Insurance

[RobA]

I think someone from here said they used Progressive.

Anyway, the short story. I want liabilty only insurance, without a survey.
I want to be able to use Marina's and cover my butt if i hit something or sink and have oil spills etc.

So if anyone is using Progressive, maybe you know more then the reps...

Look at number 9

Common Exclusions: No coverage for (1) bodily injury or property damage when the watercraft is used for commercial or business purposes; (2) liability assumed under a contract; (3) bodily injury/death to an employee; (4) bodily injury/death caused by an intentional act; (5) property owned by, rented to, or in the charge of an insured person; (6) bodily injury/death to you or relative; (7) bodily injury/death or property damage resulting from a relative's use of a watercraft, other than a covered watercraft, owned by a person who resides with you; (8) bodily injury or property damage resulting from your operation or use of a vehicle owned by you, other than a covered watercraft; (9) bodily injury or property damage that occurs while the watercraft is being transported on land or because the watercraft is not seaworthy; or (10) bodily injury or property damage resulting from racing, or preparing for a race or stunting activity (except for sailboats in organized races).


Do you think this means if a hose clamp fails and the boat sinks at the slip I'm not covered?

The rep couldn't find an answer, I got the help desk, no answer then the claims dept. ...their answer was, that will be determined at the time of the claim...Heh, too late then buddy.

Anyway, i need to get some insurance soon.( or a month ago...sigh)

I don't have a ton into this boat, so survey, comp, liabity would total near 1500.00 for the year, just seems like over kill. But..i don't want to file bankruptcy either because of an oil spill.

Any other suggestions? Do insurance companies ever let you use a previous owners survey from a year ago?


Guess I need to do my own research, but wondering if anyone has been down this road.


Rob

[Tim]

This was also covered here before. Progressive usually doesn't require surveys, especially for liability only coverage.

Only the insurance company can determine what constitutes a "seaworthy" vessel, and you can bet you'll never find out all the factors until the boat is involved in a claim. This is because no one knows what "seaworthy" means, and there is no way to quantify this term, as it encompasses not only vessel components, but the operator's skill and experience, decisions, and so forth. Even a full survey can not determine this, unless the surveyor is inexperienced and doesn't realize the danger and impossibility of using a term like "seaworthy". No survey should ever address whether or not a boat is seaworthy; all a survey report can do is provide a snapshot of the inanimate vessel's condition at the exact moment of the survey. Anyone can then use this factual information to form their own opinions--legal or otherwise.

A failed hose clamp, to my way of thinking, is caused by negligence, something that would generally be a legitimate cause for an insurance company to deny a claim. If the clamps are suspect, replace them. Otherwise, you'll not have a problem here. Since failed hoses and clamps (all caused by negligence) are one of the leading causes of sinkings, this is an area that requires inspection and maintenance on all boats, and at frequent intervals.

[Commanderpete]

That part has always troubled me. I thought you paid insurance to protect you from your stupidity.

Your car insurance will cover you if you get in an accident because your tires were bald or your brakes were bad.

Naturally, I don't appreciate the fact that insurance premiums are higher because many owners sorely neglect their boats.

If a boat sinks at the dock, loses its rudder or loses its rig, its pretty much always going to be because the boat was not "seaworthy", at least in retrospect.

Perhaps a boat owner should bear the loss or damage to the boat, but what if somebody gets hurt as a result?

That other clause "liability assumed under contract" is controversial. Marinas now require you to indemnify them in the marina contract.

[RobA]

Ya, I was just unaware it was typical of boat insurance.


They out to throw something in the excludes coverage for "improper use of vessel" and then they wouldn't ever have to make a claim.


I understand they have to protect themselves from fraud and such, but it seems the only thing liability will cover me for is a collison. and clean up damage from it.


I mean, what if the boat catches fire, thats because of a bad wire or whatever, cause and again, its not covered because it was not seaworthy...

*shrug*

Ill just get a policy to have one i guess, its only 185 bucks.