Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Boats? Is Home Insurance Enough?

When looking for a boat insurance policy, boat owners often wonder whether their boat is covered by their homeowners insurance.

So, does homeowners insurance cover boats?

In this blog we explain the liability coverage of homeowners insurance policies vs boat insurance policies and whether it’s a better idea to take out a dedicated boat insurance policy.

Do I Need Separate Insurance for My Boat?

Boats have a high recovery and replacement cost and come with their own risks. So, insuring them makes sense.

You may find that your homeowners insurance policy or car insurance provides a degree of cover, but there are lots of good reasons for taking out a dedicated boat insurance policy or personal watercraft insurance.

Will My Home Contents Insurance Cover My Boat?

While your boat is stored at your home it may be covered – up to a certain value – by your homeowners insurance policy.

Home insurers, for the most part, do not have any particular expertise in insuring watercraft.

So, you will find that you have limited coverage that is not tailored to your needs.

And if you are in the unfortunate position of needing to claim for damage or an accident to your boat, you may be getting help from someone who does not have a full understanding of what has happened and what your needs are.

It is certainly worth calling up your home insurance company or provider and asking them whether your boat is covered.

But specialist boat or watercraft insurance will give you better insurance coverage, better service and better peace of mind than homeowner’s insurance.

It will provide coverage when your boat is on the water, in a marina or in a boatyard, too rather than the very limited coverage that home insurance policies provide.

Will My Car Insurance Cover My Boat?

While you’re towing your boat to the water, it may be covered by your car or auto insurance if you’ve made appropriate arrangements.

Note that some motor insurances have restrictions about the length of boat you can tow in your boat trailer and are usually limited to small boats.

It’s best to call up and ask before you set out.

Do I Need Boat Insurance?

You probably do need boat insurance, particularly if we’re talking about a larger boat with a high replacement cost.

Insurance may also be a condition of navigating certain waters or taking part in organised sailing activities.

So not having boat insurance can be quite limiting.

Your home insurance might cover your boat while it’s stored at your home.

But your homeowners policy won’t cover your boat on the water, in transit or in a boat yard.

Personal liability coverage is almost always very limited when you have homeowners insurance cover and homeowners policies will have restrictions on many things such as boat size and certain vessels won’t be covered by your insurance provider at all.

Not ideal if you get into a boating accident and need yours or a third parties medical bills covered.

Boat insurance cover will almost always give you better liability insurance and personal property coverage than homeowners insurance.

Is Boat Insurance a Legal Requirement?

There is no UK law saying that you must insure your boat – but you will need, at the very least, third-party cover if you want to access the facilities at a marina or use a boatyard.

And you’ll also need it if you plan to navigate rivers and canals.

Am I Covered by The Previous Owner’s Boat Insurance?

If you buy a boat second-hand, the insurance previously held won’t apply any more. You need to take out a new policy for your boat.

How Do I Cut the Cost of My Boat Insurance?

You can reduce the cost of boat insurance by:

• shopping around to find a policy that best meets your needs (NOTE: Velos won’t be on any price comparison websites because we offer a tailored insurance service)
• building up a no claims bonus
• taking some training (particularly if you are a new boat owner).

How Much Does Boat Insurance Cost?

The cost of boat insurance varies enormously according to what type of boat you wish to insure, where it is stored, your level of experience and competence and what activities you have planned on the water.

At Velos we provide tailored insurance, so the best way to find out the cost of your boat insurance is to use our form to get a quick quote.

Summary

Ultimately, while boat owners have limited coverage of their personal watercraft via their home insurance policy while it is on their property, we hope you’ve seen that a specific boat insurance policy is always the better option to have full coverage for your boat.

More is typically covered than would be on your home insurance policy, especially if a person’s boat is being used on the water, rather than sitting on your drive.