Boat Insurance and surveys?

[C08]

My old cat is 48 years old and was last surveyed in 2007. My insurance quote has arrived and about 10% up on last year @ £475 on £22k insured value. I am over insured now so may be able to get it down a bit and I am now on a marina berth rather than a trot mooring up a creek and that may lower the premium a bit also. Before getting into converation with my insurer it wouls be helpful for me to understand what most companies require regarding surveys and old low value boats. It would be self defeating for me to switch to another company for a low premium and then find they required a survey the next year.

 

[Bobc]

Agreed. Just talk to your current insurer and sort a new value and premium out with them.

 

[westernman]

In my experience, insurance companies want a survey every 10 years.
You should be able to convince a new insurer to accept a survey which is less than 10 years old.

You want to do the bare minimum survey - just enough to satisfy the insurer. Ideally just a market value estimation.
You do not want to end up with a list of minor stuff which you would need to fix to ensure they cannot used it to get out of a claim later on.

 

[Caer Urfa]

From my experience as a surveyor I now find insurance companies require a survey every 8 to 10 year
but if you have not had a survey since 2007 I sure would want my boat surveyed so I could sleep at night

 

[Sandyshore]

Talk to your current insurer .If they have not requested a survey since 2007 then you have done well to keep under the radar.
Perhaps serious consideration as to value of craft if it were to be put on the open market for sale.

 

[srm]

I had a similar large hike in premiums and no change in my risk profile a few years ago. When I complained that I was being discriminated against the reply was that underwriters had had a bad year in the Caribbean (so I was paying for it). As my boat was also old with a similar low value I took out third party only with different brokers and no need for a survey.

I had a survey to satisfy insurers a couple of years previously and learnt lots of new things about my boat. Just one of around ten major factual errors being that all halyards were led back to the cockpit via securely fixed turning blocks. It seemed strange that I had not noticed this when re-rigging the boat ten years previously, and did all sail handling at the mast where the halyard winches were.

 

[madabouttheboat]

I have said this before. Some insurance companies have a stipulation in the small print that there should be a current survey less than X years old. They don't, however, actually do anything about telling you. I have been insured with such a company before, and was surprised to read the stipulation when it had not been mentioned at any point in the years that I had been with them. I was, in effect, uninsured. Just because you haven't been asked, don't assume it is not a requirement.

 

[ylop]

My policy doesn’t mention surveys but requires the boat to have an annual out of the water inspection (covering through hulls etc). That can be “DIY” - I keep pictures. FWIW I do have a survey that would satisfy most insurers and the boat is not as old as the OPs.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Just remember that if you loose your rig and get some damage, the market Value is hardly likely to cover a new rig. Some insurers base it on expected life of a rig . They dont tell you what that is, but the payout will come with a betterment deduction.... You may end up with a "Constructive Total Loss" and have to pay a fortune t mend your yacht.. An agreed value policy (which will require surveys) is the proper way to insure, especially if you have done a lot of modifications and kept ALL your maintenance up to date. For that you will need good maintenance records. So read the policy - and dont expect a good underwriter to just accept the risk blind. Would You!

 

[Forty_Two]

I'm with N&G, needed a condition survey & valuation for next month's renuwal. Last done in 2013 & 2000 before that. This for a 55 year old wooden Grand Banks 42. Seems a fair requirement & has reassuring benefits about the condition for me.

Price increase around 5% this year so not too bad. Broker checked around & was a competitive price.

 

[westernman]

I'm with N&G, needed a condition survey & valuation for next month's renuwal. Last done in 2013 & 2000 before that. This for a 55 year old wooden Grand Banks 42. Seems a fair requirement & has reassuring benefits about the condition for me.

Price increase around 5% this year so not too bad. Broker checked around & was a competitive price.

You need to be careful with the condition survey.
If it says something should be taken care of, it means you need to have proof that it was taken care of when it comes time to make any kind of claim (even if the item which should have been taken care of was totally irrelevant to the claim in question).

E.g. the survey says that the headlining in the forward berth should be renewed. And you did not do it and your mast fell down and sank your neighbour's boat.
Your insurance company would try to use the fact you cannot show that the headlining had been renewed as a way to wiggle out of the claim.

This is why you need to choose a reputable company which is know not to do this kind of manipulation, and also keep all records of all maintenance, however minor.

 

[C08]

I have said this before. Some insurance companies have a stipulation in the small print that there should be a current survey less than X years old. They don't, however, actually do anything about telling you. I have been insured with such a company before, and was surprised to read the stipulation when it had not been mentioned at any point in the years that I had been with them. I was, in effect, uninsured. Just because you haven't been asked, don't assume it is not a requirement.

Thanks that is an interesting point - I will read the small print.

 

[Tranona]

Not sure such an important condition would be in the "small print". I have never seen that as a general condition in the many policy documents I have read over the years. The requirement usually comes in 3 situations. First and most common is on application to a new insurer, second on renewal because of a change in policy of the insurer or the vessel reaching a certain age, thirdly after repairs/modifications or revaluation.

There is a pretty standard format for an insurance survey that is less comprehensive than a pre-purchase survey. Most surveyors have a template of what is covered on their website or will provide a copy with their quotation which is usually a bit lower than a full survey.

 

[Tranona]

You need to be careful with the condition survey.
If it says something should be taken care of, it means you need to have proof that it was taken care of when it comes time to make any kind of claim (even if the item which should have been taken care of was totally irrelevant to the claim in question).

E.g. the survey says that the headlining in the forward berth should be renewed. And you did not do it and your mast fell down and sank your neighbour's boat.
Your insurance company would try to use the fact you cannot show that the headlining had been renewed as a way to wiggle out of the claim.

This is why you need to choose a reputable company which is know not to do this kind of manipulation, and also keep all records of all maintenance, however minor.

No, they would not - at least in the UK, although there are states that allow that in insurance contracts. A very contentious subject over there as you can imagine.