to have insurance.