Caravanners occasionally share information between them and have been known to engage in the odd squabble as to just what is the best touring caravan insurance.

Typically the respective viewpoints may be seen as:

• cost is king – there may be those who understandably follow the viewpoint that the best touring caravan insurance is that which has the least impact on your pocket and  some caravan owners will spend significant amounts of their time searching for policies that enable them to shave relatively small amounts of money off the cost of their insurance, so that they can proudly proclaim that they have the best insurance around;

• although people in this camp have an understandable inclination to reduce their costs, there is a potential problem in that there may be the danger of assuming that the only impact of your insurance on your pocket is what you are paying out in premiums;

• in fact, of course, your tourer insurance may have a much more painful impact on your finances in the event that it fails to cover you for a problem that has arisen with your caravan;

• whether you have touring caravan, park home or static home insurance, finding out in the event of a disaster that your insurance does not cover you is likely to put the costs of your premium to date into the shade or arguably make them totally irrelevant in your eyes;

• cover is what counts – the other school of thought is prepared to relegate price to a secondary level, concentrating instead on the breadth of cover offered by an individual caravan insurance policy;

• in their method of assessment, if you are the owner of a touring caravan who enjoys regular trips over to the continent, then seeking a policy that offers a wide variety of continental cover, makes much more sense than concentrating exclusively on trying to find the cheapest policy;

• the middle path – in this great and timeless debate, perhaps all that can be safely said is that what is best for one person may not be best for another;

• possibly the healthiest approach to the search for the best touring caravan insurance is a mixture of checking out in detail the cover available and then just how much you will be paying for it.

If you are looking for cheap touring caravan insurance, try to keep in mind the old wisdom that what is cheap for one may not prove to be cheap for another – in other words, it is advisable to be sure you know what you are buying and that it will be suitable for you, irrespective of its price.

There are a few points that occasionally catch out caravanners in the area of cheap touring caravan insurance (although in fairness, these may apply to any form of touring caravan cover):

• keep a close eye on the permitted territories that are included as part of the standard cover – some policies may restrict this to the UK, the mainland UK or the UK and Ireland which is fine, unless your target destinations are across the English Channel;

• think about your awning – if you have one, you may wish to ensure that it is covered under your insurance policy but not all will necessarily provide such protection;

• mileages – it may not be unusual to find that cheap touring caravan insurance, as with any form of mobile caravan cover, will specify maximum permissible mileages per annum but if these are set below your requirements, it may cost you additional money to increase cover to the level you require;

• parking restrictions – the insurance providers may have very firm views as to where you may or may not park your touring caravan if cover is to be maintained, for example, some may require that you only park overnight on sites which are formally licensed, have full services connected and which have a degree of permanent supervision;

• security precautions – it may be relatively commonplace to find policies that require the use of wheel clamps and hitchlocks in certain circumstances, however, some may go further and require the use of tracking devices and alarms etc;

• towing driver requirements – once again, it may not be unusual to find that policies specify minimum ages and driving experience of those that will be driving the caravan but some may be stricter and more demanding in this than others;

• discounts – in today’s cost-conscious world you may be interested to know that some insurance for caravans online may offer discount opportunities for certain behaviours (e.g. taking a higher excess) or for being a member of a recognised club (often known as caravan club insurance discounts) than others;

• cheap touring caravan insurance may prove to be both available and perfectly adequate for your needs but remember that it may take more than an inspection of the price to tell you that!

Trying to identify suitable caravan cover may be tricky enough but trying to identify what is the best touring caravan insurance may be an order of magnitude more difficult.

Defining the problem

The trouble is that it may be difficult for two touring caravan owners to agree what they actually mean when they use the word best.

One, who perhaps never takes their caravan abroad, may think their policy is the best because it happens to be relatively low-cost.  A higher cost policy that provides enhanced continental cover might be, for them, of little interest.

By contrast, a caravanner who enjoys the open continental roads may require a policy that provides far more extensive overseas driving protection, even if it means paying a little extra for it.  To them, the first policy’s price would be irrelevant and they would define the second policy as being the best for them.

It is difficult to reach any conclusion other than the best touring caravan insurance will be a very personal matter for each and every owner and that what is best for one may not be best for you.

