Boat Insurance

What Does Boat Insurance Cover?

Collision damage: Includes repair or replacement of your boat, but may or may not include clean-up of wreckage unless you purchase optional additional coverage.

Property damage liability: Covers damage you might cause to someone else’s boat, a dock, or other property or structures.

Bodily injury liability: Covers injury you might cause someone while using your boat; includes medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, and legal expenses.

Comprehensive: Provides compensation if your boat is vandalized, stolen, or damaged in an incident other than a collision.

Additional coverage options: Coverage for medical payments, fishing equipment, oil spills, personal property, and roadside assistance, as well as damages and injuries from accidents caused by boaters who are uninsured or underinsured.

The amount of compensation you receive for a claim depends on a few things, including your deductibles, limits, and whether your boater’s insurance covers your boat’s actual cash value, replacement cost, or agreed-upon value.

How Does Boat Insurance Work?

Boat Insurance, often be referred to as watercraft insurance provides protection while on a body of water.

When you buy boat insurance, you must decide on the amount of coverage you need for your boat, the deductible (maximum out of pocket expense per claim), and the types of coverage you need. In the event that you have an accident, experience a theft, or have another loss that is covered under your policy, you can file a claim and receive a payment covering the loss.

As an example, if you were in an accident with another boat that caused serious damage to your vessel, one of the following things would most likely occur, depending upon the insurance coverage you and the other boater own and the laws in your state:

• If you were at fault, your boat liability insurance would cover the damage up to the limits of the policy.
• If the other boater was at fault, his coverage would pay for your damages, up to the limits of his policy.
• If the other boater was at fault, but did not have boat insurance, or did not have enough to cover your expenses, uninsured/underinsured boaters coverage could cover the damages (if you have that coverage in place).