Some marinas won’t allow you to reserve berthing or even enter without emailing ahead a valid coverage certificate. London Maritime Insurance will provide reasonable coverage including Atlantic crossing (outside the hurricane period).
Under-insuring is a real concern. I was under-insured and my boat was damaged in a hurricane. The insurance company deemed the boat "beyond economical repair" because the damage estimate exceeded 75% of the coverage. As a result, they handed me a check and totaled the boat. Luckily, there were so many damaged boats from the hurricane that the salvage value was low and I was able to buy it back for next to nothing. I spent the next two years repairing it myself. The only issue now is that I have some difficulty getting even liability coverage because they "black listed" the boat and neither Progressive nor Geico (Boat US) will write coverage on it.
Our first insurance for outside the US turned out to a “high risk”. It was bought through a broker and we had difficulty because our boat is a 1978 and to old for most insurers. A year later when we looked into other insurance options- because we felt $2800 was rather expensive when they also wanted a new survey. We contacted some other insurers and they refused to insure us because we had had high risk. Never had a claim and had State Farm for 3 years previously. We opted for liability until next year when we will haul out and have a survey then look into actual coverage policies. Thanks for the info!
We are experiencing the same thing!! Our boat is too old and is considered a high risk in spite of all the improvements. Insurance companies may not be well versed in boats, except where it hurts their pockets for “any” boating issue.
Yep, our boat has had a complete 3 year refit and we live on it and sail ( not just sitting in a marina). The work we do is often much better than you can pay to have done and we keep up all repairs. So yeah, the insurers don’t really get it - at least in my opinion. We did find an insurer who wasn’t afraid of the age and if I can it I will post it.
I sailed most of the last 8 years. Entire east coast of USA, Bahamas, western Caribbean. In the first 7 years not once was I ever asked to show proof of insurance. Only in the last year was I asked. When I produced it, the marina office signed me in without even looking at it.
The insurance I have had for five years covered sailboat racing. For 2025 that was discontinued. A rider to cover sailboat racing was over half the cost of the basic insurance. I switched to a company which covers sailboat racing as part of the policy.
Im gonna have a hell of a time finding insurance for Maverick. Shes a rotten 62 year old wooden boat that im slowly, meticulously rebuilding and restoring and is also my first boat.
My advice: buy a boat such that if it was a total loss, you would be both able and willing to accept the loss. Then get an insurance policy of some kind. Minimal or maximal is your choice. Hint: Having a HUGE insurance policy will make you a real target in any kind of lawsuit.
If I have a boat in my name only and my husband is out sailing it and damages another boat and they sue, then am I the one getting sued? or the person sailing the boat? thanks
I spent two months trying to get a liability only policy while i am sailing the south pacific. After two months of paper trails and back and forth I was denied with no reason provided. Maybe i had a poor quality broker. More likely it was underwriters dragging their feet because so few of my boat were made. Now sailing self insured.
Most insurers will require a survey. Make sure the surveyor has the level of qualifications required by the insurer (in the US for example they often require a SAMS Accredited Marine Surveyor or NAMS Certified Marine Surveyor). I’ve lost count of the amount of calls I get from unaware new owners who “got a survey” but the insurers / bank won’t accept it as the surveyor was not qualified
The Liability insurance is concerning. I had a conversation with a man whose boat broke loose and ended up on a beach. According to him, the removal cost was 7 figures which he didn't have enough coverage for... It gets complicated......
I completely agree, but $3000 plus haul out and survey when we have to haul out this next fall for new rigging and bottom paint is to much for us retired folks. We are in Mexico which has pretty good maps and good anchorage. If your in say the Caribbean where that isn’t the necessarily the case I’d probably pay it.
