Insuring Rare and Collectible Cars and Boats with McKeel Hagerty

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: Mikhail Haggerty explains how Hagerty evolved from a small wooden-boat insurer into a public, data-driven automotive lifestyle brand by rethinking insurance as membership, partnering with big carriers, and using proprietary valuation data. The discussion covers collector-car economics, shifting tastes toward younger, more analog vehicles, and the generational transfer of enthusiast cars.

Main Topics: From niche insurer to automotive lifestyle brand (Priority: 5/5): Haggerty traces the company’s origins in wooden boats and collector cars, then explains the strategic shift from a small insurance agency to a broader brand centered on car culture, membership, media, and events. The 'club' model and partnership strategy (Priority: 5/5): A major turning point was reframing the business from selling insurance to acting like a car club, then partnering with large insurers rather than trying to beat them directly. Data-driven underwriting and valuation (Priority: 5/5): The company’s edge comes from detailed VIN/serial-number decoding, deep collector-car data, and analytics that improve pricing, underwriting, and valuation tools. Collector cars as emotional assets (Priority: 4/5): Hagerty argues that enthusiasts care for their vehicles more than ordinary insured assets, reducing risk and enabling lower premiums while reinforcing the idea that these cars are 'toys' people maintain carefully. Media, content, and events as growth engines (Priority: 4/5): The brand extends through the Drivers Club magazine, YouTube, auctions, concourses, and other content that builds loyalty and keeps Hagerty in the customer’s mind before a car is bought or sold. Market trends: younger collectors, trucks, manuals, and analog appeal (Priority: 4/5): He sees strong demand from younger buyers for BMWs, Audis, Japanese sports cars, vintage SUVs, Jeeps, Broncos, and manual/analog cars, while older collectors are also moving into newer enthusiast vehicles. Generational wealth transfer in enthusiast vehicles (Priority: 4/5): Hagerty estimates millions of collector vehicles will move to a new generation over the next 15 years, creating a major opportunity to educate and retain younger enthusiasts through driving classes and community-building.

Key Arguments: Hagerty’s growth came from changing the customer conversation: instead of acting like an insurer, it became a community and media brand for car people. Specialization beats scale in niche insurance; large carriers need expertise, so partnering with them is more effective than competing head-on. Detailed vehicle-level data, especially serial-number decoding and usage patterns, allows more precise valuation and underwriting than broad market methods. Collector cars have lower risk because owners generally drive them less and care for them more, which supports lower pricing. The business is a flywheel: insurance generates members and data, media deepens engagement, events and auctions create transactional touchpoints, and the whole system reinforces itself. The collector-car market is broader than headline supercars; there is a large middle market across price points, body styles, and newer generations of enthusiast vehicles. The next generation is genuinely into cars, but their tastes differ: manuals, analog feel, trucks, SUVs, and 1990s/2000s performance cars are increasingly important. Garage queens are not ideal from an enthusiast perspective; cars are meant to be driven, and low mileage alone does not define value or enjoyment.

Data Points: 2025 revenue: $1.5 billion - Mentioned as Hagerty’s 2025 revenue level. Written premium: $1.3 billion - Reported as part of the company’s 2025 financials. New members: 371,000 - Record number of new members in 2025. Revenue growth / net income: 91% - Net income increase cited in the company overview. Collectors served: Almost 3 million collectors - The firm insures collectible vehicles and boats for nearly 3 million collectors. Estimated vehicle transfer: Approximately 12 million enthusiast vehicles - Expected to transfer to a new generation over the next 15 years. Estimated value of vehicles in transfer: About $570 billion - Hagerty’s estimate for the enthusiast-car asset base slated to change hands. High-value Ferrari example: Ferrari GTOs now $50 million–$60 million - Used to illustrate how dramatically values can change over time. 1969 Camaro variants: 147 different variants - Example showing why serial-number decoding matters for valuation. 1969 Camaro price spread: About $11,000 to about $1.1 million - Illustrates how similar-looking cars can have radically different values. Average model year on 2025 bull market list: 2001 - Shows the shift toward newer enthusiast cars. Manual-driving restoration / transition: Manual model years cited as last year for some Porsche variants in 2024/2013 - Used to explain scarcity and rising values for manuals. Miata production: Over 1 million U.S. market units - Cited as an affordable, reliable entry-level enthusiast car. Ferrari annual output: About 14,000 units a year - Used to show how modern Ferrari production differs from the past. Lamborghini annual output: About 8,000–9,000 vehicles a year - Including its SUV, to show broader production and accessibility.

Pivotal Quotes: "if we would just stop acting like an insurance business and start acting more like a club for car owners, it would just transform the conversation" — Mikhail Haggerty: Describing the key insight that reshaped Hagerty’s business strategy. "People take good care of their toys." — Mikhail Haggerty's late mother: His explanation of why collector cars are lower-risk insurance subjects. "The best piece of advice is to buy the car you want to drive and then buy the best example you can afford." — Mikhail Haggerty: Advice to prospective collectors about aligning passion with condition and usability.

Implications: The collector-car market is becoming broader, younger, and more data-driven. Firms that blend insurance, media, community, and analytics can win loyalty and capture the next generation of enthusiasts as valuable cars change hands.