I'd like to share an insurance claims experience which will hopefully provide an additional thing for others to consider. This would make more sense for inland fresh
water sailors living in colder climates.
My previous boat was an
Ericson 27 which sank right in it's slip after/during a very cold
winter storm. When acquiring insurance, I based the value of my boat which I purchased cash, at a
price similar to what I paid for.
What I did not realize was, the cost of removing the boat out of the water was considered by the insurance company as part of the total coverage. Well, trying to haul a boat out of the water in - 0 Farenheit with a bunch of guys and crane and boom long enough to
lift her out cost me more than half of what i paid for the boat. The cost to
repair the boat was going to cost even more. So, it was also declared a total loss.
I thought I had adequate coverage, but I wound up having to eat the entire cost for the
haul out and ended with a net loss. It was a bad situation but could also have been worse.
Some of the positive things though:
1. I was fortunate enough that my slip was close enough where a crane was able to reach it and
lift her out.
2. The insurance company had no desire to sell or dispose the boat, so I still retained
ownership (title). I developed a good relationship with the person who moved the boat for me when I originally purchased it, also
repairs boats for a living, so I offered the boat to him for free in exchange for moving my replacement boat a Com-pac 25 from Charleston, SC to Clinton Lake, IL. He has since restored the boat and it looks even better than it was when I had her. He even got the original inboard running again!
3. I was also fortunate that I had a boat
trailer (not the norm for most boats this size) which reduced the cost and complexity of where the crane could place the boat as soon as it hauled her out.
What should I have done differently? I should have added some additional $$$ to what I estimated the boat was worth, and make sure my insurance coverage included other costs like this one.
According the most experienced boat
mechanic at the marina, what a lot of other people also do not know (at least for Illinois): when a boat with a
fuel tank of more than 50 gallons (I think) sinks, the Dept of Conservation issues the owner a ticket and is charged a penalty
per hour while the boat remains even partially submerged. I could only imagine how much those fines would have cost me.
Why the boat sank is separate story. As I mentioned earlier, the boat was fully restored. There were no holes on the hull anywhere. We could only surmise that the water got into the boat through a bad
cockpit drain design for the E-27s which don't get the water to exit easily out, but passes though a hose below the
cockpit which froze and cracked when the water turned to ice. He has of course rectified that problem.
One last confession: I even
work for the same insurance company (though on the technology/IT side of the organization). Oh the irony!