Even though next years’ new car models are technically dated “2027,” this doesn’t mean you have to wait until January for them to appear on your lot. Instead, these vehicles appear on auto lots like yours in the fall, giving customers something to look forward to.
While this time of year may be great for sales and leases, the wave of old models getting traded in for newer ones tends to make things complicated on the insurance front. Here’s what you need to know in order to keep your dealership protected.
Keeping Your Stock Insured During This Time of Year
As the old cars roll in for trade and the new ones arrive on your lot, you need to make sure that you have the right insurance coverages in place. Any gaps in coverage could be very expensive, especially since those new cars are worth their full price. Which insurance policies do you need? Here are a few crucial ones:
- Garage Keepers Insurance – Available in two options, one for liability and one for full coverage, although you can possess both at once, these policies protect all of the cars on your lot, including those getting fixed in your garage bays. The cost of repairing any damages to your inventory, whether it happens off the lot during a test drive or on the lot during a windstorm, may be covered by your garage keepers insurance policy, as well as anything that your dealership may be found liable for.
- Dealer’s Open Lot Insurance – There’s a unique problem that happens during the vehicle changeover time of year. People bring in their used cars to trade in for new ones, and transfer their insurance policy over in the process. This means that for a short time, that old vehicle, the newly traded-in one, sits uninsured on your lot. Should something happen to it at that exact moment, your dealership will be out money. The best solution is to have your employees immediately transfer that vehicle’s VIN number to your dealer’s open lot policy. This will prevent any gaps in coverage.
Insuring the Vehicles on Your Lot
There are numerous insurance policies that auto dealers need to have. In addition to the ones listed above, there are standard BOP, or Business Owner’s Policies, that include things like general liability and business building insurance to cover damage to the building and overall lot (the ground part of it) itself.
Plus, there are policies that you can put in place in order to protect your business from employees who make mistakes or may try to defraud your company, as well as those that protect the employees themselves, like worker’s compensation plans. All of these forms of insurance work together to protect your car lot.
Have Questions? Contact Charlotte Insurance
Want to learn more about insurance coverage for your dealership, especially when it comes to trade-in vehicles? Contact Charlotte Insurance. Our agents can explore and explain all available options and put together the insurance coverage plan your dealership needs.
