Boat Insurance

J

Jon - CLou

New member
Anyone know of a good boat insurance company in Washington with decent premiums?
I currently have Safeco insurance and I'm thinking about giving them the boot.
Jon
 
C-Lou Jon
I have BOATUS and have been very happy with the service. I'm paying about $200 per/yr for an '88, 22' cruiser. They have add on options like road side towing for boat and vehicle. Good luck in your search.
Terry
 
Depends on what you think is a decent premium I guess. My 22 is just barely a year old. I am insured through Allstate. Insurance is actual cash value up to: Boat 32K, twin 40's @5.5K each, boat equipment 4.3K, trailer 3.2K, liability 250K, medical 5K, emergency services $500, and personal effects $500.

Premium is $416/yr.

Insurance is one of those costs you hate to pay until something you never thought might happen, happens. Knock on teak.
 
Anna Leigh, I have virtually the same insurance with Allstate, but my premium is $305, I wonder if the difference is because of location (I live in Kenai, AK) or because I also insure my house and autos with Allstate.
 
Probably due to location. We have a home and a townhouse insured through Allstate also. I'll certainly ask my agent however, who is also one of my best friends.
 
Thanks for the examples gang. I'm paying $284 a year on our 1986 Angler, motors, trailer and unattached equiptment. This might be a little high for the amount I have it covered for. Terry, I'll give BOATUS a call and see what they have to say.
Jon
 
I went with BOATUS this year will see how they treat me on the repair work from the sinking moorage. Did get a letter saying that exclusion D(1.1) does not cover damage caused from ice or freezing but they have not made a decision as of yet on coverage.

I will update when they make up their mind.

stevej
 
We're covered by BoatUS -- without any claims so have no judgment. Interested in how they treat your claim, SteveJ. No coverage for ice? We should have known that before our Alaska trip last summer when we were pushing ice floes off the bow. This is a good thread for all of us.
 
We too are with BoatUS. Not having had a loss since the polilcy incepton 3 years ago, I have no idea how cooperative they are with paying claims. However, they were very personable and informative when I chatted with them on the phone when we first signed up. If memory serves me right, they have a couple of "levels" of coverage; Without reading all of the info now, I think we opted for the lower level, meaning higher dedeductibles and not having some of the extras, like towing, etc. etc. Included with our 10 % loss free savings, we're paying $184.00 a year.
The Joni Lynn is a 98 22 Cruiser with 70HP Johnson/ 9.9 kicker, and a very conservative electronics/equipment inventory.
Paul
 
Still working through the process of getting the quotes. This has been a challenge but should have everything done for the insurance requirements next week.

So far
transom repair - $850
kicker repair - $400
New kicker mount - $200
Main motor repair - $1600

BoatUS has not committed to paying for the repair as of yet. It almost appears they want to see the cost estimate before they make a decision.
Will update as this shakes out.

stevej
 
Jon-Clou,

We have Progressive Northern. Boat, main, kicker, trialer, comprehensive & collision including wreckage removal, total loss replacement, roadside assistance, medical us/them, for $184 annually.

Jon
 
Jon, I had Allstate from the day I picked Adeline up @ the factory until last year. My agent recommended that I maintain coverage based on the purchase price in '89. Doing this would preserve a feature called "repair cost option". This feature ensured that any partial losses would be restored on an undepreciated basis. All my premiums were based on the purchase price back in '89. After some research last year I came to realize that in the event of a total loss, I would be reimbursed for the "actual cash value" as provided by one of three industry valuators(not unlike Kelly Blue Book). My recollection is that an average condition C-Dory Cruiser outfitted like Adeline was worth around 8500.00,less my deductible of 500.00. When pressed, my agent conceded that this was true. The problem was that I could never replace Adeline with anything but a ratty basket-case scow for 8000.00. So I shopped around (Boat U.S.,West Marine, etc.) for a policy that reflected her true value. That which I would receive were I to sell her today. In other words,an "AGREED VALUE" policy. I found what I needed @ Boat Insurance Company(Neil Booth) in Seattle. Partial losses are restored to "as new" condition. For instance, a broken lower unit that cost 2500.00 new would be replaced with new, less my deductible. A total loss would be replaced for the agreed valuation on the policy, less my deductible. I strongly advise all C-Brats to press their agents to come clean on this point. If you sink your C-Dory tomorrow, will your settlement check truly reflect what your boat is worth? Pete
 
Adeline, very good point made on what an insurance company will give you on a total loss. I cornered my Safeco agent and put the screws to him to find out what I would get reimbursed if we had a total loss. Since I don't have an agreed value on my current policy, the insurance company would give me fair market value (blue book value) on the hull and motors. I was finally able to get the agent to give me some kind of number on our 1986 hull, and in disbelief he said about $6000 bucks.

What I'm shooting for on my next policy is an "AGREED AMOUNT VALUE" with an itemized amount on all the goods. The problem with fixing up an older boat, is that insurance companies don't want to cover it for the amount you put in to it, unless a high premium is paid. So far it looks like $400 + a year, but will know for sure in about a week.

I guess I shouldn't complain about a couple extra hundred bucks a year, especially when I know that I'll really be covered for the amount we agreed on. I'll sleep good at the dock knowing that.
 
