Mexican Tourist Auto Insurance - Tips on How to Purchase Insurance For Mexico
Mexican Tourist Auto Insurance - Tips on How to
Purchase Insurance For Mexico
Congratulations - you are embarking on an exciting
road trip adventure to Mexico. You have your vehicle tuned and all of your gear
packed, and now it is time to purchase your Mexican tourist auto insurance. Your
Mexican auto insurance coverage decision could be the most important decision
you make, but unfortunately it is often one of the most rushed and least
researched decisions that many Mexico travelers make. Do not make the mistake
of assuming that all Mexican insurance is the same, because the differences in
insurance coverages and benefits can vary tremendously between Mexico insurance
companies. Even though researching insurance coverage is not very exciting for
most people, this article will show you how 5 to 10 minutes of research on the
internet could save you thousands of dollars and many frustrating hours if you
were to actually need to use your Mexico insurance to pay for a loss.
Use the internet to quote and purchase Mexican tourist
auto insurance
The vast majority of Mexican auto insurance is now
purchased directly from the internet. There are a number of websites that sell
Mexico insurance, and buying your insurance from the internet makes a lot of
sense for the customer. Would you rather wait till the last minute to buy your
insurance at the border, or would you prefer to buy your insurance from the
convenience of your own computer before you leave on your trip to Mexico? Most
customers prefer to get their insurance taken care of ahead of time.
The best websites to buy your Mexico insurance from
are ones that offer multiple Mexico insurance companies. This allows you to do
comparison shopping through one website instead of filling out multiple
quotation forms on multiple websites. One good Mexican insurance website with a
comparison insurance rater will save you a lot of time and confusion.
Which websites can be trusted?
Before getting your insurance quote, make sure to look
for a valid insurance license and contact information. Also, you may want to
look for a 'Surplus Lines Broker' license number. A surplus lines broker is an
insurance broker who has a direct contract with the Mexican insurance companies
and is licensed to sell foreign insurance coverage within the United States. A
surplus lines broker license is a good sign that the website is run by a
company who specializes in Mexico insurance. If the insurance license is not a
surplus lines broker license, this means the website is most likely run by an
insurance agent who is selling through a surplus lines broker. This does not
mean the products on the website are not valid, but you may not receive the
same level of customer service as you would from a surplus lines broker who
specializes entirely in Mexican insurance. You may also want to look for a
Better Business Bureau listing and some sort of internet security approval such
as Hacker Safe or McAfee Secure to ensure that your information will be secure
during your internet transaction.
Mexico insurance coverage to look for
Once you have selected a website that sells Mexico
tourist auto insurance, you will fill out the quick insurance quote form.
Within a minute, you should be able to get a firm quote and begin researching
the benefits of the insurance products offered. Remember, this will be a much
quicker and streamlined process if you use a website that offers multiple
competing insurance companies all under one quoting system (a comparative quote
rater).
Look for a chart below or above the insurance prices
that clearly explains exactly what the Mexico insurance limits are and what is
actually covered. In this chart, you will want to look at the following
categories:
Deductibles: The best Mexican insurance policies will
offer fixed deductibles, meaning the deductibles will be locked at a set amount
regardless of what the value of your vehicle is. Some of the less expensive
policies will base deductibles on a percentage of the vehicle value. If the
vehicle's value is less than $20,000, percentage based deductibles may be fine,
but when vehicle values get up in the $30,000 range or higher, the percentage
based deductibles can get very high. If the website does not specifically list
the deductibles, you should not use that website!
US Hourly Labor Rates for Repairs Made in the US or
Canada: In the old days, most Mexican auto insurance companies tried to make
customers repair their vehicles in Mexico. Repairs made in Mexico instead of
the US were often much less expensive for the Mexican insurance companies, and
many customers were unwilling to leave their car in Mexico, so the company got
out of paying these claims. Today, many of the better Mexico insurance programs
allow you to fix your vehicle in the US or Canada if you wish. The catch is
that some of the less expensive Mexican insurance programs will only pay a
limited hourly labor rate for repairs made in the US (some as low a $20 per
hour). This means the customer would have to pay the difference in hourly labor
rates out of their pocket. The best Mexican insurance programs will pay very
high US labor rates such as $70 per hour or state that they will pay whatever
the current US hourly labor rate is. These policies could significantly
minimize your out of pocket expenses in the event of a claim. If the Mexico
insurance website does not specify if repairs in the US are allowed or what the
hourly labor rate is, do not use that website to purchase your Mexican
insurance!
