The insurance approach for covering boats and boating property is similar to the approach used to protect cars and homes. Essentially, insurance is offered on a package basis, meaning that there is coverage for physical property and protection against the legal and financial consequences of injuring others or damaging property that belongs to others.

Property Coverage

Typically, a boatowners policy covers:

  • Boats - Refers to property designed to travel on water and includes sails, permanent equipment, spars, and fittings.
  • Boating Equipment - Includes a wide variety of property used in conjunction with boats and includes accessories. Items considered equipment are property used for communication (radios), navigation, sonar, radar, outboard motors, dinghies, skis, and sports equipment (recreational flotation devices) towed by boats and similar property. As a rule of thumb, the more related an item is to the ownership and use of a boat, the greater the justification to classify it as boating equipment.
  • Boat Trailers - Trailers used (and designed) for transporting boats (as defined by the policy).

This property must be owned by the person named as the policyholder. There are limited instances when such property temporarily in the policyholder's possession also qualifies for coverage. Items and situations that aren't covered by boatowner’s insurance include boating property used in business activity, losses that involve races or competitions (with an exception for sailboats), and boats used full-time as residences.

Liability Coverage

Besides protecting boating property, a boatowners policy also responds to claims or lawsuits caused when another person is injured and/or when another person's property is damaged or destroyed. For example, a collision where the owner of a large speed boat collides with a person on a jet ski, seriously injuring the rider and demolishing the jet ski would be covered. The policy would handle both portions of such a loss. The liability portion would also provide a legal defense against lawsuits.

Another essential coverage under the liability section is medical payments. This typically provides reimbursement for emergency or immediate medical treatment expenses. Consider a person who slips on a boat deck and needs transportation to an emergency to treat a broken bone or concussion. Such costs would qualify under medical payments.

As is the case with property coverage, there are liability situations that are NOT covered by a boatowners policy, including losses that involve business activity, the transmission of communicable disease, an unauthorized operation of boating property, intentional acts, and criminal activity.

Boating property is a substantial investment, and boatowner's coverage is an efficient, affordable way to guard against accidental losses. Contact the professional agents of Williams Insurance to ask about boatowner’s coverage today.


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