Who has had Insurance Claims?

[Nous Defions]

Just wondering if anyone here has ever not had an insurance claim on their boat or trailer. My boat is nearing 10 years old, what can I expect an insurance company to give me for it if it gets totaled or stolen?

 

[the MfM]

I have an agreed value policy.

 

[Bluewater272]

I have an agreed value policy as well.

 

[bumpy]

Agreed value policy here too.

 

[Nous Defions]

I guess I have some decisions to make. Have been paying insurance, house, cars, life and have never made a claim. That's over 40 years of adult life. How much of a chance that my boat gets stolen, or burns down and sinks? I'm a pretty safe guy and I'm thinking the insurance might give me a hard time the first time I make a claim, if I ever do.

 

[Mainah]

Never a boat claim but have had a different and expensive experience. Had three cars vandalized in my drive years ago by teenagers that vandlized others on the same night with no rhyme or reason beyond opportunity. I had just recently switched from USAA to an umbrella covering Home, RV, Boat, Cars, scheduled items of value, a new teenage driver, and person liability as USAA was much more expensive with some of that as I think they farm out underwriting on some pieces. The new company refused to cover as one claim. Became three seperate claims and as the cars all needed a full paint job they did not pay for it all for what they called betterment. One of the cars was only a few months old and I won the battle on that one but could not on the others. Took forever to get them to pay up too. The icing on the cake was that I decided it was worth it to go back to USAA and now had three fresh claims showing that had been categorized the wrong way. USAA worked with me on that though with a copy of the police report.

So two morales to this story. Agreed value is the way to go and the company matters.

While I did expand my security system to cover the outside I always wonder what would have happened had I caught them in the act. Doubt the insurance situation would have changed and with my firearm in hand things could have ended badly for three young lives for getting into mischief. My foucs continues to be the points of entry but I cover the outside with IR motion detection video to CMA.

 

[haknslash]

Agreed value policy for me as well.

 

[nf22]

Mainah, If you do not mind me chirping in here, a tip that I would give you is to make certain that your policy is written on a per occurrence basis rather than a per claim basis. This way the insurer would need to treat the entire claim as one occurrence and you would also only be subject to one deductible (this really has more to do with your homeowners if multiple people get injured and sue you due to the same occurrence) . Now, with that being said, each auto has a specific deductible that it has to met in order for payment to be made by the insurer & every insurance company is different. If you go cheap and bind coverage with an unknown insurer just to save 20% you are generally going to get what you pay for. You can also mix and match insurers as long as you have an umbrella that will sit over all of the policies. I use Travelers Insurance Company for my Homes and Auto's and I use Progressive Insurance Company for my Boat and ATV's. I then have a Travelers Umbrella Policy that sits over all of them if the shit hits the fan...

Any questions, let me know. I am more of an expert in commercial property and casualty insurance, but my clients always ask me about personal insurance, so I know enough to be dangerous.

Hope it helps

 

[swatski]

Just wondering if anyone here has ever not had an insurance claim on their boat or trailer. My boat is nearing 10 years old, what can I expect an insurance company to give me for it if it gets totaled or stolen?

Many states require a valid/current insurance for a boat. I would think it is for liability and damages to others as well as clean up, so a coverage for loss may not be required, but once you have a policy covering everything that's required, I wonder what is the extra payment for loss/damage coverage.

--

 

[Mainah]

Mainah, If you do not mind me chirping in here, a tip that I would give you is to make certain that your policy is written on a per occurrence basis rather than a per claim basis. This way the insurer would need to treat the entire claim as one occurrence and you would also only be subject to one deductible (this really has more to do with your homeowners if multiple people get injured and sue you due to the same occurrence) . Now, with that being said, each auto has a specific deductible that it has to met in order for payment to be made by the insurer & every insurance company is different. If you go cheap and bind coverage with an unknown insurer just to save 20% you are generally going to get what you pay for. You can also mix and match insurers as long as you have an umbrella that will sit over all of the policies. I use Travelers Insurance Company for my Homes and Auto's and I use Progressive Insurance Company for my Boat and ATV's. I then have a Travelers Umbrella Policy that sits over all of them if the shit hits the fan...

Any questions, let me know. I am more of an expert in commercial property and casualty insurance, but my clients always ask me about personal insurance, so I know enough to be dangerous.

Hope it helps

I did get what I paid for and learned my lesson. Posted here with the story to put into perspective for other folks so perhaps they don’t have to make the same mistake. I am going with stick USAA and if it is something they don’t cover I will find someone with a similar rating. I have had a claim with USAA and it was handled with insane speed, courtesy, and professionalism. Granted not everyone can be a member but if one can I don't think there are many that will compare. For what it is worth my agent was no help with that other company so if going with an agent find one with a good reputation/experience.

 

[bumpy]

I've had 3 claims with Boat US over 20+ years, totaling over $20K. I don't know yet how the new underwriter Geico will be if I have another claim, but I am a little worried!

 

[the MfM]

Many states require a valid/current insurance for a boat. I would think it is for liability and damages to others as well as clean up, so a coverage for loss may not be required, but once you have a policy covering everything that's required, I wonder what is the extra payment for loss/damage coverage.

--

Liability is primarily why I have insurance. I leave the boat on a mooring unattended 5+ days at a time for five months a year so the loss coverage is nice to have. For my old boat it’s less than 10% of the policy cost.