Vandalism and Partial Theft Coverage: Vandalism and
partial theft (meaning only part of the car is stolen such as the tires, door
panels, etc) is typically not covered by standard Mexican auto insurance. In
the past few years the higher quality Mexican insurance programs have started
to offer this coverage in their enhanced coverage programs. If you want to
protect yourself against as many types of losses as possible, you should look
for this coverage.
Liability Limits: This is the portion of the Mexican
insurance policy that pays for damages you cause to third parties. This
coverage is essential when traveling in Mexico. Most people in the industry
feel that $50,000 worth of liability insurance is probably the minimum you
should consider. Some of the best Mexican insurance programs will go up to
$300,000 combined single limit (a lump sum for property damage or bodily injury
damages), but it will also increase the insurance premium. Some customers wish
to carry these higher limits to work in tandem with their US umbrella liability
policies. You may want to ask your US insurance provider if your umbrella
insurance will recognize your Mexico auto insurance as a primary coverage.
Medical Payments: This is the portion of the Mexico
insurance policy that pays for medical costs for you and your passengers
(people inside your vehicle). $2,000 per person with a total of $10,000 per
accident is the lowest limit you should consider, but many policies will offer
much higher limits. Some of the better policies will also increase this amount
if you are hit by an uninsured motorist who is at fault. You may want to check
with your US or Canadian health insurance provider to make sure they will cover
you for medical costs incurred while traveling in Mexico. If not, you may also
want to research an international health insurance plan - but that is a
different subject.
Legal Service: Make sure your Mexico insurance
includes legal service or legal assistance. This coverage will pay for any
court costs, attorney fees, or bail payments that are a result of a traffic
accident in Mexico. The service will also dispatch a legal representative to
hold your hand through any legal procedures. This coverage is absolutely
essential, so do not purchase any Mexico auto insurance that does not include
this coverage!
Road Assistance: Most of the better Mexico insurance
companies will include some level of road assistance that will cover towing
expenses, flat tires, locksmith, and other services. This is a great coverage
to have, so make sure this is included with your Mexico insurance policy.
Medical Evacuation: As the market for Mexican
insurance becomes more competitive, many Mexico carriers are now bundling in
extra special coverages to make their products stand out. When medical
evacuation is automatically included with your Mexico auto insurance, it is an
incredible value and convenience. This coverage will coordinate and pay for air
or land ambulance services in the event of 'grave illness or injury'. This
means life threatening or very serious illnesses or injuries. Purchasing a
medical evacuation program on your own will often cost hundreds of dollars per
year, and can often have many limitations. The quality Mexico auto insurance
programs that bundle in the medical evacuation coverage will usually cover
multiple people in your travel group automatically up to four or more people.
Make sure to look for how many people are covered by the medical evacuation. If
the amount of people covered is not listed in the insurance quote details, you
can assume that the medical evacuation may only cover the driver. Other
websites do exist that specifically cover 4 or more people in your travel
group, so it is highly recommended that you look for websites that offer this
broader medical evacuation coverage.
Plane Tickets Home: Another great benefit that many of
the better Mexico insurance websites are offering is plane tickets home in the
event that your car is stolen or not drivable. This can save you thousands of
dollars, and alleviate the nightmare of needing to coordinate your
transportation back to your home from Mexico. If this benefit is offered, make
sure to see for how many people the policy will provide plane tickets home. If
plane tickets home is not listed, or the website does not specify how many
people are covered, you should check a different website. A few websites do
offer coverage for four people or more in your travel group.
When in doubt, call the website customer service phone
line for help
The reputable Mexico insurance websites will encourage
you to call their customer service departments if you have questions about the
Mexico insurance. If nobody answers the phone, or does not call you back within
a few minutes (during normal business hours), you may not want to purchase your
insurance from that website! Most Mexico insurance websites are like ATM machines.
The website is there for your convenience if you want to write the policy
yourself, but you are also welcome to call the website customer service
insurance agents and have the agents write the policy for you over the phone.
If you check for each of these insurance coverages and
website features while shopping for Mexican auto insurance on the internet, you
are guaranteed to purchase the best insurance for your situation. Five to ten
minutes of research could save you thousands of dollars and hours, if not
weeks, of headaches in the event that you need to file a Mexican insurance
claim. Be safe, and have fun in Mexico!
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