Boat Insurance: Which Is Right For You?

You may not have realized it, but boat insurance is the oldest type of insurance out there. People have been insuring their ships since the 17th century, and a number of rules have emerged over time. However, you are probably much more familiar with car insurance, so the good news is that car insurance and boat insurance are actually very similar.

There are basically three situations you can be insured against: your ship (or your cargo) is damaged, your ship sinks, and your ship collides with another. Although few countries require that your boat be insured (taking into account the number of boats that sail in international waters), it would be very prudent to take out at least third party insurance, in case you collide with a much more valuable boat. than yours. It is probably quite unnecessary for you to insure your boat against total loss unless it is very valuable; it is mainly practical for large ships, and especially for those carrying valuable cargo.

As with auto insurance, policies come with an excess to discourage small claims; For boat insurance, this is usually a fairly large sum of money, as the insurance is intended to cover you against substantial losses rather than just scratches and teeth.

There are also some types of insurance that you can buy that are unique to boating, although it is unlikely that you will ever need them. If you obtain Increased Value insurance, your policy will be paid at the market value of your boat if it is greater than the amount you insured it for; It is only useful if you expect your boat to increase in value. Finally, if you are thinking of navigating to a war zone, you may want to obtain war risk insurance. Of course, you may also want to have your head checked, if you know what I mean.