Behind
the Wheel
How to drive big rigs
RV Guide
Insure
Your Ride
It’s essential to have the
right coverage for your RV
A trailer is usually covered under your
existing automotive liability insurance
when it’s attached to your vehicle—
but only for liability. Once the RV is
detached, coverage is no longer man-
datory, but you’ll likely want to protect
against any damage.
Another option would be to add it to
your auto or your home and property
policies. If you have a motorhome or
camper van, it’s considered a vehicle
in its own right, so must have its own
auto policy for liability. You can also
purchase extra coverage for contents or
physical damage to the unit itself.
“Under an automotive policy, you’re
dealing with the unit itself,” says Mike
Mantello, AMA Insurance manager at
Edmonton’s Kingsway and Manning
centres. “With a property policy, you’ve
got the unit itself (with a certain value)
and its contents.”
This means the trailer can be insured
for fire, theft and collision under an
auto policy, which also includes perma-
nently-attached items inside, like beds
and benches. Under a property policy,
coverage includes separate contents
such as bedding, kitchen items, TVs
and even bicycles. Anything attached
to the RV, like ATVs and motorcycles
in a hauler, can also be covered, but a
separate policy may be necessary.
A common myth is that your house-
hold property insurance automatically
covers the RV contents when it’s parked
in your driveway. “This is not true at
all,” Mantello says. And if you sell your
house to hit the road year-round, the
RV becomes your principle residence
and you’ll need an entirely different
policy. Speak to an AMA Insurance
advisor to discuss your specific needs.
AMAInsurance.ca/Recreational
“The vast majority of people
have no problem jumping into
an RV and driving it with no
issues whatsoever,” says Rick
Lang, AMA’s manager of novice
operations for driver education.
“The biggest challenge is that
it’s a little wider, a lot taller and
usually much longer. When you
get into close proximity situa-
tions—like backing up in a camp-
ground—things can happen.”
An Alberta driver with a reg-
ular Class 5 licence is allowed to
drive almost any size of RV, pro-
vided it’s not equipped with air
brakes. AMA offers RV Smart, a
four-hour course, during which
the instructor rides along with
the RV driver and passenger to
teach them how to safely con-
trol this larger vehicle.
Instruction focuses on safety,
towing, braking, parking, hazard
awareness and accident preven-
tion. Instructors show tech-
niques for backing up and going
around tight corners, as well as
making more frequent mirror
checks and looking farther
ahead on the road.
“We can improve virtually
anyone’s ability to drive,” Lang
adds. Passengers also benefit
from instruction: “Sooner or
later, for whatever reason, a pas-
senger may also be required to
drive this thing. It’s better to do
so in a controlled situation, with
an instructor, rather than all of
a sudden you’re out there by
yourself and you have no clue.”
AMA RV Smart member price:
$389 ($469 for non-members):
AMADriverEducation.ca
AMA InsIder
summer 2018
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