Time to review your insurance! RIP hull 686.

[BlueHighways]

 

Our beloved 686, one of the last 2020's and one of the first with solar+lithium, was involved in an accident 3 weeks ago. It was deemed a total loss. First, we are very thankful that no one was injured. Second, I'm posting this to as a reminder to review your current insurance position!  And, so others can learn from our experiences. The needed facts: our Oliver was struck on the curb side then rolled to the street side.  The TV was a F250 and suffered a bruised hitch and a hole in the tailgate. 

Things we learned:

Be acutely aware that your lives can change in a matter of seconds. 

Keep digital copies of insurance info in your phone wallet or shared drive. Go download their app now and make sure you can login! Even at the accident scene, we were naive enough to think "we will just step inside and get it from the cabinet".  That's just not going to happen in a roll over. 

Know and understand your coverage. Go way beyond the declarations and read the policy.  We had "Replacement cost" but there were caveats and rules that we did not know! Know if you can use a repair facility of your choice. If you can, are there penalties for going over on parts or labor? 

Our accident occurred 6 hours from our home.  After grabbing a few things, we drove straight home. Then 4 days later, accepting the reality that it might be totaled, we drove the 12 hour round trip to gather and salvage anything we could.  None of that trip was covered on our insurance! I had always assumed the things inside were covered; on our policy they were not!

Get a dashcam! 

Understand and know that in today's insurance world, no one is coming to appraise, touch, or review your damage. You are going to use an app and take 9 pictures (one being the odometer. Yep, they will want you to photo your odometer on your trailer). 

You will probably not have an advocate.  We purchased our insurance through Roamly (listed as our agent). They had a message that said "call your insurance company, not us".  That being said, OTT was our ONLY advocate.  On our return trip to the impoundment lot, we took over 170 detailed, labeled and scaled pictures and shared those with Mike in service.  In less than 2 hours we had an estimate of the damage from him ($77,000). Oddly enough, after about 6 days, we got a repair estimate (from the 9 pictures) from the insurance company that was $1000 more. 

 Keep a record of every penny you spend on the Oliver from the original bill of sale down to the rug in front of the door and the command hooks on the wall.  With the help of Oliver and our own record keeping, we raised our valuation by $10,000 from the original insurance valuation. 

Take lots of pictures. First at the accident scene and then of the damage. Get every angle and multiple zoom levels. 

Again, please set aside some time and review your insurance! 

Over all, our story ends well - we have ordered a new Oliver! 

 

Quote

 

 

[topgun2]

I'm so sorry that you have had to go through this ordeal but I'm glad to hear that no human was hurt in the accident.

Its also nice to hear (but not surprising) that Oliver was a great help to you.  I keep telling people that I've never dealt with a finer group of people/company.  For me, they are really what makes the Oliver Travel Trailer so special.

From your picture above, it appears as though the Oliver basically remained in tact.  Were there any cracks in the exterior or other signs or major structural damage - of course I'm assuming that the exterior was roughed up a bit and I noticed the odd angle of that axle.  Additional pictures would be of interest if you can share them since there have been relatively few Ollies involved in major accidents.

Bill 

[Mike and Carol]

Glad to hear everyone is okay and thanks for sharing your lessons learned!  Mike

[Steph and Dud B]

Wow. Sorry this happened to you. It's a shame. Thank you for taking the time to offer such sound advice. I look forward to hearing about your new Ollie in a year or so.

[BlueHighways]

1 hour ago, topgun2 said:

. . .it appears as though the Oliver basically remained in tact.  Were there any cracks in the exterior or other signs or major structural damage -  

Yes - in tact it was.  The stairs were broken off but, they took the brunt impact. This pic shows the impact point. The right-front axle was sheared off the frame from the impact and the right-front rim bent.  Major structural damage? All 4 pieces of the hull where damaged somewhat so I would say damage was more extensive rather than severe except at the impact point.  The interior dividing walls were toast (bathroom and closet). I went around the mid-joint of the exterior hull and found 1 small place where they looked separated. To the naked eye, I could not see any issue to the frame even at the point of impact. But, based on other clues, it wouldn't surprise me. 

But, everything shifted - the second pic is a fork wedged under the pantry. It was in the top drawer on the other side of the trailer.

In one amusing exchange, the sheriff radioed his dispatch for a rollback to haul the Oliver. Dispatch called back saying the towing company was bringing a dump truck and looking for someone with a skid steer. When they finally arrived the tow company apologized for the delay - in their experience, an RV rollover ALWAYS required a skid steer and a dump truck! 

 

[bugeyedriver]

How sad, seeing your Ollie 'laying down'.  It's like a family member being wounded.  Glad no human or pet was injured.  Thanks for posting this for all to learn from.

[topgun2]

😲

Thanks for the pics!

Do you (or the cops) have an estimate of the speed involved at impact?

Whatever, it must have been fast enough to cause one heck of a "bump" in your F250.

 

Bill

[jd1923]

13 hours ago, BlueHighways said:

Oliver was struck on the curb side then rolled to the street side.

