Going Uninsured !?

[SvenG]

We just got a quote from one of the more reputable insurers (often recommended here). To say that it was disappointing is an understatement.

The insurer would only cover less than one quarter or what an equally reputable surveyor said was the replacement value. That coverage would also be less than one half of what we will have sunk into the boat after the refit.

With that coverage the annual premium would still be ~4% of what was covered.

At this point we're thinking that the insurance is not worth bothering with. The full value of the coverage offered would be better placed by us in a savings account. Liability insurance is still a necessity in many places but that's about it.

I'm sure the actuarial tables explain the quote but that doesn't help us think the insurance is worth bothering with. So now we're wondering how many others go with no insurance or only liability ?

Thanks,



-Sven

[SimonV]

Sent you a PM

[lordgeoff]

I had a look at insurance and found that the way I was travelling it would be unlikely that I would be able to claim. They wanted a certain number of experienced crew. A list of spares as long as your arm and there were plenty of restrictions on routes. I made up some dodgy Insurance papers from the net which was sufficient to bluff my way into the Marinas.
If you start off by saying you need to buy a lot of fuel they tend to get distracted from insurance papers.

[scook1]

With our sailing, we have no legal obligations to be insured. Our boat is also worth less than a years worth of insurance.
Spencer

[SailFastTri]

Originally Posted by scook1

With our sailing, we have no legal obligations to be insured. Our boat is also worth less than a years worth of insurance.
Spencer

If your boat damages another boat or you have a liability claim it doesn't matter what your boat is worth.

[Johnathon123]

It probably comes down to how much risk you can live with

Like Sail Fast tri said it doesn't matter what your boat is worth when you cause an accident.

If you can sleep with that risk its your call, if not (and I can't) - get insurance

[tager]

Insurance is a scam.

[MoonlightSailor]

We will start cruising next summer and will be researching insurance very soon. However, we have obtained personal property insurance from USAA.

I was recently in touch with USAA insurance. Their personal property insurance will insure everything on the boat that is not attached to the boat in the event of theft or sinking. The personal belongings can be anywhere in the world and be covered. i.e. extra anchors, stowed rope, dishes, cothing, safety equipment, weather gear">foul weather gear, tools, computers, extra sails, extra parts for just about anything...It will add up. Inventory everything.

Some insurance is a rip...not all.

[VirtualVagabond]

The insurance co bets my boat is going to be ok.... I bet it's not. The only way I can win, is to lose... just seems all so wrong.

Without even knowing me they'll bet around 30 to 1 on me not stuffing up, not being struck by lightning, not being robbed, crashed into...

Being an insecure kinda guy, I'm inclined to trust the insurance company's judgement

When the time comes, I'm thinking third party only.

I did have a claim for a lightning strike once. It cost me about 4 grand to replace melted electrics.... but I paid out 18 grand in insurance over the 10 years I owned that boat.

[Pete7]

The voting at the top is quite interesting. I didn't realise so many are un-insured, but I have just seen another thread were someone quote 4%. Ours costs 1% pa of the boat value which seems a little more reasonable.

Pete

[Sabbatical II]

OK, I voted fully insured for my 30 year old 29 footer. My brand new 42' semi custom yacht will soon hit the water and I'm undecided which way to go as insurance won't be cheap. What am I uninsurable for ?

Single handed offshore day hopping ?
Single handed offshore overnight ?
Single handed inshore day or night?
Two handed with a passenger as 1st mate ?

Can I insure for the things like lightening, theft, fire and liability only or am I out of luck if lightening hits while I'm single handing in the lake? How silly does it get?

My current full insurance policy says nothing about single handing or the qualifications of the skipper or spares I need to carry, although it is limited to 200 miles form the coast.

Greg

[lordgeoff]

Originally Posted by Eleebana

OK, I voted fully insured for my 30 year old 29 footer. My brand new 42' semi custom yacht will soon hit the water and I'm undecided which way to go as insurance won't be cheap. What am I uninsurable for ?

Single handed offshore day hopping ?
Single handed offshore overnight ?
Single handed inshore day or night?
Two handed with a passenger as 1st mate ?

Can I insure for the things like lightening, theft, fire and liability only or am I out of luck if lightening hits while I'm single handing in the lake? How silly does it get?

My current full insurance policy says nothing about single handing or the qualifications of the skipper or spares I need to carry, although it is limited to 200 miles form the coast.

Greg

I was quoted for ocean passage and it wasn't the cost so much but the personnel and equipment and spares i had to have. The way I read it if I went down and decided to make a claim then it would be unlikely the claim would be upheld. In Australia I got 3rd party for $2000. Not sure if I should have bothered. When not insured I am sure you are more careful docking around other boats.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by SvenG

one quarter [of] the replacement value.
-Sven
1977 Ericson

Sven, if they insured your 1977 boat for replacement value that would be giving you new for old. i.e for $2,000 per year you could have an accident and get a 2011 brand new yacht.

A bit of a temptation for naughty people.

Try getting a car insured for replacement value when its from 1977

[sailorboy1]

The value I pay insurance is stated value of the boat. It's acturally a little more than I paid for it. I don't see how anyone could expect to get a policy for a new replacement boat on their old current boat. I never really have understood the part of a boat survey that givens the cost of a new boat as a comparison, what good is this on a 20 year boat to tell the cost of it as new?

[thinwater]

Liability insurance is just responcibility. But we all seem to agree here.

Full coverage in part depends on your ability and tolerance for repairs. The insurance company has to assume you will want like-new repairs done at the boat yard and that your sailing and salvage/emergency management skills are a bit less than average; the reason you want insurance. They also have to figure that your boat maintance may not be perfect. If you able to fix anything, good at contingency seamanship and not financial stretched, then insurance is not so good a deal.

As for sleeping at night, some can sleep at anchor and some can't. It has less to do with the specifics than the personality. I check my work and then sleep.

I will say this; insurance is probably a good deal the first year; you never know what you missed and the boat is new to you. After a year, then decide.