Insurance

[s/v Faith]

Ok, so like most FL homeowners, I got a suprise with my insurance bill this year....  ??? >:( ??? ::) :P

My home insurance with Allstate DOUBLED!!!

  So I am undergoing a re-evaluation of ALL of my insurance.

I just got a quote from USAA, for all three, (Home, boat, and car) and they are lower. 

  Since my boat is over 20 years old, they are talking about referring the underwriting to Progressive. 

  They quoted me on both the FL rate, and the NC rate.  Both were ABOUT HALF what I pay through boat US right now.

  SO, let's hear it.... the good the bad and the ugly on who you have, and what experiences you have had.

Thanks,


(OBTW, if your just read this, and don't really have anything to say, please post the name of your insurer if it is not listed.)

Thanks,

[Zen]

I have used Progressive for the last 5 yrs.

[starcrest]

I am insured by 2 companies---and both policies are ready to be "used immediately " at all times---the primary is Smith and Wesson,the secondary is  Ruger.hopefully I  will never have  to file "claims" with the proper authorities-----but there are all sortsa scumbags outthere. 'nuff said

[Pixie Dust]

Like Faith, I have home, boat and car with Allstate.   They had the best rates at the time for boats, so I transferred everything to them.   My house and car have really gone up.   I need to check on what is exactly covered/rules on the boat before heading to the Bahamas.  I may need a different sort of plan.

Does anyone do anything different regarding boat insurance when they cruise?

Also- what about Health insurance?  Since I will be unemployed that 6 mo-yr, I need to think about alternate health insurance.  Any recommendations on that?

[s/v Faith]

Eric,

  I added "I don't need no stinking insurance......" to the poll just for you.   ;D

[starcrest]

if I recall properly there were limits on how far  vessels were covered.jus' how far canya'  "SAILFAR"  with this type of underwritten red tape? when I did all that voyaging I specifically said"no guns...no drugs...no.....{I will omit the rest} there was no insurance coverage at all.most of the marinas I was at did not require insurance but that will probably change with the onset of the increasingly strong storms .they never rebuilt the marina in pahokee that I was in---that was 2 years ago.the best insurance for a boat is a good reliable liferaft complete with water maker,EPIRB, and rations.dont be fooled.its like I said---that boat can and will be out from under you in no time at all with little or no warning.it matters not what kind of insurance you have when the dorsal fins start circling you.{that jus'scared the B'-jeeez outta every one}

[Joe Pyrat]

I have had boat insurance with All State, BoatUS and Progressive.  My primary boat had All State, but I am hauling her to Maine and switched to Progressive.  The only claim I ever had was on my secondary boat which was insured with BoatUS and I must admit they did a great job of covering the loss.

The coverage area seems to be the same for BoatUS and Progressive, something like 200 miles off the coast of the US, which includes the USVI and Puerto Rico.

[starcrest]

what happens when you go 201 miles off the coast----and what if something happens at 199.9 miles off the coast----then you drift for 2 tenths of a mile further? not to be sarcastic---but these things do happen---not just on TV but in real life too. ???If that happens---my policy covers me----I just have to declare  that I have such coverage in certain places.

[AdriftAtSea]

I'm using a Zurich Direct Yatch policy through Hartge Marine Insurance, out of Annapolis. 

[hearsejr]

 lol I tried to get insurance on my C27 and I had to get it survayed. the boat replacement value according an fella who did survays for nearly 45 years,  was around $2500. I paid $700 for it, and the survay was over $1000, so I would have been better off putting the money in a jar  and when I lost my boat I would just buy a replacement cheaper then hopping the insurance would cover it. I refloated it 2 times so that was not a prob, gotten fairly good at it.
now the boat I own was free, it will not completly go under (lots of floatation foam in her) and the value is close to $1000 - $1500, so I'll just save the monthly payments in a jar....LOL
Bill

[xroyal]

Wonder if any of you with inexpensive boats carry only liability insurance for others injuries or property damage, the type a marina might require? Wouldn't think a survey should be required if hull not insured.

I've self insured my cars physical damage for most of 50 years, and saved a load of $, maybe $15-20K or more. I'd expect to do the same for a boat if the hull value was under maybe 25K. Self insuring, of course, requires a higher degree of owner loss control/safety precautions.

[CharlieJ]

We only have liability insurance on Tehani, in conjunction with our homeowners.

After the run around I got from Boat US trying to just get a quote I gave up.
Those people (boat US insurance division)  couldn't find their butt with both hands in my experience.

[Pixie Dust]

I have Allstate on the boat since I still have a few payments to make.  I did not have to get it surveyed since it was a small boat and under a certain amt of $$'s.   I will need to check into the coverage a little further prior to heading south later in the yr.  I cannot remember what my offshore coverage is.    :)

[s/v Faith]

Seems like yet another advantage of the 'sailfar' concept is that insurance is not as big a deal for us.

