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| BOAT INSURANCE I wrote in the last magazine regarding the PAC insurance situation and informed members that only the individual is insured for public liability, whilst fishing, on the PAC insurance, not the boat they may happen to be in. I know that some people have been very concerned about the effect of this, particularly those who fish Loch Ken, Lake Windermere or any of the rivers controlled by British Waterways or the other river authorities. Most of these organisations require a boat taken on to their waters to be licensed and before this is issued, a check is made that the boat has at least 3rd party insurance. Apparently however, the authorities on Lake Windermere only advise people who take boats out there on a daily basis to have 3rd party insurance. The amounts of required cover may differ however depending on the authority. Evidence, usually in the form of an insurance certificate, is requested by the authority, at the time the licence is applied for. In view of the concerns of members, I have tried to see if there is any way in which the PAC could negotiate boat insurance for members at reduced rates. I first of all looked at the possibility of negotiating any set amounts, however there are insurmountable problems with this. As I am sure members will appreciate, there are many different types of boats owned by people in the PAC, from small 8 foot rowing boats to fast American type fishing boats powered by 40hp (and bigger engines) and everything in between. There are also vast differences on where these boats are used, the experience of the owner etc. All of these differences make it impossible to be able to come up with an adequate package, which could be used. As I am sure you will appreciate, insurance is arranged on the risks involved and the premium this attracts to cover the risk. After all, the insurer is in business to make a profit and wants all of the facts before he (or she) will cover the apparent risks. There are also a number of companies in the insurance business offering this type of cover. The main piece of advice however is to always look for a company offering marine insurance when looking to insure a boat. Whilst a general insurance company may well offer cover to an individual, the specialist marine brokers know some of the pitfalls the person seeking insurance may face and will be able to advise to avoid them. They also know the questions to ask to ensure that the full facts are revealed before insurance is taken out to prevent problems afterwards. Some of the brokers I am aware of in this field are Bristol Marine Insurance Consultants, R. A. Carter (Ins. Cons.) Ltd., Haven Knox Johnson Ltd., and there are plenty of others. All will be able to offer suitable insurance. The biggest issue for most people will be the cost. No one likes having to fork out huge sums of money, especially for something like insurance which all of us hope we will never use. However I would ask members to bear in mind that we now live in a litigious society, where it is becoming commonplace for people to be sued for even what seem like trivial things and compensation awarded can amount to many thousands of pounds. This is one of the reasons insurance is required on the waters I mentioned earlier. I have approached two of the above mentioned brokers and both state that the best course of action is for the boat owner to contact them directly. They would obtain the information from the owner on subjects such as where the boat is kept, the value of the vessel, where it is used, what size of engine, whether it is towed to waters or kept on a wet mooring etc. All of these and many more factors may affect the premium quoted and they will do their best to achieve the most suitable insurance deal for the individual. The owner also has the option of deciding whether they want to take out fully comprehensive insurance or just public liability and of course this affects the premium greatly. One of the brokers however (Sue at R. A. Carter Ltd) did make some enquiries of a company they use, to give me an illustration of the costs of insurance. These figures are only for illustration however and should not be taken as a quote, as this would be decided on an individual basis. We discussed in some depth the types of boat generally used by Pike anglers and she obtained the following figures on boats up to a maximum length of 16ft. 6inches with an outboard engine of no more than 25hp., with a maximum speed not exceeding 17 knots. The figures show the band of value of the boat and gear and possible premium and offer fully comprehensive cover:
The cost of public liability only for these vessels would be £47. All of the above figures are illustrations only and you must bear in mind that all of your gear should be covered (trailer, engine, electrical equipment etc.), which obviously may well increase the premium depending on the value. I personally have a boat, which is fully comprehensively insured, and I must admit these figures do appear very competitive, compared to premiums I have paid previously. So there you have it. It is obviously up to each individual to decide how they wish to proceed. If you wish to contact Sue her telephone number is 01905 358888 (tell her you are a member of PAC and she will try to get the best deal for you). I also have received a simplified insurance proposal form from her for PAC Members use if you wish to fill one in and I will happily send one to you if you ring me. Alternatively, you can also contact Tony Burris at Bristol Channel Marine Insurance on 029 2063 1163 or any other broker. The main thing to remember is to be honest with the broker when you ring them and tell them everything the boat is used for and where it is used. Then they will advise the best type of policy for you and should the worst happen, you should have cover for any compensation or to replace your precious boat. This
article first appeared in Pikelines 102 (November 2003) - on this website 18/10/03 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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