Insur is frightening nobody talking WHY ? Say i have yacht cost anywhere from 40 to 500 million no fire suppression plumb in life jackets nicely stored out of the way Crew at minimum-1 oh a broken part that can wait until home goig off into horizion knowingly light weather turns to nasty Boat not built for mistakes that do come In the last year alone how many super mega yachts are down under i lost count who pays? WE THE ROW BOATERS DO AND PAY WE DO . DO THESE MEGA SHIPS PAY FOR WHAT IT COST TO BRING IT BACK TO PORT or leave it .for artificial reef ! ALL I CAN SAY IS if your boat is 500 million or more its about time they pay .just saying .
Why is buying a $1m boat, using it to give pleasure over 20 years, then passing on the $½m residual value to your heirs a problem for any one? Are you confusing a legacy with an investment?
@ he said financial legacy. Pass along a million dollars in a index fund that’s a financial legacy. I’ll also add boats are difficult to sell and cost money to store and operate. I’m not saying boats are bad it’s just not a “financial legacy”. To most people it would be I financial burden
Sorry, but I can't find a single definition of financial legacy which stipulates growth of assets. Perhaps you could direct me to one? Meanwhile, I'll continue to believe that a financial legacy is a sum bequeathed and nothing more. It does not require growth and can include depreciation.
I thought he meant legacy in that if one lacked liability coverage and got sued big time, then one may not have much left to leave one's family. For example, if I were to run over a paddle boarder on our inland lake with my 22' cheap old Catalina, I could get sued for all I'm worth. But my boat is hardly worth the price of a survey. Though I do love her.
Fantastic episode on this frustrating issue of insurance providers. They almost take the fun and relaxing times out of sailing.
Thank you for addressing this sore topic and everchanging field of "insurance"...
Some marinas won’t allow you to reserve berthing or even enter without emailing ahead a valid coverage certificate. London Maritime Insurance will provide reasonable coverage including Atlantic crossing (outside the hurricane period).
Under-insuring is a real concern. I was under-insured and my boat was damaged in a hurricane. The insurance company deemed the boat "beyond economical repair" because the damage estimate exceeded 75% of the coverage. As a result, they handed me a check and totaled the boat. Luckily, there were so many damaged boats from the hurricane that the salvage value was low and I was able to buy it back for next to nothing. I spent the next two years repairing it myself. The only issue now is that I have some difficulty getting even liability coverage because they "black listed" the boat and neither Progressive nor Geico (Boat US) will write coverage on it.
Our first insurance for outside the US turned out to a “high risk”. It was bought through a broker and we had difficulty because our boat is a 1978 and to old for most insurers. A year later when we looked into other insurance options- because we felt $2800 was rather expensive when they also wanted a new survey. We contacted some other insurers and they refused to insure us because we had had high risk. Never had a claim and had State Farm for 3 years previously. We opted for liability until next year when we will haul out and have a survey then look into actual coverage policies. Thanks for the info!
We are experiencing the same thing!! Our boat is too old and is considered a high risk in spite of all the improvements. Insurance companies may not be well versed in boats, except where it hurts their pockets for “any” boating issue.
Yep, our boat has had a complete 3 year refit and we live on it and sail ( not just sitting in a marina). The work we do is often much better than you can pay to have done and we keep up all repairs. So yeah, the insurers don’t really get it - at least in my opinion. We did find an insurer who wasn’t afraid of the age and if I can it I will post it.
I dont get what age has to do with it.@@robinstepanek1345
@@robinstepanek1345 Please do post the name.
I sailed most of the last 8 years. Entire east coast of USA, Bahamas, western Caribbean. In the first 7 years not once was I ever asked to show proof of insurance. Only in the last year was I asked. When I produced it, the marina office signed me in without even looking at it.
The insurance I have had for five years covered sailboat racing. For 2025 that was discontinued. A rider to cover sailboat racing was over half the cost of the basic insurance. I switched to a company which covers sailboat racing as part of the policy.
Cheers Tim. ⚓ 🇦🇺
Im gonna have a hell of a time finding insurance for Maverick. Shes a rotten 62 year old wooden boat that im slowly, meticulously rebuilding and restoring and is also my first boat.
