Boat Insurance

The Right Boat & Watercraft Insurance For You

Small boats such as canoes, small sail boats or small power boats with less than 25 mile per hour horse power are usually covered under a homeowners or renters insurance policy. Coverage is typically about $1,000 or 10 percent of the home’s insured value and generally includes the boat, motor and trailer combined. Liability coverage is usually not included–but it can be added as an endorsement to a homeowners policy.

Larger and faster boats such as yachts, and personal watercraft such as jet skis and wave runners require a separate boat insurance policy. The size, type and value of the watercraft in which you use, factors into how much you will pay for insurance coverage.

For physical loss or damage, coverage includes the hull, machinery, fittings, furnishings and permanently attached equipment as part of either an actual cash value policy or on an agreed amount value basis. These policies also provide broader liability protection than a homeowners policy. But there are distinct differences between the two types of policies.

Actual Cash Value policies pay for replacement costs less depreciation at the time of the loss. In the event of a total loss, used boat pricing guides and other resources are used to determine the watercraft’s approximate market value. Partial losses are settled by taking the total cost of the repair less a percentage for depreciation.

Agreed Amount Value basis policies mean that you and your insurer have agreed on the value of your vessel and in the event of a total loss you will be paid that amount. Agreed Amount Value policies also replace old items for new in the event of a partial loss, without any deduction for depreciation.

Physical damage exclusions might include normal wear and tear, damage from insects, mold, animals (such as sharks), zebra mussels, defective machinery or machinery damage.

Do you know what to look for in a watercraft insurance policy?

Al DeLeon & Associates will be happy to review your current boat insurance policy and can help make your time on the water relaxed and worry-free! We will find you comprehensive boat insurance that protects you, your friends and family, your watercraft and your boating equipment. The average boat costs less than a dollar a day to insure. You’ll enjoy being on the water even more when you aren’t worried about your safety, the safety your passengers, or your investment.

Here are some items you’ll need to consider when shopping for boat insurance:

Navigational Area
Do you know where you are covered in the water? Some companies offer protection that covers you up to 75 miles from the U.S. coastline; into Canadian coastal or inland waters; and into the Pacific coastal waters of Mexico. In Florida, additional coverage area can be purchased.

Agreed Value Coverage
Boats and watercrafts depreciate just like automobiles. Actual cash value (ACV) policies can make it difficult to replace a boat that’s been stolen or destroyed. This means that if your boat is a total loss you will get the value you insured it for, minus any deductible. Make sure you are covered properly.

Liability
Just like car insurance, personal liability coverage provides coverage to other boaters and boat owners in the event you are at-fault for an accident on the water. This coverage will pay to repair or replace the property of someone else as well as for their medical care, lost wages and other costs incurred as a result of a boating accident for which you are at-fault.

Medical Payments
Medical payments coverage pays for the cost of needed care that is the result of a boating accident. This coverage is available from $500 to $10,000 and covers you, your passengers, and even your water skiers/tubers, regardless of who is at-fault.

Physical Damage Coverage
Physical damage coverage pays for the cost to repair or replace your watercraft, its motor, any permanently attached equipment, and your trailer, if it is stolen or damaged.

Uninsured / Underinsured Watercraft Bodily Injury
Since boat coverage is not always mandatory, many boaters choose not to get insurance. If you are hit by an uninsured or underinsured boater, and you are injured, this type of coverage pays for medical treatment, lost wages, and other costs associated with the accident.

Fuel Spill Liability and Wreckage Removal
Should your boat sink or be seriously damaged, there is a chance that it could leak oil or fuel into the water. As the boat’s owner you are required by law to have this cleaned up, which can be time consuming and expensive.

Emergency Assistance
The Emergency Assistance Package provides coverage for towing, labor and delivery of gas, oil or loaned battery if the watercraft is disabled while on the water.
There are thousands of recreational boating accidents per year. Every need is unique – Contact us to find out how to get the best boat and watercraft insurance coverage for you.