Todd, I know you are trying to help, and that is appreciated. Please
understand that me not "liking" your definition is not the point here.
What I am trying to do is relate why this "truck" definition will, in
reality, fail to get insurance in at least the State of Maine (and I
suspect pretty much anywhere). In my case I couldn't get the insurance
in the first place with this definition because I can't get my Weasel
registered with the DMV since it has no wheels. Even if I did somehow
get truck insurance coverage (no idea how, short of falsifying paper
work), it would most likely open me up to high risk if are ever called on
it. Hell, even the MV insurance companies I called didn't want to have
anything to do with a tracked vehicle (that should tell us something <g>)
All legal definitions and common perception aside, if you tell the
insurance people that your vehicle has tracks and no wheels, they will
stop you right there and say they can't cover you (at least for a 55yr
old MV). That means it is HIGHLY likely they will challenge any claim
for or against you in the event you managed to hoodwink them and then got
into some some kind of accident. They could easily claim they don't
insure your type of vehicle, so therefore you must have withheld vital
information, and then declare your insurance policy (which you've paid
money for) null and void. Even if this wouldn't stand up in court (which
I think it would) you would have to get a lawyer and challenge them for
breech of contract (or whatever). Therefore, it is very risky to try to
fool the insurance folks in this way.
>If your state does not
>allow you to drive it, I fail to see the problem here. Sounds like you have
>an expensive lawn ornament....
I'm not sure what state you live in, or what the laws are there, but I am
up in logging territory. In the winter, when they are not actively
logging (which is most of the time in most places) anybody with an ATV or
snowmobile registration can drive for literally HUNDREDS of miles without
running out of trails. Normally no insurance is needed for this (which I
find silly considering all the deaths and injuries that happen), but I
*had* to have it to satisfy the bank. If I paid cash for the Weasel
(which means giving up investments, liquidity of assets, and cash for
restoration) all of these problems would have gone away so long as I
didn't care about being sued for causing injury in case of an accident.
>If you can't drive it on the roads, you can't get it registered.
>If it isn't registered, it can't be driven right? (What is the liability
>risk of your vehicle just sitting?) That leaves only off-road use or use on
>your own property.
I'm not sure there is any state that will let you drive on a public way
with a tracked vehicle. So yes, off-road use and on property are the
only places I can drive. This is EXACTLY what I bought it for. If I
wanted to drive an MV on a road I would get something that could go
faster than 36mph and got more than 5mpg :-) The thought of a semi
filled with a couple hundred tons of logs coming up behind me at 55mph in
a 35-45mph zone, while I am putting along at 36mph, is enough to scare
any sane man into driving off road one way or the other :-)
> Doesn't your home-owners policy cover this?
Normally, no. I was told that a vehicle for anything other than
maintaining the house or grounds (i.e. a lawn tractor) is not by default
covered in any way (value or liability). I managed to get liability
coverage under my home-owner's policy, but only because my insurance
agent was VERY persistent and persuasive with the underwriter. If she
hadn't been, I wouldn't be writing this because my wife would have killed
me due to the higher monthly payments the unsecured loan (i.e. loan w/o
insurance) would have imposed on us :-)
Steve
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