Survey for insurance

elv_1986

elv_1986

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The age old boat insurance woes!! After completing a 5 year complete rebuild of my boat I was lucky enough to get insurance with photographic evidence that the boat is sea worthy. Unfortunately my 12 month insurance policy is now at an end and the company are insisting a survey on the boat. She is a motor boat, built in approx 1979.

Now, I fully agree with paying a marina surveyor to survey a boat which is unknown to you, however as I have completed an intensive refit which includes structural work to the boat this seems a strange request. It is fair to say I know the boat inside out, and all work has been carried out professionally.

However, I am wondering, do I have to get a qualified marine surveyor to satisfy the insurance company or could a life long experienced marine engineer produce a report providing it covers all the correct areas? Greatly reducing the cost of the document!

Your thoughts are appreciated :)
 
The simple answer is to ask them! Get the marine engineer's experience and knowledge written down and send it to them. I guess they will be interested in his ability to make judgments regarding the hull and rig. I have to say my experience is the more you are up front with insurance companies, the easier they are to deal with (not talking about claims though).
 
I was getting quotes for my insurance renewal only last week and one who quoted asked for a survey due to the boat being 25+ years old.
I queried this with them and they conceded they would be happy to accept a broker valuation, which could probably be sorted cheaper over a glass or two on board.
In the end I used the cheaper quote as leverage and got a good deduction from my insurers.
 
I don't mind having an insurance survey every 7 years. There's something satisfying and reassuring about a stranger crawling all over it and finding nothing wrong. Or with my first boat finding brass bolts on bronze skinfittings that may not have lasted much longer.
 
MoodySabre said:
I don't mind having an insurance survey every 7 years. There's something satisfying and reassuring about a stranger crawling all over it and finding nothing wrong. Or with my first boat finding brass bolts on bronze skinfittings that may not have lasted much longer.
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I agree. Or in my case finding something worrying that I didn't know about, and recently done by 'others'.
 
Interesting, I like the idea of a broker valuation, that may be a point I can discuss with the insurance company.

I agree it is a very reassuring feeling of having a survey, especially after every 5-10 years, however as the boat has had a very comprehensive rebuild and launched just 12 months ago we know the boat is 100%, and possibly a brokers valuation will prove this.
 
Noahsdad said:
I was getting quotes for my insurance renewal only last week and one who quoted asked for a survey due to the boat being 25+ years old.
I queried this with them and they conceded they would be happy to accept a broker valuation, which could probably be sorted cheaper over a glass or two on board.
In the end I used the cheaper quote as leverage and got a good deduction from my insurers.
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What company did you use for this?
 
elv_1986 said:
Your thoughts are appreciated :)
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While you may be satisfied with your boat, your insurer is taking the risk from you, so not unreasonable for them to ask for an independent view on the condition and value of the boat. However, not all insurers want a survey so get some alternative quotes. As others have suggested not all require a full survey so you need to discuss with them what they will accept.
 
Bear in mind that a mortgagae lender commissions a "survey" which entails someone saying that they have seen the house - it exists! No proof that they have been in the relevant town and no comment on condition. It is all to do with shifting the blame if things go tits up, otherwise referred to as risk assessment. Many house buyers make their purchase based on the lender's survey not knowing that the place could fall apart next day due to "undisclosed" pre-existing conditions.

The marine industry is much the same. Wher finance is concerned the whole point is to make money without actually doing anything, so play on their greed and offer effortless alternatives - they may well bite. After all, the insurers will make every effort not to pay out against the very thing they insured against, so why help them? Having said that, many people do benefit from a survey to ensure the maintenance schedule is sufficiently comprehensive.

Rob.
 
I take it the OP wouldn't want "third party only" insurance? If so, there are companies who will do that online for very little money and no survey. I'm with Navigators and General and they also include "removal of wreck" cover, an the associated cleanup of diesel / lube oil. (Obviously, you don't get a penny for your boat though). When you come to low value boats, the cost of the survey PLUS any work that the surveyor wants doing, can come to a fair chunk of what the boat is worth.
 
Elv_86
GJW offered a quote £45 less than my insurers with the proviso of a valuation. My current insurers (premier) dropped the premium £50 in a heart beat when told of this.
My current insurers were happy with the pre-refit survey (2012) and documented proof of completed work.
 
can i assume you are after insurance in order to meet the mooring/marina requirements?

if so i think third party is all that is required. i insured mine through saga with no survey required last year.
 
Yes, third party may be an option, however I would like fully comp if it is possible to get it! I am going to speak to a few companies and see what they can do to help me with a valuation or similar. Great advice on here as always!
 
I can understand your reluctance to shed fully comp but I gave up on it years ago. The restrictions and conditions were ridiculous and non-sensical (the notion, for example that a boat is at more risk the more offshore it is!). I calculated that surveys, plus premiums, plus haggling over any claim were just not worth it.

Third party is, IMO, a moral responsibility and am all for that. I am now at the point where the premium is under a hundred quid which is fine by me. Being an expert yachtsman I have enough faith in my ability to keep my little boat out of trouble :cool:
 
chinita said:
I can understand your reluctance to shed fully comp but I gave up on it years ago. The restrictions and conditions were ridiculous and non-sensical (the notion, for example that a boat is at more risk the more offshore it is!). I calculated that surveys, plus premiums, plus haggling over any claim were just not worth it.

Third party is, IMO, a moral responsibility and am all for that. I am now at the point where the premium is under a hundred quid which is fine by me. Being an expert yachtsman I have enough faith in my ability to keep my little boat out of trouble :cool:[/QUOTE]
And being in Portugal most of the year helps too :p
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Need to look a bit closer at this. The premium for my little faering has gone from €40 to €80+ in 6yrs. Third party only.. On the other hand, a mate who had a woopsy, found they paid up for everything without question. He is on full comp, even then, quite a lot could have been questioned. But it might be that here, it is very Ins based, so they charge a lot, but pay up.
 
Personally, unless the craft has little value anyway, I think third party insurance is a saving too far
for instance i grounded - quite lightly- last month but my rudder broke
The £5-6K repair bill is being met by the insurer with little quibble
more than covers the savings in insurance cost over the last few years

As for surveys- how much would the OP have to pay for the survey?
If I had a boat that had extensive maintenance done I might actually like a survey
Having seen other people's idea of "sensible DIY work" I think a survey would be an absolute necessity
If the Op is baulking at the cost of a survey one might ask if he baulked at getting the upgrades & maintenance done properly
Not necessarily so- but !!!!
 
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Have you looked at quotes for insurance surveys? They don't tend to be very rigorous since they're only to prove to the insurers that the boats not going to fold in half and sink any time soon and as such they tend not to be overly expensive.
 
I remember when I started boating the insurance people accepted the word of our yacht club commadore that my yacht was sound. Different world then.
Basic boat.com are quite good for 3rd party insurance.
 
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