Golf Cart Insurance
 

September issue of the POA newspaper on page 16 has a report on Golf Cart Insurance. Worth reading for anyone who has, or intends to, increase their golf cart speed.

"Regardless of how you insure your golf cart if it is capable of sustaining speeds greater than 20 miles an hour it no longer qualifies as a golf cart and is, there, no longer an insured vehicle".

You are, therefore, left 100% exposed to uninsured liability.

I realized all that with the insurance and the possibility of a ticket, even though the odds are slim it wasn't worth it. So, last summer after 5 years of doing wrong, I turned my Yamaha gas cart speed back to 20mph and really haven't noticed any inconvenience. I played Glenview last week, which is about the farthest I travel and it took 40 minutes, that's with the tunnel closure crossing 466. When you're on the golf course, you never use the extra speed, after a year of 20 mph I found it's not that big a deal.

I agree, not worth to me either, actually I really don't want to go faster than 20 mph in golf cart.

I suspect that many that have increased their cart speed don't carry insurance.

Not at all surprised
 

Golf cart speed seems to be a major issue. We have seen soooooo many posts too many that boil down to laws do not apply to ME.

My cart is set for 20 mph. Far as uninsured liability it is not really a question until after an accident. As to INSURANCE-a lawyer will only go after the easy money on a contingency basis. ME UNLIKE MOST OTHERS-I will spend my personal money TO BANKRUPT anyone who injures me or mine. I do not normally like government BUT
in my opinion all the golf carts should have a number on them as the rental ones do. If, you were hit by a golf cart-it was a red Yamaha fat chance on finding them.

If, you don't know, a golf cart is designed to go 15 mph.
You only have brakes on the rear wheels. In a stop the weight shifts forward so it is easy to make it skid. A golf cart has a high center of gravity and a narrow wheel base so the flip easily. Two golf carts each going 20 mph, if they hit head on it is a 40mph crash.

I have insurance for my cart same as my car. It's not that expensive. It's also separate from my home insurance, because you risk losing your home if you're at fault.

Well this is definitely off topic but some clarification might help. If two carts are going 20 mph and hit head on, they will each experience essentially the same damage as running into a fixed obstacle at 20 mph. The total energy must be conserved. You will have two carts each with the damage of running into something at 20 mph. Neither cart will experience a "40 mph crash". I would not want to be in either cart. I hope that helps.

How would the insurance company know?

Accident investigators look a a bunch of variables..including skid marks, witness's and damage. Plus, if you someone has adjusted the cart to go faster they will see that adjustment. If they determine you were doing more than 20 and you disagree you will need to pay for an attorney and be able to prove you weren't. Even if you win you lose, attorney's are expensive as is repairing the cart. Of course if you have an accident only involving you, not another cart and no property damage it doesn't matter since you won't claim the accident with your insurance company. If someone was injured they will most likely sue you, the cart manufacturer and the person that sold it to yoiu. If you insurance company determines you were driving an illegal cart....well, just transfer the title to your house. But hey, that stuff only happens the to the other guy right?

This law regarding golf carts Is confusing to a lot of people. Just because your cart could potentially run 25 or 30 mph doesn't mean you were traveling 0ver 20 mph should you have an accident. I drive a car that potentially could go 130 mph. I have a hypothetical accident in my car and I was driving 55 mph in a 55 mph zone. My car insurance won't pay off because my car has the potential of traveling 130 mph. How "dumb" does that sound. Some have a hard time figuring out the difference in the two scenarios. The difference is simply the rule of law that says a golf cart can never go over 20 mph except it be licensed as a street legal golf cart. There is no such law for your automobile. The only way to change this scenario would be to change the law.

What would happen should you have an accident and how would an insurance company know how fast your cart was capable of traveling? That is a good question. Perhaps only by impounding your golf cart and by investigating. My golf cart is currently set for 20 mph. I think that is where I will leave it.

There are a lot of other issues raised in the article beside the speed issue.

Like a previous poster, we insure our golf cart under an Automobile policy, which seems to be the broadest way of covering the cart, including having an Umbrella Liability policy on top of it. Homeowner's policies have a lot of limitations or exclusions and we chose not to investigate a separate cart policy due to the desire to have coverage apply under our Umbrella Liability policy.

I shopped cart insurance last year, both carriers made it clear that if the car is not street legal and licensed and is adjusted to exceed 20 MPH they will not cover property or personal injury claims. I asked if my umbrella would cover any law suit and they said no, you would be operating a vehicle unlawfully. Both carriers suggested I either keep it at 20 or make it street legal.....anything other action is at my risk.

How would the insurance company know?
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Old Yesterday, 10:26 PM
JoMar JoMar is offline
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Originally Posted by npwalters View Post
How would the insurance company know?
Accident investigators look a a bunch of variables..including skid marks, witness's and damage. Plus, if you someone has adjusted the cart to go faster they will see that adjustment. If they determine you were doing more than 20 and you disagree you will need to pay for an attorney and be able to prove you weren't. Even if you win you lose, attorney's are expensive as is repairing the cart. Of course if you have an accident only involving you, not another cart and no property damage it doesn't matter since you won't claim the accident with your insurance company. If someone was injured they will most likely sue you, the cart manufacturer and the person that sold it to yoiu. If you insurance company determines you were driving an illegal cart....well, just transfer the title to your house. But hey, that stuff only happens the to the other guy right?
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Old Yesterday, 11:23 PM
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You both just told them

I guess I should have put whatever an emoticon is for sarcasm in my "how would they know". I seriously doubt that any golf cart skid marks, etc would prove a difference in speed of 2 or 3 mph - i.e. 23 vs 20 mph. Never been in that business so maybe I'm wrong.

If you go into the Brownwood cart store that openly tell you they will bump the speed over 20 mph.

I do 20 always get passed