Boat Insurance: Things You Need to Know Before Hitting the Waves

It is now officially summertime, and that means it is boating season. At Mountainview Insurance, we know that there’s no better feeling than hitting the waves and feeling that warm summer breeze on your skin. Yet, before you take your boat out on the lake this summer, there are some things you need to know about boat insurance.

1. What Your Boat Insurance Covers

While there is nothing better than the feeling of relaxing on your boat in the summertime, but there is always the risk that something bad could happen. That’s why it is so important that you know what your boat insurance does and does not cover before you head out on the lake. Boat owner’s policies were invented to protect everyone and everything including, you, other boaters, your boat, and your equipment. Your boat insurance may also cover:

• Sinking
• Fire/explosion
• Storms
• Theft
• Capsizing/stranding
• Collision
• Property damage
• Bodily injury liability
• Comprehensive

2. The Different Types of Liability Coverage

There are two main types of liability coverage that boat insurance offers: personal liability and medical payments.

Personal liability covers the costs that you would be legally obligated to pay to an injured party in the event of an accident. Coverage includes:

• Bodily injury expenses
• Property damage
• Legal defense

Medical payments cover medical expenses that are incurred due to an accident involving your boat. Coverage includes:

• Hospital bills
• Ambulance charges
• Medical bills

3. Additional Coverage for Your Boat

While property and liability coverage are the two basic types of boat insurance, you can always purchase additional coverage. There are several different types of extra coverage that you can choose from, such as:

• Emergency services – takes care of any expenses that come from needing emergency services.
• Reasonable repairs – covers maintenance needed to protect your boat from future damage.
• Wreck removal – pays the reasonable cost of raising, removing, or destroying your boat if you have a shipwreck that was caused by an insured loss and if removal is mandatory by law.
• Umbrella coverage – provides additional coverage against disasters in the event that your other coverage does not cover all of your expenses.

4. Ways You Can Save on Boat Insurance

The more safety precautions you take for your boat, the more you might be able to save on your boat insurance. Here are a few ways that you can save money on your boat insurance:

• Have an approved fire extinguisher on-board
• Take a certified safety course
• Use diesel

Getting Your Boat Insurance From Mountainview Insurance

At Mountainview Insurance, we want to make sure that you are staying as safe as possible on the water this summer. We have access to two main boat insurance markets, which allows us to cover everything from small personal watercrafts to yachts.

If you would like to know more about boat insurance before hitting the waves this summer, or about any of our other insurance products, please contact Mountainview Insurance at 604-557-0255 or by requesting a quote on our website.

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