Jon-Clou,

I'm not only a former Marine, but an Insurance Claims Professional as well...run for your lifes!! hehe. :lol: I spent 11 years in Alaska investigating inland marine accidents and have 20 years in the business. Only 4-5 more years to go...
Anyway, just wanted all to know that it is against the law to utilize the NADA or Kelly Blue Book to make an offer or arrive at a value on a Total Loss boat ,or trailer for that matter. An Insurer has to utilize the local market to arrive at a "Fair Market Value." This being said, I'm not so sure a stated policy/value policy will help much. I have never collected premiums, so I'm not sure if a stated policy is more expensive, yet it probably is.
If C-Dorys( to compare your boat too) are not available in the market area(west coast) than you can secure three dealer quotes to substantiate and support your loss. Of course, it's always very important to save any and all documentation as time goes, along with good PICs.

Sure hope no one has to utilize this info. I personally am more concerned with theft and vandalism than I am sinking my C-Dory.

Let me know if you have any questions???

Mike
 
Mike thanks for the information I went the same route as Adeline with an agreeded upon value policy from BoatUS. Pretty spendy policy by the time you cover all of the bits and pieces.

Spoke with BoatUS yesterday on the repair bill for Shearwater and most all is good news. They are covering everything less my deductable (why I have to pay $400 bucks for the pleasure of having the moorage fall on my boat is a bit irritating).

Overall I would give the surveyor assigned by BoatUS very high marks. Was on top of the situation and made every effort to keep the process flowing. If anyone is interested in the contact information let me know.

BoatUS could have done a little better from an agent/administrative perspective in that they confused the issue with the "Might not be covered due to ice/freezing" letter and some additional confusion around what I was required to deliver to them.
However once the quotes were delivered they simply cut me the check with no haggling over the repair estimates.

Overall getting the quotes was the biggest pain so far

Now to get the repairs completed

stevej
 
Just another insurance data point...

I went with BoatUS for Da Nag 19 - read decent things about them, but never had a claim. They were a little under $400 annually for a $36,000 agreed value policy, with a $300,000 liability limit. They were significantly cheaper than a few other reputable companies I got quotes from. Based on advice I picked up while doing research, I stuck with companies specializing in marine insurance, and only asked for quotes with agreed value terms.

With Da Nag 22, I just went through the dance again. For a 2004 C-Dory, agreed value of $60,000, $300,000 liability, $600 deductible (1%), here are the annual quotes I just received:

West Marine: 787.00
BoatUS: 853.00
Westmar: 759.00

A little bit surprising this time; quotes were a lot closer, and BoatUS was the highest, even though they beat out everyone by a big margin last time, and even though I was insured with them previously for two years with no claims.

I'll be going with Westmar this time - not only are their rates the lowest, but per a couple local large dealers, they handle claims quickly and professionally.

Other policy details:

- Coverage area includes all inland waterways in the US and Canada, coastal waters out to 30 miles.

- $500 emergency service, covers both on the water and while towing.

- $1000 personal effects (can up it to $3000 for another $28)

- Agreed value valid for 3 years, gets re-evaluated upon 4th year renewal.

- Includes $4000 agreed value replacement for trailer

Not sure how this compares to the rest of the country, and as mentioned elsewhere, there appears to be a significant bump in premiums for some folks if you don't keep your boat at home - rates above were based on it being stored off the street at my residence.
 
I currently sell for several insurance companies and can tell you that there are a number of variables in the above policies that are affecting the price, such as replacement cost vs agreed value ( be mindful that "agreed value" can mean more than one thing too), included coverages, (some policies include very good coverage for pollution, towing at sea, etc) and a number of other things. To the point: the differences in policies are as big as the differences in price, but price does not guarantee good coverage....so read the fine print or make your agent work for his $$.

Now, back to boating!
 
I have PEMCO for my coverage. 45,000 value (boat, motor, & trailer), 300,000 Liability, 500 emergency with a $250 deductible. The premium is 286/year. I have credits of 67 for having home & auto, newer hull - 20, claim free 67, and ship to shore radio for another 20. All of this = $286. 45,000 may be low, but the rest sounds like a pretty good deal. Comments?

This is for the 2004 CD22 "Luna C" with electronics.
 
Jon - you are so right. You want "agreed value" or "replacement cost," NOT "actual cash value." David - you might want to corner Fritz on THAT question...We just switched from Safeco, which only offers "actual cash value" coverage - a total loss on our 2003 Cruiser had a limit of $23,000 - so I would have no boat AND a bunch of debt - to Progressive, which offers "agreed value." The Progressive policy I think is at $43,000 - I should check, but it is WAY better than the Safeco policy, and it costs something like $50 a year less than we were paying Safeco, I think it comes in at $375 a year for the Progressive "agreed value" policy. The Progressive policy also offers a "disappearing deductible" - each year with no claim, the deductible goes down by 25%, and after four years there is NO deductible...


Jon - CLou":zhr3i4ga said:
Adeline, very good point made on what an insurance company will give you on a total loss. I cornered my Safeco agent and put the screws to him to find out what I would get reimbursed if we had a total loss. Since I don't have an agreed value on my current policy, the insurance company would give me fair market value (blue book value) on the hull and motors. I was finally able to get the agent to give me some kind of number on our 1986 hull, and in disbelief he said about $6000 bucks.

What I'm shooting for on my next policy is an "AGREED AMOUNT VALUE" with an itemized amount on all the goods. The problem with fixing up an older boat, is that insurance companies don't want to cover it for the amount you put in to it, unless a high premium is paid. So far it looks like $400 + a year, but will know for sure in about a week.

I guess I shouldn't complain about a couple extra hundred bucks a year, especially when I know that I'll really be covered for the amount we agreed on. I'll sleep good at the dock knowing that.
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