Touring caravan insurance and variations

There may be a number of ways in which touring caravan cover may vary between policies.

Examples of this might include:

• the maximum mileage permitted each year under the standard policy;

• as mentioned above, continental cover – both in terms of the number of days and the maximum mileage allowed;

• the permitted ages (and possibly experience levels) of towing drivers;

• where the caravan may be parked overnight when in use;

• where it may be parked overnight, when not in use during the closed season (some policies may not allow it to be parked on the public highway for extended periods);

• whether or not you will receive new-for-old replacement in the event your caravan was damaged beyond sensible economic repair;

• the extent to which things such as awnings are covered (as well as the conditions governing claims for such items).

All of these things and several others, may need to be thought about before you will be able to consider what is the best touring caravan insurance for you.

Touring caravan insurance provides cover for, unsurprisingly, touring caravans!

Yet there are a few things that are worth grasping.

What is a touring caravan

Insurers typically regard these, as being towed accommodation caravans,

Caravans that are fixed in place (statics), places of permanent residence (park homes), have accommodation as a part of the chassis of the vehicle itself (motorhomes) and tents or folding accommodation (trailer tents or collapsible caravans) may all typically have their own forms of cover.

Constraints

Typical touring caravan insurance may have limitations in terms of a number of areas. It may be necessary to review your policy carefully to understand the specifics but it may include things such as:

• how much, if any, continental touring cover is provided;

• how many miles per annum are covered, as standard by the policy (limits may be specified both for UK and non-UK driving);

• who can tow the vehicle (limits may apply both by age and experience levels of insured drivers);

• where the caravan may be parked when in use – some policies may require that you only use formally designated caravan parking spaces or sites and some may go further and require that such sites are also fully serviced;

• specific requirements in terms of the nature of belongs that you will be able to cover under the contents insurance – some high value items may not be covered (e.g. computers) and there may be maximum payout limits per article;

• UK use – some policies may specifically say that cover only applies to the UK mainland, thereby excluding the Scottish Islands or Northern Ireland etc.

Cheap tourer insurance

Some policies may advertise prominently that they offer cheap touring caravan cover.

They may do but it might be prudent to ensure that you have carefully checked the policy’s cover, including the above areas, to ensure that you’ll be adequately protected. Some cheap cover that’s suitable for others may not prove to be suitable or cheap caravan cover for you.

Having appropriate touring caravan insurance may help you sleep a little more easily at night when thinking about the financial commitment your caravan consists of. It may therefore be sensible to take your time in selection and to get the insurance that’s most suitable for you.

In today’s cost-conscious world, some of us are looking for ways to economise – particularly with Christmas now on the radar.  One possible thing you may wish to consider is trying to compare touring caravan insurance:

• as you may imagine, tourer insurance prices may vary although it may pay to avoid rushing towards policies that appear to be lower cost – at least until such time as you have checked the detail of the cover they are offering;

• for example, apparently lower cost insurance may not be much use if you have a Hobby caravan and the policy doesn’t provide insurance for Hobby caravans (in fact, we can provide such caravan cover);

• to effectively compare touring caravan insurance, it’s necessary to look at things such as the cover provided, the policy’s terms and conditions plus that sometimes overlooked area – the exclusions;

• remember that touring caravan insurance exists to provide support to caravanners that tour with their caravans, so although you may wish to avoid paying for cover you may never use, in reality you may equally not wish to find that you’re needing to pay extra for relatively mundane things such as moderate mileages or taking your caravan overseas – some policies may offer these things as standard;

• some other policies may also fit the way you use your caravan rather better than others – for example, some policies may have very strict conditions about where you can site your caravan overnight when in use (and what facilities the site must have), something that may be an issue for you if you enjoy really getting off the beaten track;

• you may also find that your opportunities for discounted premiums may be higher in some cases than others, for example, if you put your caravan into secure winter storage over the closed season, you may benefit in turn from some useful discounts;

• if you do compare touring caravan insurance, the chances are that it will take a little time and thought, however, you may reap the benefits of this in the longer term if you are able to find a more cost-attractive policy that also provides a greater degree of peace of mind in terms of the cover it provides.