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Does My Homeowner's Insurance Cover My Boat?
January 9, 2020
A home policy is not designed for a boat of any size or value.
A homeowners policy may provide minimal coverage for a boat. However, a home policy is not designed, nor is it a good source of coverage for a boat of any size or value.
Though this answer provides a homeowners policy example, it is essential to know that policies can and do differ widely in coverage, limitations, and exclusions.
Let’s also establish that boatowners have two primary exposures to loss:
- Physical damage to the boat itself
- Liability for injury to others.
A plain vanilla ISO HO-3 homeowners policy references both physical damage and liability coverage for “watercraft”. However, a home policy significantly limits coverage for losses to boats.
PHYSICAL DAMAGE COVERAGE:
A standard ISO Homeowner policy provides up to $1,500 coverage for an unendorsed “watercraft”.
The types of losses covered include:
- Fire/Lightning
- Windstorm & Hail (only while inside a fully enclosed building)
- Explosion
- Riot Civil Commotion
- Vehicles
- Smoke
- Vandalism
- Theft - However, the peril of “theft” is not included for losses that occur off the residence premises.
As you can see, the types of losses covered by a homeowners policy for a boat are limited in several ways. It is important to note that losses common to watercraft such as stranding, sinking, collision with another vessel or object are not a covered type of damage. In addition, $1,500 is not a significant limit.
LIABILITY COVERAGE:
Liability losses are a significant exposure for boat owners. Injury (or even death) of passengers and others should be carefully considered for any boat owner.
- The snippet from a standard ISO HO-3 Homeowners policy shows some of the many limitations and exclusions pertaining to watercraft.
- No liability coverage for sailboats over 26 feet
- No liability coverage for owned Inboard/Outdrive motorboats over 50 horsepower
- No liability coverage for owned Outboard motorboats over 25 horsepower
The bottom line?
An unendorsed homeowners policy is not the place to insure your boat.
In contrast, a boatowners policy is specifically designed to provide the unique physical damage and liability coverage a watercraft requires.
Watercraft policies are inexpensive and extend coverage for the many gaps and limitations which a homeowner policy purposely includes.
This article may have been originally published at Quora.com.
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Most property insurance companies offer Actual Cash Value or Replacement Cost settlement options. Typically, insurance companies will require that you insure the property to the settlement value you choose. If you select Actual Cash Value, the amount you may be required to insure the property for will be less than the corresponding Replacement Value.
In that spirit, the Ryan Agency is sponsoring a Stearns BBQ Dinner pickup at our office on 57 Broadway Mall in Hornell on September 12th from 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM.
Today, an individual’s credit history can play a more significant role than any one of those traditional factors. Good Credit Scores lead to a Positive Insurance score. A good Insurance Score greatly influences what someone will pay to insure their vehicles.
Insurance companies offer various discounts for which their policyholders may qualify.
Great Eight number Six (6) suggests taking a look at removing Comprehensive and Collision on Older Vehicles.
By reducing the number of claims in your insurance history, you can significantly affect your rates in the future.
Sometimes, this concept meets with resistance from policyholders. The thought of paying more in the event of a claim is off-putting to some. Even if that means I pay more for my insurance.
OK. Admittedly, this strategy doesn't benefit everyone, but it can be very beneficial for those it does. You may have unique home or auto insurance needs that prevent you from bundling with the same company. Alternatively… you might have a better rate without the bundle discount by splitting up your insurance between multiple carriers.
In recent years, companies have implemented discounts for paying insurance policies in full (or annually) for some types of insurance. Many companies offer this option, especially for their auto policies.
The Defensive Driving Course is the most universal and non-discriminatory way to save on auto insurance.
