I Need Insurance for a 56' Boat (Out of State owner )in Florida?

[waterboy]

In the past I’ve kept my 56’ boat in NC and just currently brought it down to the Ft Lauderdale area.

My current Insurance with INAMAR (ACE) has decided to exclude my wind coverage including tropical storms and hurricanes. They also raised my premium an additional $1500 per year.

My policy showed - "I may not navigate south of Cumberland island, Georgia between noon on June 1, and noon November 15, unless application states that your primary mooring location is Florida, Georgia, South Carolina or North Carolina. "

Since my primary mooring location was NC, I thought I had no problem taking the boat to Florida. I called ACE to give them a heads up that I was moving the boat to Florida. They replied with “If you move the boat to Florida we will probably cancel”. Since I thought I had insurance I took the boat down south anyway. Once I arrived in Florida, I call Ace to notify them of the Marina I would be keeping the boat at.

The next day I started shopping for new insurance, but have had a hard time find any US company that wants to take on Florida. Many companies are not interested in Insuring a boat over $600K if the owner lives out of state. The companies that are interested require you to have a Hurricane Plane that requires you to move the boat or Haul it out if you are in the path of a hurricane. I don't have a problem hiring someone to move the boat, except that sometime it’s impossible to do. We have a yacht manager that is responsible for watching over the boat and securing the boat when in harms way. Our plan is to try to move the boat if we can find an available captain and a secure location, but if that cannot be done we would leave the boat in the marina and secure it with extra lines and finders like a spider web. I’m concerned that if we do not move the boat, but take extra precaution to secure it to the dock and take pictures that the insurance will not pay if damage occurs while in the slip.


Can anyone recommend or share a some names of any Insurance Companies to contact

I have looked into the following Insurance companies.

Boat US - $18K per/year
- Require a new survey
- Require a Hurricane plan that includes moving the boat to a save area.

Luxury Yachts (waiting on quote)

Atlas Insurance - $9K per/year
- Require a new survey
- Require a Hurricane plan that includes moving the boat to a save area.


Any advice or thought?

Thanks!

[Angela]

There are a few very lengthy discussions here about insurance in Florida. Although I'm sure you'll get a number of responses here, you can also do a search on this forum for the word "insurance" in the thread title.

In a nutshell, what I can say about trying to obtain insurance in Florida is that your blood is about to begin to boil.

[DuckWalk]

I have some companies I could run you through. Shoot me an email and I will give you a call to get some particulars.

James@cabralinsurance.com

[Pascal]

any new policy is going to require a new survey...

as to moving the hurricane plans, it depends on the fine print and what they mean by a safe area. All policies require a hurricane plan, the question is what they will accept.

the $9000 quote is too bad considering you're an out of state owner..

moving the boat is the best option in case of a serious blow. 50 to 75 miles is often all it takes here in So fl... unless your marina is well protected...

[thoward]

We are in state owners and the only game in Florida is Charter Lakes. It is crap insurance from what I have been told and we are paying about 6k on our 1979 60C. I checked insurance at the Ft Laurderdale boat show last month and it was the same old story. Good Luck!

[Brian Degulis]

moving the boat is the best option in case of a serious blow. 50 to 75 miles is often all it takes here in So fl... unless your marina is well protected...

Hey Pascal Remember Charlie in 2004 it was making a B line for Tampa as a matter of fact the center of the track was right over my house. So I used your sugestion and moved the boat around 75 miles TO PUNTA GORDA!!!! The rest is history what a ride it's a good thing there was plenty of room in Charolete Harbor good thing it went by quick without much storm surge to. Good thing I had a change of underwear around 11:30 that morning when I learned it turned east.

Brian

[BUSTER]

Try calling Marathon Marina in Marathon Key and ask for Greg Wright. He lives in Vermont and keeps his 42C there year round,he had the same problem and found a Florida Company to insure his boat.Greg is in Marathon for the winter,if you can't reach him email me for his cell. Please remember,if your survey is over 5 years old it is not only in the best intrest of the ins, carrier to require a survey,but your own life could depend on a problem uncovered during a survey. I do a lot of electric - mechanical surveys with my partner,who does the hulls.We regularly find serious flaws in otherwise well maintained yachts.

[Captned]

Call susan fischer at 954.761.2260 Tell her ned sent you. Good luck.

Captned
46 78 CON

[Pascal]

Brian

yep..i remember Charlie. it was one of those worst scenario storm that come in at a shallow angle to the coast resulting is large differences...

my comments about moving the boat 50 to 75 miles really applied to the east coast where most storms come from the east... note that i said MOST.

talking about the big storms... andrew, hugo, etc... things like Wilma or KAtrina can be handled with normal preparation as long as you're not in an exposed marina.

and obviously it depends on the boat... i've seen boats holed from a couple of minor rubs... where as others will need a lot of rubbing before the hull is breached. the worst scenario is an absentee owners in a ... how can i put it... flashy boat.

[Brian Degulis]

I think that where a boat is kept is more important than the boat itself as far as surviving a storm goes. The mass destruction of boats in storms is always caused by ill concieved marinas weather it be an un protected location or lack of pilings or pilings that are to short. Think about it a boat in a protected area with no sea condition to deal with can withstand just about any amount of wind a hurricane can produce. It's the marina structure that always falls apart a quick look at most marinas and it's easy to see why. It amazes me that insurance companies only factor in the geographic location and not the design condition or location of the facility itself.

Brian