Boat insurance IS important as it does not matter what type of vessel you purchase you want to know your precious investment is safe… be it a simple sailboard or a luxury yacht, you’ve invested your hard earned money and deserve peace of mind. Some people also make assumptions that the vessel may be insured as part of a broader household policy, however it isn’t. Even if you wish to declare it then both the value and use would exceed standard household policy usage limitations, thus even specialist homeowner policies will not extend to provide cover for any boats you own. Boat insurance is a specialist type of insurance policy.

A good quality boat insurance policy therefore gives you that peace of mind that, whether you are with the vessel at the time or away from the vessel, you’re covered it’s okay! As standard we recommend comprehensive cover, as similar to your car and particularly if the value of your boat is relatively high (which all too often is the case unfortunately!) then you need to ensure your own vessel is also fully repaired/ replaced in the event of an accident, even if it was your fault. This gives you less exposure to the potential of very expensive boat repair bills.

Mercia Marine Insurance also provides a wide range of other insurance options such as third party boat insurance, contents insurance, water-skiing insurance, protected no claims bonus, racing insurance, overseas journey insurance (restrictions apply), up to 6 years no claim discount (most boat insurers only guarantee 5!) and cover for all your additional boating equipment (e.g. trailers, outboards, generators, equipment and personal possessions… again certain limits apply, see details when generating quotations).

Frequent Queries

Laying Up/ Out Of Water

Unlike other forms of insurance when you’re not using the boat it is possible and under certain circumstances, for certain vessel types that you may dry dock lay up or even suspend standard coverage for specified periods (i.e. when the boat is undergoing an extended rebuild). Plans relating to the vessel usage or lay-up being different to standard usage should be discussed with your insurer to determine if there are insurance implications or mitigation actions you need to take.

If you are in any doubt always check your terms and conditions, but in the vast majority of cases vessels are indeed insured when out of water, as you would hope and expect. Nevertheless accidents that occur when the vessel is being towed (i.e. on public roads) would usually be covered by an automotive policy and you must of course ensure your car policy coves your for trailer usage, that is essential.

We know our customers require a good quality boat insurance product but also value for money, that’s exactly what we seek to consistently provide and have done now for over a decade!