Insurance Costs

[bill352]

In a (probably vain) attempt to anticipate what owning a boat will cost us (insert joke here if you must), I just got a quote from BoatUS for a 1994 Lagoon 37 based in Florida, coastal waters only (no Bahamas), no unusual coverage or circumstances, decent experience on the part of the owners.

Cost? $5000/year. Does this seem excessive to anyone, or is this normal?

I also have two quotes from Progressive, one for $3000 and one for $1000, based on giving the same information to two different people there. I see phone calls in my future, but I would like to know from the group if any or all of these amounts seem reasonable.

[MARC D]

Every time I shopped for my boat insurance, BoatUS was the highest bidder...

Try Pantaenius and Seaworthy/Mariners.

[ShaktiGurl]

Excessive. We pay under 4k for coverage in south FL, includes Bahamas down to T&C for a 2007 Leopard 40

[Blc7]

I have a 2007 Lagoon 420 in FL. Insurance (incl Bahamas) is a little less than 5k. Boat US quote was more than double that.

[boatpoker]

Right after Katrina I noticed that what used to be a narrow spread between underwriters widened quite a bit. Since Sandy there is no consistency in the market at all ... call ten companies and get 10 wildly different quotes.

[jeremiason]

Our BoatUS quote was 20% higher than Pantaenius.

We just moved to Florida after cruising from San Francisco to here.

Our insurance in SF was $2300 on a 450k policy.
Our Insurance while cruising was $2600 on a $365k policy (With named storm restrictions)
Our Insurance here in Southwest Florida is $4800 per year on a $365k Policy (No named storm restrictions)

Living in Florida has lots of advantages, boat insurance is not one of them.

[avb3]

When did Pantaenius start writhing policies under $1 million? I have correspondence from them from last year where they said they would no longer under right any boat worth less than that amount.

[jeremiason]

We had Pantaenius for three years now... Never heard of that policy.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by avb3

When did Pantaenius start writhing policies under $1 million? I have correspondence from them from last year where they said they would no longer under right any boat worth less than that amount.

Pantaenius UK have just renewed our policy, for 0.84% of the total yacht value, seems you guys in the US are being hammered. This is for a fair chunk of the NW European coast.

When I spoke to them at a boat show a couple of years ago they wouldn't insure a yacht for the ARC with a value less than £50,000. Whilst this initially sounds high when you add in additional kit and personal belongings it would soon add up for most modern yachts.

[Hud3]

Originally Posted by Pete7

Pantaenius UK have just renewed our policy, for 0.84% of the total yacht value...

This is the best way to evaluate and compare insurance costs--look at the premium as a percentage of insured value. Also look at the deductible (e.g., 2%), and any major exclusions (e.g., named storms) where coverage is dropped or the deductible is increased, as well as the coverage geographical area. Our insurance cost about 1.2% of the insured value with a 2% deductible (5% for named storms) for the East Coast US, Bahamas and Caribbean (less Cuba and Colombia).

[bbowers2004]

I was quoted 840 + 35 certificate fee for
"

Warranted that the Scheduled Vessel is con

fined to East Coast USA, Florida,
the Bahamas and the Caribbean Sea (excluding Colombia and Haiti) - not to

exceed 150 miles offshore.
"

I am looking for other options as that seems an excessive amount for a 26 ft boat with 300,000 liability.

[bill352]

Thanks everyone for the replies. That percentage estimate gives me somewhere to start (thanks, Pete and Hud), and there is no substitute for actual costs and experiences. I really appreciate everyone's contributions.

I need to make some phone calls and I'll let you know what (if anything) I come up with.

[Amapola]

We live in SW Florida and have insured with Boat/US for years. Our premium is just under $3k for a 1979 48' trawler. Our coverage includes full time Florida and the Bahamas. We had a 37' Tayana with significant damage from hurricane Charley and Boat/US was excellent handling the claims.

[andyv94]

Hello everyboy,

I am purchasing a '82 Hans Christian and I shopped around with boatUS and with Progressive and the difference is incredible for the exact same coverage!!

I am keeping the boat in Kemah/Clear Lake, I will only use the boat for your typical day sailing (for now) $300,000 policy with a 1% deductible for storm damage or $5,000 which ever one is less. (that is with Progressive)
For the year it is less then $400 dollars!!!!!!!!!!
With boatUS it's over $3,000

What gives??

[bill352]

Andyv - Yeah, that's the same thing I'm running into, which is why I started this thread. I'm waiting for a little more info before I try to straighten it out on the phone.

If you don't mind my asking, did you get to Progressive through USAA? And does Progressive offer specific coverage for fuel spill? So far I have it from BoatUS, and Progressive is uncertain.