  It is one thing to insure something you are making a mortgage payment on, and something else to insure something you might have paid less for then a used car.  ;D

  My idea (or objective for) insurance coverage is not an attempt to manage risk of loss of the boat, but liability.  I could probably find another boat for the insured value of my boat, but I would not insure it if it were only for that.

  The first week I owned 'Faith' I brought her 300 miles home.  At one point in the trip while docking in Elizabeth City, NC I nearly was blown into a huge trawler by a stiff breeze.  The owner was perched on his deck (well above me) looking down with arms folded.  He made no effort to assist, or toss a fender over but rather stood and watched with arms folded as I drifted twords his hull with it's flawless (imron?) paintjob that you could see yourself in......  ::)   My amazing first mate somehow saved the day (we ended up spending the night on the hook).

  Guys like that, and the idiots who speed this way and that in their powerboats, who will cause accidents, and look to pass the buck to anyone else..... are the reason I see to keep insurance.  That and the dock Nazi who would call the coast guard when a drop of fuel might drizzle from my fuel jug into the drink....


On Edit, 20 July 2006

  In another thread, "Is this a good price" I typed  the following

FWIW, Boat US did not require me to get a survey to insure my boat with them (couple years ago).  The guy who I did a delivery for 2 weeks ago (Hunter 30) was not required to get a survey (progressive?) and the owners of 'Ariel Spirit' (last month's delivery) were not required to get a survey either.

  Since most of the replies that followed delt more with insurance then with the boat I have split them off and placed them here.

[AdriftAtSea]

BTW, small claims court is probably not an option, as in most states it tops out at $3500 or so.  The survey is required if the boat is going to be insured IIRC.

[Captain Smollett]

But couldn't a survey done for insurance purposes be done AFTER the purchase?

Technical point, I know.

How many distance cruisers insure their boat?  Who here does?

I just got insurance on my boat this year, and I really did that because I am towing a lot more (for longer distances) than before.  The insurance was more for peace of mind while towing than while boating, and total replacement was only $90 per year on our existing policy.

[CharlieJ]

Most long term cruisers that I've come in contact with have NO insurance on the boat. Costs way too much to insure boats outside the US or offshore. I know when I was living aboard and cruising full time we had no boat insurance.  No health insurance either, and many cruisers are in THAT group also.

Good, heavy duty anchors and rodes are your best insurance anyway ;D

I tried to insure Tehani with BOAT/US and they couldn't find their AS* with both hands, then finally decided to talk to me- wanted a haulout, a 600 dollar survey and HUGE premiums. heck, I don't have that much in the boat, other than sweat-equity.

I finally bought liability from my home insurance agent, which was all I wanted anyway.

[CharlieJ]

Remember- Tehani is 45 years old ;)- older than Laura is in fact.

without going into great detail though, I decided that if they were THAT bad just trying to get a quote, I'd NEVER get anything from them should I have an actual claim- The whole episode was straight from Keystone Kops.

[Captain Smollett]

Right, but is there not a lot of horror stories out there about Boat US not being the best to get insurance from?  I mean, I guess they are good for towing insurance and other AAA type stuff, but perhaps not for the boat itself (I think I've gathered they strongly disfavor older boats...am I wrong about this).

Besides, the type of insurance they 'push' seems to lie outside the sailfar spirit like we discussed with Neal that night on the chat....you made the decision to go, you should not expect others to bail you out. 

Just thinkin' ....

[s/v Faith]

Yup,
 
  I have Boat US, not to cover the boat, but for the liability insurance that my marina requires.  I agree with the idea of not relying on insurance.  There is a couple in the marina who sold their house and bought a cat (34'?) they are making a mortgage payment on, so I guess they would not be able to go without insurance.  'Faith' is paid for, as I suspect are the majority of our boats (as Capt. Smollett mentioned, another advantage of the SAILFAR idea). .

  There is a guy a few slips down from me, who just got a new Harken furler installed tonight after his forestay broke )old furler had a bent extrusion).  I asked him what it was going to cost him and he said "all I am paying is my deductable".  I doubt it would even occur to me to have made a claim. 

  My boat, my rigging, my responsibility. 

Probably a good thing since the plan has us heading to back home to FL in the next year or so, if I can avoid it, I would much rather skip the insurance extorsion racket.

  Charlie, I don't know why they (boat US) did not require me to get a survey, 'Faith' is nearly the same age as Tehani, and Lord knows nothing short of a nuclear strike is gonna hurt either boat in such a way as to render it uninsureable.  ;D (ok, maybe soft decks) Maybe it was because the prior owner also had a policy with Boat US.  I was required to send in several current pictures.  I do know that it is not uncommon for other small boat owners to get insurance without a survey as did the others I mentioned above.