He accidentally tore off his awning. His RV insurance company gave him a brand-new RV for it!

By Rod Andrew
A momentary distraction, followed by howls of rage, led to a long and sometimes frustrating process.

My wife and I make a great towing tandem. Rule number one: I never move our truck and trailer unless she is there to guide me, and I trust her judgment. Most readers of RVtravel.com will understand the wisdom of this arrangement, but, sometimes, our best plans…

In early April, we arrived back home to Canada, having driven back from a two-month holiday in Southern California. This journey, always stressful, had been punctuated by rain and wind and took nine days longer than usual. We were both tired with the RV version of jet lag. We backed the trailer into our narrow driveway, which is bordered on both sides by mature trees. All went well.

Uh oh…

The next day, we decided to take our 2012 Outdoors RV Creekside 23RKS trailer out of the driveway, just for a few minutes, to get my wife’s car out of the garage. I hopped into the truck and drove out.

Two sounds interrupted me. The first was a ripping, crunching, anguished moan from my trailer. The second was my wife, who I had not waited for, screaming, “Stop! Stop!”

Both sounds were too late.

I had hooked the closed awning on a thick branch on our cherry tree and tore it off the side of the trailer. It was hanging by the two front screws and was twisted against the trailer, where it had been joined by the cherry branch as both had made a series of scratches and gouges along the fibreglass side. Part of the cherry branch had also skidded up the front and across the roof.

I fell out of the truck cab and, I must admit, howled in anger and regret.

Remember rule number one?

Almost as bad as the damage was the humiliation: I had made enough noise to bring my calamity to the attention of my neighbours. They’ll be talking about it for a long time.

When I had recovered enough to think rationally, we backed the trailer in and I began the process of dealing with the insurance company. I knew that this wouldn’t be easy. I had, at least, three threads to follow: the insurance company, the insurance broker, and the RV repair facility.

Dealing with RV insurance

First, the broker. They confirmed that I had coverage and that they would begin the process by notifying the insurance provider. I had gone to their office to make sure that everything was being handled as expeditiously as possible.

A day or two later, I received a call from the insurer. I expected some foot-dragging, perhaps even a denial of responsibility. I guess I was in a pessimistic frame of mind. The agent I spoke to, who I will refer to as Kathleen, sounded efficient, but also calmly reassuring. She said that I should write an account of the accident and take photos. She would arrange for repairs, unless I had a place I would like to take it to. I did. The RV dealer that had sold me the trailer in 2011 had carried out a number of modifications and maintenance procedures, and I trusted them. This sounded easier than I had expected.

I took the trailer to the dealer and left it to them to assess the damage, develop a repair proposal, and submit it to the insurer. The RV dealer and the insurance agent would be in touch by phone and email.

“Our beloved trailer was a write-off!”

This is where things went a little sideways, and not because anyone was being difficult: Sometimes things just don’t work out as easily as we would hope. Apparently, there was enough damage to the trailer that the fibreglass side and roof front would need to be replaced, and the repairs could not be done at the facility I had taken it to. Kathleen, who had phoned me and told me about the development, said that they were sending an adjuster to do an evaluation of the damage and to decide where to send it.

Now, I was a little concerned.

The report from the adjuster was a bombshell. The amount of time required to repair the damage made the repairs too expensive.

Our beloved trailer was a write-off!

You will all know how attached we get to those mobile homes that have been modified to suit our lifestyle. And attached to the memories. We were stunned.

RV insurance policy all wrong

Then came even more bad news: Our RV insurance policy was for the replacement of our trailer with a comparable new trailer, but, Kathleen informed us, the broker should never have sold us that plan because our 2012 trailer was outside the age qualification for that policy, which was 10 years or less since manufacture. Our trailer was 11 years old.

I reread the policy and realized she was correct. I had renewed the policy over the phone, because of Covid restrictions, and neither I nor the brokerage agent had carefully checked whether it still qualified for that level of coverage.

Kathleen then explained our options. She could simply issue a cheque for the assessed value of the trailer, which we were reluctant to agree to. I want to repeat that throughout the process, I had trusted Kathleen. She sounded warm and friendly and genuinely concerned, but I now felt a little anxious.

Wait… a brand-new trailer?!

She went on to explain that, although the policy was restricted to a replacement similar to our current trailer, she was aware that we had believed we had more coverage, and that she would see if she could improve our benefit, beyond financing a similar trailer of the same vintage. This improvement turned out to be an offer to allow us to replace the trailer with a similar model manufactured as late as 2018.

Really? That was just … fine!

My wife and I would be responsible for finding a replacement and arranging for a purchase with the current seller. They would have an appraiser look at the deal and see if it was market value. If it was, the insurer would issue a cheque.

Three weeks later, thanks to Kathleen, we towed an impeccable 2017 Outdoors RV Creekside 23RKS Titanium Series trailer into our driveway.

Carefully.

Of course, we have to make some modifications, but it is definitely an upscale version of our beloved old trailer. And, as a 2017, it is insured for new replacement until 2027.

So, why did I write this?

I have read or heard of many instances when an insurer has made life difficult for someone pursuing a claim. This was not my experience. Kathleen, and I wish I could use her real name, was every bit as genuine and warm as she had seemed when I first spoke to her.  She kept me informed of my options and made the whole process as stress-free as possible. I know that her loyalty is primarily to her employer, but she showed that this does not rule out empathy for her clients.

And here’s a really nice ending.

The repair facility that I had chosen to repair the damage decided to acquire the trailer so that they could pass it on to one of their staff, whose wife was expecting their first child.  He has the skill and time to work on making the necessary repairs, and would not be charging for the time required to bring the trailer back to new condition. He has begun the restoration process, including installing a new awning, and has already taken trips in it, with his wife and baby son. My wife and I are really pleased that our trailer is still providing a mobile home for a family.

More by Rod:

• Roadside stop near Death Valley is an unexpected delight. (This story is delightful, too)
• Finding a hidden artistic marvel in California’s deep desert
• RV road trip fails: Update your packing lists or be prepared to face the consequences!

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