Boat Insurance

Do you own a boat or a personal watercraft or are you considering purchasing one? If so, then we highly recommend you consider purchasing marine insurance.

Commonly we see many boaters assume that their marine liability would be covered by the liability coverage offered under their home or cottage policy in the event of a third party personal or property injury. However, this is generally an incorrect assumption especially if your boat’s horsepower is more than 25hp for an outboard motor or 50hp for an inboard motor. Personal Watercraft with motors of this size and larger should ALWAYS be insured separately due to their power.

There are several ways to insure your marine exposures, and they can range from insuring the boat and motor for liability only to obtaining a specialized marine policy wording. Marine insurance policies do provide advantages over adding a boat as a rider to your Home Insurance policy, as certain coverages are only provided under marine policy wordings.

Marine insurance is also commonly referred to as boat insurance or personal watercraft insurance.

What are the key considerations when considering whether you should purchase Marine Insurance?

The key things to look for when obtaining insurance for your boats and personal watercraft will vary depending on your particular circumstances and watercraft. You may have a small runabout with a 9.9 hp motor on it for the kids to use, and with a minimal value you may be fine with it being covered under your property insurance policy. On the other hand, you may have a higher-end ski boat or cabin cruiser where the marine specific coverages would become potentially very valuable.

You should always look for liability coverage that is as broad as possible. While the Personal Liability coverage under a property policy will provide decent coverage, there are potential gaps that are only addressed under a proper Marine policy wording.

• Will your policy cover you if you are injured or suffer damages from an uninsured or under-insured boater?
• Will your liability coverages cover the costs of wreck removal?
• Will your policy automatically extend to cover newly acquired boats?
• Will your policy cover marine environmental damage expenses?

You should also ensure your policy covers physical damages to your boat and also the additional costs which may arise in a claim. Look for a policy that will pay an agreed value for your boat in the event of a total loss, and ensure that you have control over where any repairs might be made.

• Will your policy cover emergency towing expenses?
• This might be very valuable if you use your boat to travel far from home.
• This coverage can be very valuable if your cottage cannot be accessed by car. Search and rescue expenses and salvage costs are also important to consider.