The feeling of being out in the open water, sail high in the
air, and no cares in the world can be the best reason to purchase a new
sailboat. If you are making the decision to buy a sailboat, it’s important to
obtain the proper insurance on it, much like you would for any vehicle you own.
Sailboat insurance should protect the vehicle itself through comprehensive
property insurance. However, it should also have a liability component to it.
How much liability insurance do you need? What can you expect to obtain in
these situations?
Why Do You Need
Liability Insurance?
After all, you plan to sail away from everyone else, why do
you need this type of insurance? In short, every vehicle needs liability insurance.
Sailboat insurance protects other people from damage that you cause with your
sailboat. The most common types of claims for these policies include:
- Excessive
speed claims
- Operator
inattention
- Improper
lookout
- Operator
inexperience
You still may be thinking that you cannot make these
mistakes. However, you could face a lawsuit if a passenger falls overboard,
your damage (or destroy) a dock that belongs to someone else, or you have to
pay legal fees as a result damage to a person’s property. Most sailboat
liability insurance plans should include:
- Wreckage
removal cover to help remove any debris that happens after a covered
incident
- Bodily
injury liability which helps cover the costs associated with injury to
another person such as their medical bills, rehabilitation,
hospitalization, or even resulting from death
- Property
damage liability helps cover damage done to another person’s dock, boat or
other property
- Pollution
liability helps cover instances where fuel is spilled
How much cover you needs depends on the size of your boat,
the frequency of use, other claims you’ve had, and the amount of protection you
want. Policies can be as small as $100,000, but having $1 million or more can
be beneficial because of the high risk (and costs) associated with lawsuits
today.
Don’t overlook the importance of boat insurance. Even if you
are in a small sailboat off an empty lake, you’ll still want to have this level
of protection in place to safeguard your finances from the high costs of
losses.
Are you covered? Call Casey Insurance Group at (888)
537-1412 for more information on Florida boat
insurance.