About |
Bicycle Insurance now available to protect against theft & damage.
Statistics show that 32 bikes are stolen every hour in the US.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida. — Velosurance, a national, bicycle specific insurance program launched a bicycle insurance policy built from the ground up to provide customized protection for cyclists. After 4 years of development Velosurance partnered with an A rated USA insurance company to offer a bicycle insurance product with one goal in mind – to allow cyclists to create their own policy to protect the bicycles they ride - and it could not come at a better time.
According to a report from the US National Crime Victim Survey the number of annual incidents of theft-of, or theft-from bicycles was estimated at 1.3 million (just under 2.5 incidents per minute). Exact statistics are difficult to assess because in interviews with bicycle theft victims the victims indicated that under-reporting of bicycle theft is common largely due to victims’ belief that the police are not interested in bicycle theft and cannot do anything about catching the offender and returning the stolen bicycle.
There are over 15 million bicycles sold each year in the US, of which 4 million bicycles are of higher value and sold through specialty bicycle shops." said Dave Williams, CEO and co-founder of Velosurance. "A good quality entry level mountain or road bike costs upwards of $1,000 and an average value of $3,000, with high end bicycles costing as much as $20,000, and until Velosurance cyclists had very limited options to protect their bicycles with adequate insurance coverage.”
Each policy is client built and can include coverage protection for damage to the bicycle caused by theft, crash, collision, fire, attempted theft, vandalism or hitting another object. In addition, coverage for spare parts, cycle apparel, rental reimbursement and competitive fee reimbursement is included at no additional cost.
Optional coverage such as Bicycle Liability to cover injuries or property damage caused by the insured cyclist; Medical Payments to cover medical costs of the policyholder associated with a loss. In addition, Roadside Assistance is available that offers the cyclist a tow truck ride of up to 35 miles.
Williams added. "In most cases, if a cyclist has any coverage for their bicycle, it's under their homeowner's or renter’s insurance that provides limited coverage and may have a high deductible or only covers the bike for a low value. Many cyclists also expressed reluctance to file a bicycle claim under their homeowner policy as they were afraid they'd see an increase in their homeowner's insurance rates or even a non-renewal due to a bicycle claim. With Velosurance, our clients will have the insurance protection they need without jeopardizing their homeowner policy premium."
To enhance policy service Velosurance partnered with local bicycle shops nationwide to provide repair or replacement services to Velosurance policy holders. According to Williams “no matter where our client is riding there will be a Velosurance Trusted Partner bicycle shop nearby”.
Velosurance policies start at $100 per year and offer a variety of coverage levels and deductible options and is available in all states.
# # #
About Velosurance. Velosurance is a national insurance agency founded by South Florida cyclists, Dave Williams and Denis Voitenko, in response to the insurance needs of bicycle riders nationwide. The company offices are located in Fort Lauderdale.
Founders
Dave Williams is an active mountain bike rider and local cycling advocate as well as the company's licensed insurance agent.
Denis Voitenko is an active mountain bike racer, road bike racer, triathlete, and ironman competitor as well as the company’s technical administrator.
More information can be found at www.velosurance.com or by calling 888-663-9948
Statistics:
http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/Publications/e060810143.pdf
http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/bike-theft-on-the-rise-in-the-us-27021/
http://nbda.com/articles/industry-overview-2011-pg34.htm