16 Things to Know about Boat Insurance

If you own a boat, there’s not much doubt that you spend most of your time and energy either getting it ready to put out on the water or actually enjoying your boat on a lake or stream. As a result, there may be very little time left over for financial considerations, such as boat insurance. However, carrying insurance on your boat is the intelligent thing to do. Following are a few practical things you should know about boat insurance.

Your Homeowners Insurance May Cover Your Boat

If you store your boat on your own property, either in a garage or someplace else, it will most likely be covered by your homeowner’s policy. As long as the boat remains on your property, it will be protected against theft, storm damage, or any other mishap. However, the boat will not be covered if the damage is intentional or caused by negligence. There is also a possibility that your boat can be covered by your homeowner’s policy while you’re transporting it from one place to another or while you actually have it out on the water. It depends on how your policy is written. You should check with your insurance agent to determine exactly what your homeowner’s policy will cover in regard to your boat.

You Should Carry Boat Insurance for a Docked Boat

Unless you have your boat tied up at a personal dock on your property, it should be insured while it’s docked. Most marinas will carry insurance for the boats that are docked there, and they take quite a few precautions to try and avoid trouble. Despite their best efforts, an accident could occur. The marina owner will space docks far enough apart that they won’t normally rub against each other and cause damage, but if someone leaves too much line from the boat to the dock, a boat could drift over too far and bump another boat. Even though the marina carries liability insurance, it wouldn’t hurt for you have your own boat insurance.

Carrying Liability Coverage Is the Smart thing to Do

Due to the fact that we live in an extremely litigious society, carrying liability coverage is the smart thing to do. Even though insuring your boat isn’t really mandatory in some places, being without liability insurance could create a financial hardship if someone is injured while on your boat or if your boat causes damage to another boat, a dock, or someone else’s property. Taking the precaution of ensuring you have all the latest safety equipment may not be enough. Accidents can happen despite your best efforts to avoid them, resulting in injury or damage to an object or a person.

Routine Maintenance Is Necessary

If you decide to carry boat insurance, you should make every effort to do routine maintenance at regular intervals. It is necessary in order for your boat insurance policy to remain in effect. The reasoning behind this is obvious--if you don’t keep your boat and its running gear in good shape, it could fail at an inopportune moment and either hurt someone or cause damage to someone else’s property. If that happens, your insurance company won’t pay off on your claim because you failed to meet the stipulations of the policy.

The Type of Boat You Have Affects Insurance Costs

The type of boat you have will affect how much your insurance premiums are. A large power boat will cost more to insure than a small boat with an outboard motor, or one powered by oars or paddles. A boat that is going to be used commercially will cost more to insure than a pleasure craft. If you only use your boat a few months out of the year, it will cost less to insure than if you use it all year long. Ocean-going boats are insured at different rates than a boat used on inland waterways or the Great Lakes. Check with your insurance carrier to find out what your rates will be.

Financed Boats Call for Insurance Coverage

If you still owe money on your boat, you must carry insurance in order to operate it on public lakes or streams. In this way it is similar to automobile insurance--if it’s financed, you need to have insurance coverage. The primary reason for this is to make sure the lender will receive what’s owed to them if you have an accident or fail to keep up with payments.