I think it’s around $225 a year total for the policy.

 

[PEARCE]

I've had 3 claims with Boat US over 20+ years, totaling over $20K. I don't know yet how the new underwriter Geico will be if I have another claim, but I am a little worried!

We had Geico for our autos for many years with at least one claim that required a trip to the body shop. They took good care of us without any sort of hassle other then doing without our truck for a week. I don't see a reason to be concerned with having them cover your boat @bumpy . We use Progressive for our Yamaha and they have been great to deal with. We've had several claims with them, mainly trailer related, without any problems or hassles. The adjuster comes by and sees the damage and I get a check cut within 24hours for me to get the repair done where and when I wish.

 

[2kwik4u]

We use Erie for everything. Home, Truck, SUV, Boat, and Umbrella. The Truck and SUV are comprehensive/collision and minimum liability required by law, with "gap" coverage through the credit union at time of purchase. Boat is an agreed value policy at $35k (enough to cover the loan and personal effects of those on board), with minimum liability. House is a standard home policy with additional riders for boat in storage, jewelry, electronics, and bicycles (yes I have a problem with expensive bicycles). Umbrella is a $2mil liability coverage policy. This somewhat pays for itself as it's like $85/mo, and I get around $82/mo in discounts on the other policies for carrying it. Should keep me covered in case I rear end a Land Rover pulling a Pavati on the expressway and we somehow take out a small house in the process.

Never had a claim on the boat. Had a few on cars/trucks back when we were with KY Farm Bureau. Those were easily and quickly handled with no real issues on our end. Had one claim on Erie where the wife bonked a Camry from behind at like 10mph. Family of four climbed out of the camry claiming neck and back injuries before the police even showed up. Luckily the wife was smart enough to not engage them and waited on the police to arrive. From there they sent all 4 to the ER, towed the camry while the wife drove away wonder where the damage on the cars were. We ended up having the front bumper support bar replaced at insurances insistence, and the entirety of the family was deemed fine for release and never filed a claim against us for it. No idea who paid for the ambulance rides or ER visits. There was no visible damage to the Camry that we could tell.

 

[nf22]

The Truck and SUV are comprehensive/collision and minimum liability required by law,

Boat is an agreed value policy at $35k (enough to cover the loan and personal effects of those on board), with minimum liability

You might want to check with your agent or insurer on your minimum limits. Otherwise, if you have a $30,000 min limit of liability on your car the umbrella could have a $470,000 gap before it drops down and provides coverage. Just double check with your agent or insurer, you are probably fine due to the fact that the same umbrella insurer is insuring your entire portfolio, but I know in my state I need to max my liability for my auto ($500,000) home ($500,000) boat ($500,000) and 4-Wheeler's ($500,000) in order for the umbrella carrier to drop down with out a gap in coverage. Travelers is my Umbrella Insurer and they also insure my home and auto's, while progressive insurers my boat and 4-wheelers. Also, very important that in the umbrella policy you specifically see the policies that are scheduled underneath or the insurer will have the ability to deny a claim.

 

[2kwik4u]

You might want to check with your agent or insurer on your minimum limits. Otherwise, if you have a $30,000 min limit of liability on your car the umbrella could have a $470,000 gap before it drops down and provides coverage. Just double check with your agent or insurer, you are probably fine due to the fact that the same umbrella insurer is insuring your entire portfolio, but I know in my state I need to max my liability for my auto ($500,000) home ($500,000) boat ($500,000) and 4-Wheeler's ($500,000) in order for the umbrella carrier to drop down with out a gap in coverage. Travelers is my Umbrella Insurer and they also insure my home and auto's, while progressive insurers my boat and 4-wheelers. Also, very important that in the umbrella policy you specifically see the policies that are scheduled underneath or the insurer will have the ability to deny a claim.

Thanks for the tips. I'll rifle off an email to our agent and make sure all that is in-line. I suspect it is, since it was all done under the same agent through the same company, but it's worth a check for sure.

 

[Marvin willis]

I just got 26k for my 05 AR230HO with nationwide.

 

[Marvin willis]

With my jet ski I sucked up grass at the lake and they gave me 6000 to replace the motor due to a blown head gasket. 0 deductible bc I hadn’t made a claim in 5 years.

 

[the MfM]

I just got 26k for my 05 AR230HO with nationwide.

Should we like or dislike your post?

 

[Bluewater272]

You might want to check with your agent or insurer on your minimum limits. Otherwise, if you have a $30,000 min limit of liability on your car the umbrella could have a $470,000 gap before it drops down and provides coverage. Just double check with your agent or insurer, you are probably fine due to the fact that the same umbrella insurer is insuring your entire portfolio, but I know in my state I need to max my liability for my auto ($500,000) home ($500,000) boat ($500,000) and 4-Wheeler's ($500,000) in order for the umbrella carrier to drop down with out a gap in coverage. Travelers is my Umbrella Insurer and they also insure my home and auto's, while progressive insurers my boat and 4-wheelers. Also, very important that in the umbrella policy you specifically see the policies that are scheduled underneath or the insurer will have the ability to deny a claim.

Same here. When I added umbrella coverage a few years ago when I became a landlord, I thought I could be slick and save some money on car insurance by having lower liability there. Nope, needed to have at least 300K in auto liability in order to qualify for umbrella.