Surprised there is no mention of fuel spill coverage. Seems like some marinas are requiring that now.
Yep, my Marina won’t even allow an overnight without proof of $1m in fuel spill insurance.
First 😊. Thanks for sharing, Tim.
My advice: buy a boat such that if it was a total loss, you would be both able and willing to accept the loss. Then get an insurance policy of some kind. Minimal or maximal is your choice.
Hint: Having a HUGE insurance policy will make you a real target in any kind of lawsuit.
It seems insurance is a ton cheaper in Europe. But they also have to produce licenses for like 10 different things. It’s a trade off
If I have a boat in my name only and my husband is out sailing it and damages another boat and they sue, then am I the one getting sued? or the person sailing the boat? thanks
I spent two months trying to get a liability only policy while i am sailing the south pacific. After two months of paper trails and back and forth I was denied with no reason provided. Maybe i had a poor quality broker. More likely it was underwriters dragging their feet because so few of my boat were made. Now sailing self insured.
Aye.
Most insurers will require a survey. Make sure the surveyor has the level of qualifications required by the insurer (in the US for example they often require a SAMS Accredited Marine Surveyor or NAMS Certified Marine Surveyor). I’ve lost count of the amount of calls I get from unaware new owners who “got a survey” but the insurers / bank won’t accept it as the surveyor was not qualified
I got a survey from a qualified surveyor. It was not worth the paper it was written on. Seriously.
The Liability insurance is concerning. I had a conversation with a man whose boat broke loose and ended up on a beach. According to him, the removal cost was 7 figures which he didn't have enough coverage for... It gets complicated......
I completely agree, but $3000 plus haul out and survey when we have to haul out this next fall for new rigging and bottom paint is to much for us retired folks. We are in Mexico which has pretty good maps and good anchorage. If your in say the Caribbean where that isn’t the necessarily the case I’d probably pay it.
Insurance problems are killing the sale of boats. Even with no claims it's on affordable😮
Fortunately, stupidity is often a covered risk.
My boats are so cheap I just need to make sure some lawyer, doctor or trust fund baby can't put me in jail by having liability coverage.
Insur is frightening nobody talking WHY ?
Say i have yacht cost anywhere from 40 to 500 million no fire suppression plumb in life jackets nicely stored out of the way
Crew at minimum-1 oh a broken part that can wait until home goig off into horizion knowingly light weather turns to nasty
Boat not built for mistakes that do come
In the last year alone how many super mega yachts are down under i lost count who pays?
WE THE ROW BOATERS DO AND PAY WE DO .
DO THESE MEGA SHIPS PAY FOR WHAT IT COST TO BRING IT BACK TO PORT or leave it .for artificial reef ! ALL I CAN SAY IS if your boat is 500 million or more its about time they pay .just saying .
Anything more than liability only is stupidity.
If a depreciating asset like a boat is your financial legacy then you have real problems. You might want to rething that wording.
Why is buying a $1m boat, using it to give pleasure over 20 years, then passing on the $½m residual value to your heirs a problem for any one? Are you confusing a legacy with an investment?
@ he said financial legacy. Pass along a million dollars in a index fund that’s a financial legacy. I’ll also add boats are difficult to sell and cost money to store and operate. I’m not saying boats are bad it’s just not a “financial legacy”. To most people it would be I financial burden
Sorry, but I can't find a single definition of financial legacy which stipulates growth of assets. Perhaps you could direct me to one? Meanwhile, I'll continue to believe that a financial legacy is a sum bequeathed and nothing more. It does not require growth and can include depreciation.
I thought he meant legacy in that if one lacked liability coverage and got sued big time, then one may not have much left to leave one's family. For example, if I were to run over a paddle boarder on our inland lake with my 22' cheap old Catalina, I could get sued for all I'm worth. But my boat is hardly worth the price of a survey. Though I do love her.
If you don't have liability insurance and damage some else's property then it can negatively affect your financial legacy