Aptera/motorcycle insurance

[butter]

I know nothing about owning and insuring a motorcycle, and somewhere, either on the Aptera website or, more likely, in one of the multitudes of interview videos I've seen of Steve Fambro, it was suggested (or perhaps even stated outright) that paying for insurance for a motorcycle such as the Aptera would generally be cheaper than that for a 4-wheeled car.

Can anybody confirm this, since I have no remote idea whatsoever? Like.. is this more or less correct, exceptions notwithstanding (there are always some exceptions, but I'm not really thinking about that... unless I should?)?

Does motorcycle insurance truly cost less than car insurance -- specifically in the state of California (I'm being specific cause I live in CA)?

And if so, why? Cause it's less likely to cause damage to other people's cars in the event of a collision? But what about repairs for itself? Oh, I'm confused...

Sorry!
Amy

[butter]

46 views later, I guess nobody really knows! ah well... I will certainly find out in good time...

[3-4-me]

Since the car is so new, it's just speculation to guess at insurance rates.
I have a dual sport motorcycle that runs about $100 a year.
So bikes can be cheap, but I would expect the Aptera to be a little more than that:D
You might be able to give an insurance agent the website, and get a guess from them.
It will probably depend on crash test ratings, and final configuration.

[Dubito]

A couple years ago my motorcycle insurance for a daily driver was about $150/yr. No chance aptera insurance would be this low.

[daddio]

I assume the:aptera: will continue to be classified as a motorcycle as it eventually hits other states. I had a early discuss with the insurance company (one the most highly regarding in my east coast state) and even sharing the details in wiki on Aptera... they advised me:

We only insure a personal automobile with four wheels and we no longer write motorcycle coverage due to the risk.
Thank you for contacting XXXXXXX.

So when this hits here it means using an insurance company that is writing motorcycle policies, which comes with a higher premium than a car.

I hope you all have decent insurance rates for motorcycles in CA

At least the money you save on gas will offset the rate!

[ggodman]

In CA my motorcycle is relatively cheap to insure but I think this a more a function of they damage that it can do to a car in a collision vs the price of the motorcycle (cheaper than a car) I would expect the rates for the Aptera to be car like.

[JimmyDreams]

My insurance company (USAA) insures motorcycles, but not 'crotch rockets'. They basically only insure the cruisers/Harley type bikes. Anything that can pull a wheelie is right out.

I have no doubt that the Aptera will fit their criteria.

JimmyD

[evolutionmovement]

MA and NY motorcycle insurance is much cheaper than a car, but they probably go on a case -by-case basis just like with cars, so who knows how the Aptera will turn out. Another reason for lower insurance rates might be that motorcycles up here can't be driven year round and are usually more of a toy when they are being used so they accumulate much less mileage than a car.

[Aptera2435]

The insurance depends upon the value of the vehicle, the coverage amounts, and the insurance company's understanding of the vehicle with some statistical basis for claim projections. Motorcycles have been around for 100 years, so there is a lot of data. Cars too. Fully enclosed three wheelers are a bit rarer, so hopefully some senior management of auto insurance agencies have seen the Aptera and taken a liking to it, and will green light their agents to use some similar three wheel actuarial tables as a basis for insuring these vehicles.
And there's always BikeSure. "Superb insurance deals for all kinds of Trikes. We cover trikes from 50cc to 5.7l and up to £20,000 in value. A unique service. Convicted riders welcome."

[el_Tito]

Well it's apples to oranges I suppose, but full coverage insurance on my Suzuki GSX1300R (Hayabusa) is astronomically high. Something like $1800 per 6 months, and I'm 28, married with a spotless driving record. The only way I could get the wife's stamp of approval was to put it on a credit card (and thus "own" it outright) so I could get basic liability.

But yeah, anyway my point is that motorcycle insurance isn't always less than auto insurance. My fear is that it will vary wildly (at first, anyway) with the Aptera from company to company because it's such an odd-ball.

[evolutionmovement]

Yeah, but the 'Busa is a 200 mph motorcycle and I don't know about that particular bike, but nearly everyone I know with rocket bikes have totaled them or had them stolen in under a year. Of course the value of the Aptera is higher (compared to a motorcycle, but about average for a car), but being such an oddity with no interchangeable parts with other cars, not a joyride vehicle, poor getaway crime vehicle, very conspicuous, not the kind of image vehicle that would have demand with rich unsavory overseas types, or the type of durability to be a workhorse in 3rd world nations that may make an export target, I imagine theft will be low. Certainly safety would beat a traditional 2-wheeler and it may not likely be a year-round vehicle in snow states, thus keeping mileage low. I would think insurance would end up being cheaper than my $18k Mazda3, but more than a regular bike - maybe something like $1k vs. the $2k for my car.

[esmith]

Liability only insurance for a typical motorcycle is a lot cheaper than for a car. Precisely because you're not likely to cause much damage in a collision. In a bike vs. car collision, the car always wins.
Conversely, comprehensive & collision insurance is more expensive than for a car, because bikes are driven dangerously, frequently crashed, and easy to steal. It's not out of ordinary to have a comprehensive & collision insurance bill on the order of 20% of market value of the bike per year, even with good driving history. (Basically, insurance company's way of telling you that they think you have 20% chance of having your bike totalled or stolen in a given year) Cruisers like Harleys are considerably cheaper to insure than sport bikes.
Neither of this applies to Aptera. You should probably expect to pay about as much as for a Prius, maybe with a "rarity premium" because insurance companies will prefer to err on the side of caution when dealing with unfamiliar vehicles.