State Farm insurance

[milo187]

You all realize that this coverage is for PERSONAL HOBBY drone use. Any commercial or business use would disqualify the coverage.

 

[drvrbobob]

Yes I was inquiring about insurance to cover my drone in case of a fly away, crash, anything that destroyed it or theft I was not looking for liability and I had saw on here that several people had mentioned State Farm and I was curious if anyone had dealt with them seems that it has sort of drifted off topic

 

[RunningWithScissors]

For what it's worth, I wanted to get a straight answer as to why some pilots have no problem getting a PAP from State Farm to cover their drone, some pilots are told flat-out "no way", and still other pilots are told they have to have an existing State Farm policy to get coverage for their drone or some variation on that. So I called State Farm directly and got some information that should help to provide clarification on that subject, and eliminate some of the confusion and speculation. Because there are multiple threads on this site discussing the subject of drone insurance from State Farm, it's not practical to post my findings on each thread, so I plan to start a new thread shortly called "Here's why you can or can't get State Farm drone insurance", or something like that.

 

[GadgetGuy]

For what it's worth, I wanted to get a straight answer as to why some pilots have no problem getting a PAP from State Farm to cover their drone, some pilots are told flat-out "no way", and still other pilots are told they have to have an existing State Farm policy to get coverage for their drone or some variation on that. So I called State Farm directly and got some information that should help to provide clarification on that subject, and eliminate some of the confusion and speculation. Because there are multiple threads on this site discussing the subject of drone insurance from State Farm, it's not practical to post my findings on each thread, so I plan to start a new thread shortly called "Here's why you can or can't get State Farm drone insurance", or something like that.

Please post a link to it here.

 

[RunningWithScissors]

I had saw on here that several people had mentioned State Farm and I was curious if anyone had dealt with them seems that it has sort of drifted off topic

Depending on certain conditions, your local State Farm agent may be able to issue a stand-alone Personal Articles Policy (PAP) to cover the loss or damage of your drone (no liability coverage) for a reasonable annual premium. There's been a fair amount of confusion as to why certain pilots are able to get that PAP coverage and other pilots can't. Per my post above, I plan to post my findings on that matter shortly. For now, contact your local State Farm agent for help with that. If you're told no, contact additional S-F agents to see if you get the same response. Good luck.

 

[RunningWithScissors]

I inquired a year ago and local agent said flatly they did not insure drones! I’ll check again and this time quite some comments from here.
Thanks

My recommendation is to contact other State Farm agents in your area and talk with them about a Personal Articles Policy. It's the same type of stand-alone policy to cover your digital camera except, in the case of your drone, it's a flying camera. It's not a rider attached to an existing policy. If the agents you talk with need direction on the subject, they can contact the S-F underwriter they typically work with. Good luck.

 

[Harleydude]

I was looking at State Farm as mentioned in the Forum by serval people for my drone insurance. I was wondering if anyone has had to use them to get their drone replaced due to a fly away, crash, etc... and how was the experience in dealing with their claim adjuster.

If your drone still qualifies, I recommend DJI's Care Refresh™. It was $150 for my P4P with a $99 deductible. $250 is a lot cheaper than $1,000. That's for sure. You get TWO replacements. I've used one so far after a failed propeller issue (well documented in the P4P Forum).

 

[GadgetGuy]

If your drone still qualifies, I recommend DJI's Care Refresh™. It was $150 for my P4P with a $99 deductible. $250 is a lot cheaper than $1,000. That's for sure. You get TWO replacements. I've used one so far after a failed propeller issue (well documented in the P4P Forum).

If the propeller failure actually caused the crash, that's a free warranty covered issue, for which DJI Care Refresh should not be used or necessary. DJI Care Refresh is only intended to cover pilot error caused crashes, where no warranty coverage exists, assuming you can recover the carcass.

 

[JamesT1950]

I insured mine with State Farm for $60/year and no deductible. One agent I called wouldn't insure it because I didn't have my other insurance with them but this one did. I had to show receipts for everything I wanted insured but had talked to others who had insured with the same agent who said they had no problems with their coverage. What I like is that it even covers fly-aways no questions asked.

 

[msinger]

If the propeller failure actually caused the crash, that's a free warranty covered issue, for which DJI Care Refresh should not be used or necessary.

He actually lucked out. DJI replaced two aircraft that were damaged due to using 3rd party props.

 

[RunningWithScissors]

I insured mine with State Farm for $60/year and no deductible. One agent I called wouldn't insure it because I didn't have my other insurance with them but this one did. I had to show receipts for everything I wanted insured but had talked to others who had insured with the same agent who said they had no problems with their coverage.

Glad to hear that you found an agent who was motivated to help you. Unless your particular situation prohibits it, the response you received from the second agent is what you should have received from both agents in the same geographical area. Unfortunately, there are some very real situations where a S-F agent would have to legitimately turn down a request for a new PAP policy. Based on reports like yours, apparently, there are also some agents who are either misinformed about issuing a PAP to cover a drone, or there's a motivation to sell consumers more than is requested. I won't comment further on that point.

 

[GadgetGuy]

He actually lucked out. DJI replaced two aircraft that were damaged due to using 3rd party props.

Thanks for clarifying. Lucky indeed!

 

[GadgetGuy]

Glad to hear that you found an agent who was motivated to help you. Unless your particular situation prohibits it, the response you received from the second agent is what you should have received from both agents in the same geographical area. Unfortunately, there are some very real situations where a S-F agent would have to legitimately turn down a request for a new PAP policy. Based on reports like yours, apparently, there are also some agents who are either misinformed about issuing a PAP to cover a drone, or there's a motivation to sell consumers more than is requested. I won't comment further on that point.

It should also be noted that any drone claims under a State Farm policy are cumulatively reported in a nationwide database available to all insurers. So even if you have no other policies with State Farm, the State Farm policy claims could still jeopardize your other insurance policy rates and ability to get insurance at all. There is no free lunch!

 

[cneedelman]

If your drone is covered under an existing State Farm homeowners policy then, yes, claims you submit for the drone can impact your home owners policy. The way to avoid that is to have a stand-alone State Farm personal articles policy (PAP) for the drone that is NOT linked to any home owners policy. The average cost is around $75/year (no deductible) and covers the drone and accessories against loss and damage.

My stand alone policy was $43 for my P4P in Pennsylvania

 

[GadgetGuy]

My stand alone policy was $43 for my P4P in Pennsylvania

The State Farm Personal Articles Policies can cover any items included in the policy coverage, which is by no means drone specific. You can add additional items to be covered up to the policy limit, such as cameras, if your done value is less than the coverage value. Coverage for California residents specifically excludes drones.