Wear & Tear or Insurance Claim

[saltshaker]

The advice given had been kind and thoughtful; however keep in mind that claim decisions are dependent upon all the wording of the particular insurance policy and a your specific facts. The wording of the policy controls and application will depend upon a credible interpretation of the facts.

There are times that payable claims are denied and vice versa. Anecdotal information may give you a feel for things, but you may be feeling in the dark.

You may want to hire a lawyer with expertise in the field to review your policy; however, the other variable is an expert interpretation of the cause of the loss. Both inquiries may have significant costs.

Regards,
Vincent

I have to agree that the interpretation and evaluation of the defective part and subsequent damage are crucial. I know of several cases were overhauls were paid by the ins. co. due to adefecrive part failing. The amazing thing to me is that they all were older boats. You'll have to move forward with your repairs while the Ins. Co. determines if it is a payable claim. Sometimes they will authorize limited work just to determine specific damage and possible cause. Most likely you will perform the necesarry repairs before you know if your claim will be paid.

I don't think this type of coverage is all that unusual. I've always had it with my policies and I know of several boats that have used this coverage for repairs. Out of the 50 boats at our club, I know of 3 that had claims paid for latent defects.

 

[Sparky1]

OK guys, not to be a smartass, but I'd like to hear some specifics as in whose insurance company paid for these latent defect claims where engines were covered along with specific details of the failures and subsequent repairs. It's not a matter of being nosey, it's a matter of presenting precedents should I decide to go another round with State Farm where my denied claim is concerned. PM's would be great if you don't want to post in an open forum.

I suppose I may have been more aggressive in my approach with them had I known of this type coverage. For all I know, my failed oil line could have been caused by my grounding the boat the night before. Maybe I'm just too damned honest for my own good.

 

[saltshaker]

A failed oil line would be tough. You would have to prove the line failed because it was defective, not worn due to age. It can be done but not too easily. My mechanic had to replace a Cummins 6Bta on a 2 yr old Dawson, that blew up due to a bad oil line. The owner had just had a larger oil cooler installed and a brand new line failed. The mechanic who did the work managed to disconnect the engine alarm so there was no warning. The insurance company paid for the new engine and then went after the company that did the original work. The most recent case I know of with regards to latent defect, is a friend who got a long block and repairs covered due to the crank shaft failing. The shaft was sent out to be examined and was determined to have been defective. I was surprised that an insurance co. would rebuild an engine that failed after 15 years of service, but according to the owner they did. Years ago I had the output bearing fail on an Allison gear. My mechanic said my insurance would pay for the rebuild if there was further damage to the trans due to the failed bearing. My insurance company claimed they would pay for repairs other than that of the bearing if the bearing was defective and caused additional damage. The gears were fine so I replaced the bearings and rebuilt the rest without submitting a claim. This was with Royal Insurance. That was agreat policy but they no longer insure recreational vessels. I now have Travelers and according to my agentl, it is very close to the Royal policy. I am covered for latenet defect, but fortunatley I,ve never had a claim.