Single handed insurance

[TiggerToo]

The other thread about sailing single handed, reminded me to ask you lot: how do you managed to get ensured?

I ask, because when I contacted my insurance company, about extending the cover to the Azores, I was told that would do it, but only if I could guarantee 2 additional crew.

Now, this is only hypothetical, for now. But how does one manage to get insurance cover for single-hand sailing? Is it possible to get one-off cover for single journeys/restricted time?

 

[lpdsn]

Pantaenius & Y Yachting both do it for cruising in the usual areas. A single-handed offshore racer I know said he got insurance from Lloyds for a race across Biscay. Think he went via a broker to a specialist firm. Try contacting www.offshoresolo.com for advice.

 

[Tradewinds]

18 hour restriction with Y (or it is for me).

 

[skip50]

18 hour restriction with Y (or it is for me).

No, same for me.

 

[Prasutigus]

Greetings
I'm with Y.. despite pleading, their underwriters will only cover passages planned to take 18 hrs max. Otherwise they are brilliant, I'm claiming right now and they are very helpful and communicative. Looks like I will get my damage paid for, and I'm fairly far away, in an unusual boat, in an expensive country (Norway) so fair play to them.

I believe Pants may offer longer S/H cover. Hopefully someone else will recommend a broker, it's a constant bugbear for me..P

 

[JimC]

I'm with GJW Direct. My insurance originally excluded single-handed sailing at night. I queried this, explaining that there could be circumstances in which I might be obliged by tides or weather to stay out at night. They amended my insurance to say policy excess would be doubled when sailing single-handed between dusk and dawn. This seems fair enough to me and the policy has been the same ever since. This is for a 31 ft sailing yacht in UK coastal waters, English Channel & between Brest & the Elbe.

 

[ashtead]

Greetings


I believe Pants may offer longer S/H cover. Hopefully someone else will recommend a broker, it's a constant bugbear for me..P

Pants are a broker .

 

[Concerto]

If you own a Westerly and use the Westerly Owners Association policy with Navigators & General, the special condition allows singlehanded sailing for 24 hours continuous. The usual limits of Brest to the Elbe apply, but an extension should be able to be arranged for further afield.

 

[Sandy]

I think the issue is the geographic location not the hours.

 

[ghostlymoron]

How do single handers comply with the colregs?

 

[Spirit (of Glenans)]

How do single handers comply with the colregs?

Intermittently

 

[Ric]

I have been insured fully comp with various brokers in France for past twenty years and they are always a bit puzzled when I have checked whether single-handing is covered. I think SH exclusions is only a UK thing. I am with Pants Palma now - who are excellent by the way - and my fully comp policy covers all Med and Atlantic for €420 per year.

 

[doug748]

I like Pantaenius because they don't seem too fussed about setting a time limit for singlehanding, don't mind night trips and their standard cover is down to La Rochelle and up to somewhere right in the frigid north.

Their premiums I'm not so fond of.



"I believe Pants may offer longer S/H cover..."

They might for longer trips, but their general revised underwriter's guidelines don't encourage business under £80,000 covered. If you had an established record with them I suspect they would consider it but otherwise maybe not.

 

[Foolish Muse]

Try Fastnet Marine Insurance and speak with Richard Power. Tell him you got his name from my singlehanded tips book. If you read my book http://sfbaysss.org/resource/doc/SinglehandedTipsThirdEdition2.pdf in chapter 3, you will see the conditions they expect for a singlehanded voyage. I interviewed him several years ago, so please let us know if the situation has changed.

 

[DipperToo]

I'm with GJW Direct. My insurance originally excluded single-handed sailing at night. I queried this, explaining that there could be circumstances in which I might be obliged by tides or weather to stay out at night. They amended my insurance to say policy excess would be doubled when sailing single-handed between dusk and dawn. This seems fair enough to me and the policy has been the same ever since. This is for a 31 ft sailing yacht in UK coastal waters, English Channel & between Brest & the Elbe.

Bishop Skinner do 24 hours with the same as above. They also wanted to know that the vessel was equipped with an autopilot. Small discount for RYA members.

 

[LadyInBed]

I like Pantaenius because they don't seem too fussed about setting a time limit for singlehanding, don't mind night trips and their standard cover is down to La Rochelle and up to somewhere right in the frigid north.

Their premiums I'm not so fond of.



"I believe Pants may offer longer S/H cover..."

They might for longer trips, but their general revised underwriter's guidelines don't encourage business under £80,000 covered. If you had an established record with them I suspect they would consider it but otherwise maybe not.

I'm insured through them s/h as far as Gibraltar.

 

[Pasarell]

18 hour restriction with Y (or it is for me).

And me

 

[Fr J Hackett]

I got agreement for single handing the AZAB from HKJ but latter changed it to two up there didn't seem to be any problems and prior to that had the standard 24 Hr clause which was enough to get me to a landfall then coastal.

 

[Mikedefieslife]

I have been insured fully comp with various brokers in France for past twenty years and they are always a bit puzzled when I have checked whether single-handing is covered. I think SH exclusions is only a UK thing. I am with Pants Palma now - who are excellent by the way - and my fully comp policy covers all Med and Atlantic for €420 per year.

I could believe that. The UK is poor when it comes to insurance. I remember asking my motor insurer for a green card when going to Morocco. They said they don't issue them. Only Aviva issued them for motorcycles. I contacted Aviva and they wouldn't issue one as they were worried about fighting in Libya. Apparently that was close enough to Morocco that they were scared, even though insurance doesn't cover war or terrorism anyhow.

In contrast my German friend living in Spain, and a Fresh guy I met, were given green card insurance as a matter of policy by their regular insurers.

 

[Foolish Muse]

I spoke to Jeanne Socrates about this. As you know she is possibly the most experienced singlehander of all time, with 3 1/2 circumnavigations and leaving on another one later this month. She lost one boat in Mexico a few years ago. She is very happy with her insurance broker and provided this contact information:

Richard Walton-Gould
WG Yachts
9 Stagbury Close,
Coulsdon.
CR5 3PH
England
Tel: +44 1737 552885
Mob + 44 7799 885236
email: richard@wgyachts.com