Marine Insurance Survey

Have had two insurance surveys done. First one led me to changing the copper gas pipe, and when I took it all out found it very corroded in one place that was not particularly visible. The second found something else rather more concerning and equally hidden to me (£10 to put right). Report for 26ft were I think around £370.

So whilst it may well be possible to change insurers and do something cheaper, it is a bit of an MOT that could be very useful, particularly if 'others' have worked on your boat (though not necessarily restricted to this).
 
rhumlady said:
Surveyed 17 rears ago or so and Bishop Skinner haven't been asked since. I have heard the same from other people here. I do get a reduced rate as i am not in the water just now as I am refitting and have been for a number of years. Once she is ready to go back in I will get a survey for my own piece of mind.
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This approach leaves me nervous. Just like low price car insurers look into the policy detail after a claim rather than when they take on the business, you could find yourself having to try and prove the state of your boat before a claim if you had no survey for the last 20 years. So I would be prepared to pay for a survey albeit I would not expect to pay more than £100 having it done piggy back along with otherrs at the club.
 
lpdsn said:
7 years with my insurance company (Pantaenius)
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My boat is 10 now, and has insured with Pantaenius since new. I have never been asked for a survey.

An aside, but I've found Pants as reasonable as possible. For instance this summer I wanted to go outside the 'Gibraltar to Bergen' standard cruising range. Their advice was to email on the day we passed north of the latitude of Bergen, and they'd hold me covered, and then to email again when back south. This I duly did, (we were away 7 weeks iirc) and they charged me only for 7/52 of the difference between the two premiums, which is really as reasonable as it's possible to imagine. There has never been an issue with short handed sailing, and they have made no fuss when including the Azores or Svalbard or Greenland, and when I asked tentatively about Antarctica they replied that it would be no problem either.
 
My insurers required a survey when the boat was 20 years old, primarily to confirm the values being insured were correct. The inspection, including travel cost, came to just under £400 for a 31' boat in Preveza, Greece.
With regard to single-handing, most insurers will try and exclude it. Mine confine me to "a planned passage not exceeding 1 night in duration". In effect this can work out @ 42 hours and I have dispensation for "delays due to stress of weather".
The premium is 0.5% of insured value, less a 20% no-claims bonus.
However I have been with the same insurance brokers since 1990 and single-handed since 1995, with no claims made on voyage.
 
Gadget257 said:
I am trying to estimate next year's yacht expenditure - other than finding a reasonable figure and trippling it - and after 5 years of ownership my insurance company will require a survey. What would be a ball park figure for a 30 ft (Hustler 30) 40 year old sailing yacht on the south coast. Cheers
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Get a marine engineers report, much cheaper (app 1/2 the price), insurance co will accept them (I have done several but too far away from you)
 
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