Campsite Liability - insurance issues
My RV insurer (National Interstate) tells me that when we rent an RV site we become liable for any mishaps on the site similar to at our homes, e.g. If a visitor trips on the fire pit and cracks his s...
Forum Discussion
"" Is this a real issue or is the insurance company intimidating me to double insure like they do for rental cars? ""
Its usually an issue only for Fulltime RV'ers who have no homeowners policy. Most typical homeowners policies extend their liability coverages to protect you outside your home, including during your travels. Since fulltime RV'ers don't have any home with homeowners policy protection, they need the special "Fulltimers" RV policy which is a combination of a homeowners & vehicle coverages.
Also, like any other insurance and legal question, it depends on which state this accident occurs in. the insurance regulations and liability laws vary widely from state to state. Your homeowners policy may protect you in your home state, but there may be gaps in its coverage in other states. An umbrella liability policy is usually more protective in a wider variety of situations & states. The bottom line is that anyone can sue anyone for any reason. Its not a question of whether you're liable in that campsite, its a question of who's going to pay the ongoing legal fees to get a judge or jury to agree you were not at fault.
Its not unusual for there to be overlapping policies protecting the multiple parties involved. The campground has their own policy, the victim has their policy and you should have your policy. When liability is involved it often takes years in court to reach a settlement or final ruling. These liability cases often end with mixed results, the campground is found 70% liable, you're found to be 20% liable and the victim is found to be 10% liable.
Or after 24 months with 12 different court appearances requiring you to take time off and travel to the out of state court, and having spent $50,000 on your own lawyers, you may be found not liable. Big deal if no ones paying your expenses. The multiple insurance companies and their high paid lawyers are going to point the finger at everyone else and the biggest value of your policy is the insurance company defending you with their lawyers through this process. Who was right or wrong becomes far less important than who can afford to go on paying their lawyers to fight on year after year. In fact many insurance companies will try to reach a settlement and pay off the victim even though they agree you had no fault or responsibility, its just a cheaper business decision than ongoing legal fees.
Its usually an issue only for Fulltime RV'ers who have no homeowners policy. Most typical homeowners policies extend their liability coverages to protect you outside your home, including during your travels. Since fulltime RV'ers don't have any home with homeowners policy protection, they need the special "Fulltimers" RV policy which is a combination of a homeowners & vehicle coverages.
Also, like any other insurance and legal question, it depends on which state this accident occurs in. the insurance regulations and liability laws vary widely from state to state. Your homeowners policy may protect you in your home state, but there may be gaps in its coverage in other states. An umbrella liability policy is usually more protective in a wider variety of situations & states. The bottom line is that anyone can sue anyone for any reason. Its not a question of whether you're liable in that campsite, its a question of who's going to pay the ongoing legal fees to get a judge or jury to agree you were not at fault.
Its not unusual for there to be overlapping policies protecting the multiple parties involved. The campground has their own policy, the victim has their policy and you should have your policy. When liability is involved it often takes years in court to reach a settlement or final ruling. These liability cases often end with mixed results, the campground is found 70% liable, you're found to be 20% liable and the victim is found to be 10% liable.
Or after 24 months with 12 different court appearances requiring you to take time off and travel to the out of state court, and having spent $50,000 on your own lawyers, you may be found not liable. Big deal if no ones paying your expenses. The multiple insurance companies and their high paid lawyers are going to point the finger at everyone else and the biggest value of your policy is the insurance company defending you with their lawyers through this process. Who was right or wrong becomes far less important than who can afford to go on paying their lawyers to fight on year after year. In fact many insurance companies will try to reach a settlement and pay off the victim even though they agree you had no fault or responsibility, its just a cheaper business decision than ongoing legal fees.
