GAP insurance

[wem]

I am on my way up to Connecticut to pick up my new Cayenne S Coupe. Yesterday I called Amica to get the insurance set up. I will be financing the purchase. The Amica rep asked if I wanted Gap insurance. I told her I was purchasing not leasing. She said they are now offering/recommending Gap insurance because new car prices are at MSRP or higher these days. In the event the car is totaled and I am underwater on the loan balance, the coverage will take care of it. It was only $28/year. I decided to take it.

I also have a 2023 AMG SL55 that is sitting at the MB VPC in Brunswick, GA waiting for MB to set the 2023 MSRP for the 2023 model to get the Monroney label issued (I traded in my Taycan in Nov b/c the MB dealer offered a crazy amount for the trade in). Not the best time to buy expensive cars with MSRP pricing and high interest rates. But it is always a fun time to take delivery of cars that you spec’d exactly the way you want them.

[audi4t]

Congrats - hope u take delivery soon

[Tom]

Congrats on the new cars. Is the Cayenne Mamba Green!?!

Paying extra to insure for the actual/market value of the car is a new one on me. Sounds like something an insurance co would come up with.

[wem]

@Tom I miss the Mamba Green. The new Cayenne is Chromite Black metallic exterior with a black and bordeaux red interior with carbon fiber trim and cf steering wheel. One of my favorite options is the Porsche fire extinguisher. For $140 it looks awesome. It is something that Porsche will not retrofit later on. I'll post pics when it gets delivered to my house. The car was supposed to be delivered to the Atlanta Porsche Experience Center. All the paperwork was completed. There was a screw up and the car was delivered to the selling dealer in Connecticut. They will have it transported to me in an enclosed trailer.

As far as color, all is not lost. Although not as eye catching as Mamba Green, my new AMG SL55 should be released from the port shortly. It is Hyper blue metallic with a diamond stitched truffle interior.

[blueline]

At only $28, the extra premium for the Gap insurance is cheap for what it offers to those who finance or lease. It's been around for awhile and is well regulated by most states as you would expect. As always, determining the value of the loss will be key but the nice thing about Gap is that the customer is mostly out of the loop and will have their loan/lease balance satisfied in full.

The flip side is what to do if your vehicles are worth substantially more than the value placed on them by insurance companies as is the case now, especially for higher-end cars, trucks and SUVs. That scenario applies whether or not the vehicle is financed. The only sure way to be covered for increased worth is guaranteed value coverage such as that offered by Hagerty or Leland West, to name a couple. You get to pick your value (with underwriting approval of course) and even though it's not cheap, it is reassuring. It's something to think about, especially in light of hordes of horrid drivers on U.S. roads these days and others out to steal or do no good. (Yeah, carping on the dreadful state of too many licensed, unlicensed and uninsured drivers is a constant with me. Sorry!)