The Van Guide
Insurance · Full-Time

Full-Time Van Insurance: What Changes When the Van Is Your Address

Full-time van insurance requires different coverage than part-time use. Which carriers offer it, what it costs, and what happens if you skip it.

The Van Guide

Most van conversion insurance policies assume the van is a recreational vehicle — something you take on trips and park at home the rest of the time. That assumption is baked into the underwriting, the pricing, and the claims process. If you live in the van full-time, that assumption is wrong, and the gap between what the policy expects and what you’re actually doing can cost you a claim.

Full-timer’s coverage exists to close that gap. It is not a separate product. It is a rider, endorsement, or product tier within an existing RV or Class B policy that changes the use classification from recreational to residential. The practical effect is that the van is treated more like a home than a vehicle for certain coverage categories, and the policy is priced and underwritten accordingly.

This guide covers what full-timer’s coverage actually includes, which carriers offer it for converted vans, what it costs relative to recreational-use policies, and the specific situations where skipping it creates real exposure.

What Full-Timer’s Coverage Adds

A standard recreational-use RV policy already covers the vehicle, the conversion, liability, collision, comprehensive, and personal effects. Full-timer’s coverage layers additional protections on top of that baseline, because the van is now serving as a primary residence.

Liability at the campsite. When the van is parked and someone slips on your steps or trips over your power cord, a recreational policy may not cover it. Full-timer’s coverage adds premises liability — the same type of coverage a homeowner’s or renter’s policy provides — for incidents that happen at or around the parked van. This is the single most important addition. Without it, there is a liability gap between your auto policy (which covers driving) and a homeowner’s policy (which you no longer have if the van is your only residence).

Personal property limits. Recreational-use policies typically cap personal effects coverage at $1,000 to $3,000. Full-timer’s policies raise that limit substantially — often to $10,000 to $25,000 or more — because the van contains everything you own.

Loss of use / additional living expense. If the van is totaled or in the shop for an extended repair, a full-timer’s policy covers temporary housing — hotel, Airbnb, rental — during the repair period. A recreational policy may not cover this at all, or may cap it at a much lower amount, because it assumes you have a home to go back to.

Scheduled personal property. High-value items — camera gear, laptops, musical instruments — can be individually scheduled on a full-timer’s policy, similar to a homeowner’s rider. Without this, the per-item sub-limits on a recreational policy often cap out well below the replacement cost of expensive equipment.

Medical payments to others. Covers medical bills for guests injured in or around the van while it is being used as a residence, regardless of fault. Standard on homeowner’s policies, not always included in recreational RV policies.

Which Carriers Offer Full-Timer’s Coverage for Converted Vans

Not every carrier that insures converted vans offers a full-timer’s option. The ones that do:

Roamly. Offers full-time coverage as a standard option in its campervan insurance product. Because Roamly places policies through multiple underwriters, the specific full-timer’s terms vary by which carrier underwrites the policy. Roamly’s quoting process asks about full-time use upfront and routes accordingly. See the Roamly carrier review for details on the product structure.

Good Sam / National General. One of the longest-running full-timer’s products in the RV insurance market. According to National General’s full-timer’s coverage page, the endorsement includes personal liability, medical payments, loss assessment coverage, and a waiver of the 50-mile emergency expense trigger. Personal effects coverage scales up to $30,000. The product was designed for the full-time RV community and has been available for decades. The key requirement for converted vans: the build must include permanently installed cooking, sleeping, plumbing, and bathroom facilities — Good Sam’s definition is stricter than some competitors. Note: Class B coverage is not available in California per the February 2026 underwriting guide.

Progressive. Offers a full-timer’s option on its RV insurance product, including for DIY van conversions (since November 2023). Progressive defines full-time use as living in the RV more than six months per year. The full-timer’s endorsement adds three coverages: full-timer’s liability (functions like homeowner’s liability for incidents at the parked RV), medical payments for visitors, and loss assessment coverage (up to $5,000 for fees from RV parks or associations). Emergency expense coverage increases to up to $7,500 for full-timers (vs. $2,000 max for recreational use). Progressive’s quoting process asks specifically whether the RV is a primary residence.

State Farm. Varies by agent. Some State Farm agents can write full-timer’s endorsements on converted vans; others cannot or will not. If State Farm is your preferred carrier, ask the agent directly whether full-time residential use is available and what documentation they need.

USAA. Available to military families only. USAA covers factory-built Class B motorhomes (Winnebago Revel, Storyteller, etc.) through a partnership with Progressive. For DIY van conversions, the path is less clear — USAA refers RV quotes to Progressive, and owner reports on Sprinter-Source indicate Progressive-via-USAA has declined “conversions unless they come converted new.” USAA’s custom equipment coverage caps at $5,000, which is inadequate for most van builds. If you are USAA-eligible with a DIY conversion, verify directly whether they will write the policy before assuming coverage is available.

What Full-Timer’s Coverage Costs

Expect to pay 15% to 40% more than a comparable recreational-use policy on the same van. The premium increase reflects three things: higher expected annual mileage, higher personal property exposure, and the addition of premises liability coverage.

On a converted van valued at $80,000 to $120,000, the difference between a recreational-use policy and a full-timer’s policy typically works out to $150 to $500 per year, depending on the carrier, garaging state, and coverage limits selected.

That incremental cost is replacing a separate renter’s or homeowner’s policy. If you are living in the van full-time and have no other residence, you no longer have a homeowner’s or renter’s policy providing personal property and liability coverage. The full-timer’s endorsement fills that role. Viewed that way, the incremental premium is often less than the renter’s insurance you would otherwise be paying.

What Happens If You Skip It

The risk is not theoretical. Three scenarios where the gap shows up:

Scenario 1: Campsite liability. Your awning collapses on a neighbor’s dog, or someone trips over your leveling blocks. Your auto liability coverage applies while the vehicle is in motion. It does not necessarily apply while the van is parked and being used as a residence. Without full-timer’s coverage or a separate homeowner’s/renter’s policy, you may have no liability coverage for the incident.

Scenario 2: Total loss with no home to return to. The van is totaled. A recreational policy pays the agreed value and that’s it. A full-timer’s policy also covers temporary housing during the replacement period, which — for someone with no other address — can mean weeks or months of hotel bills.

Scenario 3: Claim denial for use misrepresentation. This is the one that keeps van lifers up at night. If the policy is written for recreational use and the carrier determines the van was being used as a primary residence at the time of a claim, the carrier can argue the loss falls outside the policy’s use classification. The claim may be denied, reduced, or contested. Whether this actually happens in practice depends on the carrier, the state, and the specific circumstances, but the exposure is real and it is avoidable by buying the correct product in the first place.

How to Know If You Need It

The test is simple: Is the van your primary residence? If you sleep in the van more nights than not, if the van’s address is the one on your driver’s license (or you use a mail forwarding service because you don’t have another address), if you don’t have a house or apartment you return to between trips — you are a full-timer in the eyes of most carriers, and a recreational-use policy does not match your situation.

If you split time between a house and the van — three months on the road, nine months at home — recreational use is likely the correct classification, and your homeowner’s or renter’s policy covers the liability and personal property gaps while you’re at the house. Ask your carrier about the specific threshold; some define full-time as 150+ days per year in the RV, others as 6+ months, and some leave it to the underwriter’s discretion.

Where to Go From Here

Sources and Verification

Coverage details cited reflect published carrier materials as of April 2026. Full-timer’s availability, pricing, and terms vary by carrier, state, and vehicle. Confirm specific coverage language with the carrier before binding.