To Appraise Or Not To Appraise

[CarRacer]

I own a Galant VR4 and am a member of galantvr4.org.
A few members have posted having accidents and their related problems dealing with insurance agents.
The insurance wants to give them 1500-2000 dollars and the cars are worth more than that. A few have done their homework and have gotten checks for what their cars are worth after doing quite a bit of legwork and using a lot of time.

I would obviously like to avoid all of that hassle. I was thinking of having my car appraised when I get it ready for the road.
My worry is that after the value is roughly double what a "regular" galant is, my rates will go up. I figure the insurance company will justify that they are insuring a more valuable car.

How should I go about it? Play dumb and insure a base model Galant, or appraise and risk higher rates but less hassle?

Thanks

[sleepydsm]

how much more would they raise your premium, I wonder? I'd think it'd be worth a little more money for a good piece of mind to KNOW your car will be valued at what it should be. If the worst should happen, its atleast one less thing to worry about...

[Scrmegl]

Most companies will only do their book value of choice. Some let you add extra coverage for custom accessories or equipment. Having the appraisal may help with a few select companies. Read your policy. It will have info in there on coverage. Then ask your agent to ask an underwriter. If they can not answer properly then they should ask their claims department.

If you find you are way under insured then look for a company that will let you insure a claimed value with an appraisal.

[Jazzie604]

check with your local provider, with some documentation at least one company will let the vehicle be insured for up to 10k without much, if any, additional charges. Sometimes photo documentation is required, sometimes just a documented list of work that is done to the vehicle. its worth the extra time and effort if anything were to happen.