Insurance For Electric Bikes

Electric bikes have a lot in common with cars, certainly more than regular bicycles do. They’re expensive, usually more complex with mechanical, electrical and computer driven systems and they tend to travel faster and for greater distances at a time.

In most cases, homeowner or renter’s insurance will not cover e-bikes for theft, damage, or liability because the bike has a motor. And usually auto insurance companies won’t offer ebike insurance because they are not required to be registered and riders do not need to be licensed. It’s part of what makes electric bikes appealing and economical but also tough to insure.

So bicycle insurance and electric bike insurance do exist and these services are designed to provide coverage between auto, home and renters insurance where there are gaps and fine print exclusions. This list of ten questions is designed to help you test and poke holes in your traditional policies and determine whether you really need bicycle specific insurance:

1. What is the maximum value that your ebike is insured for?
2. Will your electric bike value be depreciated each year, if so by how much?
3. Is your electric bike covered for riding in organized events or races? Not sure if there even are ebike races but this is relevant for non-ebikes in triathlons and stuff.
4. Is your electric bike still covered if it’s being transported and something happens? Specifically, if you’re carrying it on a car rack and it falls off or if you check it for a flight or have it shipped and it gets damaged.
5. If you’re traveling and take your ebike along, will it still be insured away from home? (this one is especially important if you use your bike for RV travel, boating or take vacations which is popular for folding electric bikes).
6. What is the deductible on your bike and how much will you get from insurance if it’s stolen?
7. Is your electric bike still covered if it’s lent to a friend? (great question because so many people let their friends test ride their ebikes if they’re considering buying one or just curious about the technology).
8. Are bike accessories like upgraded wheels, GPS units, racks, bags and lights that are attached to the ebike covered too? Is the battery and LCD computer console covered (since these can be removed on most ebikes).
9. This one’s most relevant to higher end racing ebikes but what if just the wheels are stolen? Often these are transported separately in wheel bags which may be susceptible to theft.

Aside from damage or theft of the bike itself, there are other circumstances you will need to investigate.

• What happens if I accidentally collided with someone and cause bodily injury? Also,
• What if the bike tips over and damages a car or a storefront window?

There are some affordable add-ons to electric bicycle insurance that can help you deal with situations like this.  Velosurance partnered with Markel Insurance to form a strategic alliance making electric bike insurance available across the US. Spoke Insurance also offers bicycle insurance plans and they both offer coverage for:

These are some very cool insurance coverage options for your electric bike. The option for roadside assistance is nice if your bike breaks down; it’s like having AAA but for your bike. Note that most of these insurance products only cover ebikes that adhere to US regulation, that being less than or equal to 750 watt motors and 20 mile per hour top speeds in throttle mode and up to 28 mph in pedal assist mode.

Some of the details may evolve as states adjust their position on ebikes like California did in late 2015 to specify ebike Classes. Just below is a chart put together by Velosurance comparing their product to traditional home owner’s insurance and renter’s insurance. Some of the policies start at just $100 a year which is amazing and $25K in liability can be as low as $40 to add on.

Check out the different insurance options and the providers mentioned above to protect your investment and keep you riding without concerns!

Thank you for Reading!