Trying to imagine how this happened on the curbside. Somebody driving on the wrong side of the road? Was it cross traffic, somebody did not see you or not stop?

[BlueHighways]

Yes - avoided a head on. 

[Patriot]

@BlueHighways

The absolute most important thing is no one was hurt. I could not agree with you more on knowing your insurance policy 💯 and also having a dashcam. We have a Garmin Mini and it records everything in front of us. Like others, I am not surprised by the assistance provided to you by OTT, a really great group of folks.  

Glad to hear that you are placing an order for a new Oliver!

 

Edited September 21 by Patriot

[BlueHighways]

Did I say ordered? I did! That is incorrect. We put down money on one of the showroom demos. We are/will be owners of #1550. 

And going back to lessons learned:  We were insured with Safeco for replacement cost. But, we only get the replacement cost IF we purchase a NEW "similar" unit.  And that money goes straight to the dealer.  If we never buy, we only get the valuation.  That's why the valuation was so important.  I believe another consideration for everyone is that with ~ 2000 units out there and with more on the market, a good first cut valuation is much easier for the insurance companies.  

Finally - on the long 6 hour drive home after the accident, the traumatic events settled on us and became real. We had lost a central part of our retirement plan in just a few seconds! The "what next?" question finally came up.  I won't lie - we talked about the options of more room or a fridge that you can access without sitting on the floor. We quickly came to our senses and realized that if we were ever in a similar situation again - we wanted to be in an Oliver.  By the time we got half way home we were dreaming of the quiet Truma A/C!

 

[HDRider]

This story needs to be the next ad OTT runs

[Jason Foster]

I am so glad no one was hurt, at least physically.  The emotional trauma will last for a while yet.  I have seen so many accidents in my life that they don't even get my heart rate up anymore, but for most people, they are exceptionally stress inducing.  I can't wait to see pictures of your new OTT in the wild.

[Boudicca908]

On 9/19/2024 at 11:28 PM, BlueHighways said:

I'm posting this to as a reminder to review your current insurance position!

Thank you for sharing your story -- and this important reminder.  I am so glad you and yours weren't injured. Having survived a head-on (that totaled a Volvo) I will say that the experience will probably always be with you. It's wonderful that you've taken steps to get back in the saddle. Best wishes!

[John Dorrer]

On 9/19/2024 at 10:28 PM, BlueHighways said:

 

Our beloved 686, one of the last 2020's and one of the first with solar+lithium, was involved in an accident 3 weeks ago. It was deemed a total loss. First, we are very thankful that no one was injured. Second, I'm posting this to as a reminder to review your current insurance position!  And, so others can learn from our experiences. The needed facts: our Oliver was struck on the curb side then rolled to the street side.  The TV was a F250 and suffered a bruised hitch and a hole in the tailgate. 

Things we learned:

Be acutely aware that your lives can change in a matter of seconds. 

Keep digital copies of insurance info in your phone wallet or shared drive. Go download their app now and make sure you can login! Even at the accident scene, we were naive enough to think "we will just step inside and get it from the cabinet".  That's just not going to happen in a roll over. 

Know and understand your coverage. Go way beyond the declarations and read the policy.  We had "Replacement cost" but there were caveats and rules that we did not know! Know if you can use a repair facility of your choice. If you can, are there penalties for going over on parts or labor? 

Our accident occurred 6 hours from our home.  After grabbing a few things, we drove straight home. Then 4 days later, accepting the reality that it might be totaled, we drove the 12 hour round trip to gather and salvage anything we could.  None of that trip was covered on our insurance! I had always assumed the things inside were covered; on our policy they were not!

Get a dashcam! 

Understand and know that in today's insurance world, no one is coming to appraise, touch, or review your damage. You are going to use an app and take 9 pictures (one being the odometer. Yep, they will want you to photo your odometer on your trailer). 

You will probably not have an advocate.  We purchased our insurance through Roamly (listed as our agent). They had a message that said "call your insurance company, not us".  That being said, OTT was our ONLY advocate.  On our return trip to the impoundment lot, we took over 170 detailed, labeled and scaled pictures and shared those with Mike in service.  In less than 2 hours we had an estimate of the damage from him ($77,000). Oddly enough, after about 6 days, we got a repair estimate (from the 9 pictures) from the insurance company that was $1000 more. 

 Keep a record of every penny you spend on the Oliver from the original bill of sale down to the rug in front of the door and the command hooks on the wall.  With the help of Oliver and our own record keeping, we raised our valuation by $10,000 from the original insurance valuation. 

Take lots of pictures. First at the accident scene and then of the damage. Get every angle and multiple zoom levels. 

Again, please set aside some time and review your insurance! 

Over all, our story ends well - we have ordered a new Oliver! 

 

 

So sorry for the loss but happy there was a good ending.

[csevel]

So sorry for your loss but how exciting to order a new Oliver!  I went through a whole process with National General Insurance for Agreed Value and it took forever.  I hope in the event of a loss of our ILOVHER that the insurance will be there.  Good to note all of your documentation was helpful.