As a soon to be first time boat owner, I’d love to get some advice from seasoned owners on insurance.
Any advice (providers, coverages, learned lesson) would all be very appreciated!
What do you recommend for a 18’ Lund Impact?
Just work with whomever you have coverage through now. Or shop around for a bundle if not happy with the quote you get. I can’t recall what I am paying now but have it through West Bend like everything I own.
I don’t have a bundle on boat insurance because the auto, home, and other insurance policies I have do not offer boat insurance.
I use Progressive for boat insurance.
X2 on Progressive. Have had 2 claims 11 years. No problems. They treated me right.
They have declining deductible. My premium has gone down since inception. I carry an extra 5k coverage on tackle. (rods,reels,tackle bags, nets). The Boat policy covers anything attached to the boat: DF, trolling motor, cover, ect.
When I quoted out insurance all my current policies for home, auto etc were ridiculously high for boat insurance. I do not recommend going thru them at least with my experience.
Justin with woods and water is the specialty boat insurance guy around here for good reason. I’d contact him and you’ll know why many here has had or has policies with him now.
Google the #s
Gieco here. Used to have state farm (home, auto, etc is with them), but they wouldn’t cover guiding. Halfway through the season last year I switched to gieco and then at a tournament on lotw in August I blew my motor up. Long story short they covered it and were great to work with! I carry an additional 25k I believe for items in the boat and electronics.
One thing that may drive who you get insurance through is whether you want “agreed value” or “actual case value” type of policy. I wanted agreed value (payout based upon the value stated on the policy) and my insurance company for all my other policies did not offer that type of insurance. I ended up going with Worldwide Marine Underwriters. A bit of a longer story, even though the company that I had all my other insurance through did not offer the type of boat insurance that I wanted, they surprised me with a 25% overall premium increase because I no longer had ALL of my insurance through them. Needless to say, they are no longer getting any of my money. The new insurance company could not touch the price I got through WMU but did not penalize me for going elsewhere for boat insurance.
I also have Progressive and current agent is Justin with Woods and Water.
Back in 2018 my Ranger blew off the lift and sank. Boat was totaled. I had just changed agents and the agent screwed up and only had about half the coverage we had agree on. In the end Progressive came through and paid out what the boat was worth. Of course it helped to show them an email with the agent on what the coverage was supposed to be.
So my claim with Progressive turned out very well and I cam recommend Progressive.
Bob Luellen with WorldWide Marine 
He knows his stuff and will have you covered. I believe my policy is written through Progressive with him.
Bob Luellen with WorldWide Marine
He knows his stuff and will have you covered. I believe my policy is written through Progressive with him.
Bob does a great job asking the right questions and getting you the insurance you need at a decent price.
Bob Luellen with WorldWide Marine
X 4
Mine is a Progressive policy: agreed upon value, plus $10k additional coverage for elecgronics.
Both Bob and Justin have been in the biz for a very long time. They both are not locked into one company and will fit your needs to the best underwriter they have.
Tourney and guides will need a specialized underwriter.
Justin( @Chowdski )is a active tourney fisherman and member of Ido.
I recall one guide…let’s call him “Marty”, signed up with Justin one day and the next tore off his lower end (it was a major repair). Marty had his check in a couple days and back on the water within a week.
I know another boater, let’s call him “BK” that ran into an underwater obstruction on his way back from a trip to St Louis. He had over $2000. worth of repairs done to get him home from Clinton IA. The funds were transferred into his checking account the very next day. Once at his home port, a haul out and complete repairs were made that ran another $8+K. That one took 4 days to have the insurance pay out reach my er…”BK’s” account. Oh, and this years premium is the same as it was for the last two years to boot.
No matter who you contact, do yourself a favor and contact Justin. You might make a new fishing buddy.
952-938-9190 [email protected]
Progressive for me as well. My kid just bought a new Reatta and his auto/homeowner agent, (one of the bigger national named companies) quoted him over twice what Progressive is hitting him for the same coverage. My agent who is a broker, can quote Progressive so I just ran it thru him.
I’ve been very happy with Justin.
If it wasn’t stated above, make dam sure you know what each policy has for limits and what riders need to be added.
If a policy is cheaper, you really need to ask why. I’ve bid out insurance quite a few times for everything from my businesses to boats. When everything is actually equal, costs are similar. Every time a quote was considerably cheaper, I found less coverage & lower limits
With the value of boats or other recreational vehicles rising make sure to check your policies and update values accordingly. I had mine valued way too low and just increased it earlier this year. I had never had an “insured value” policy before this one so I wasnt really sure how to do it. I havent had a boat claim (tackle theft) in over 20 years, but its nice to know you have proper coverage should something happen.
Good points on keeping values updated. In my case with my boat new in 2019, I’m actual replacement value for 5 years. When that’s no longer the case in 2024, I will be looking at the numbers much closer.
If it wasn’t stated above, make dam sure you know what each policy has for limits and what riders need to be added.
If a policy is cheaper, you really need to ask why. I’ve bid out insurance quite a few times for everything from my businesses to boats. When everything is actually equal, costs are similar. Every time a quote was considerably cheaper, I found less coverage & lower limits
X2 – Insurance is no different than most other things in life. Often there is value in paying a little more. I often tell customers. The last thing you want is standing in your driveway with only the cloths on you back while your house is burning to the ground and look over at your spouse and family and say ” I sure hope that low cost insurance I found is good and covers all of this “( Or in this case after your boat is totaled )
A few things I’d look at are:
Find out if its a stated Value policy or a replacement cost policy. Stated Value you get the cost you stated and that the company agreed to in the event of a total loss. On a replacement cost policy they will often look for what other similar make, model, and year boats are selling for and use this as the value for a total loss settlement.
If a new boat, I would ask if there is a Total loss Replacement cost option. This option will pay for a new model year replacement boat often for the 1st year or Two. This will cover you in case new boats cost continue to go up like they have been.
Find out what is considered Personal property and make sure you have enough of this coverage. On most boats the Electronics and often the trolling motor fall under Personal property coverage and not the hull coverage. Other personal property to remember is things like rods and reels, Fishing tackle, life jackets, anchors, Ect.
Find out if the basic policy includes Watersports Liability ( watersking, Tubing, ect. ) or if you have to add this extra.
Watch the amount and type of deductible set. This can either be a set limit or a % limit and often they put in a rather high % limit and this is based on the value of the boat. They also often have a different limits for storm losses and other losses. Some offer a Diminishing Deductible for each year you go without a claim. You can often take a slightly higher deductible if they have this. Some go down by 25% a year. So after 4 years of no claims a 1,000 deductible becomes a 0 deductible.
Trailer coverage. This is often a separate coverage from the boat itself. Make sure this coverage is high enough. Often agents set the trailer coverage at 3-5% the value of the package cost and that is often on the low side for a nice trailer.
Towing coverage ( On and off the water ) If not included in the standard policy its often a option at a rather low cost )
Have fun and Enjoy that new Boat !!!
The liability section, often known as Protection & Indemnity, addresses your legal responsibilities to other parties. As a result of your boat’s ownership or operation, you may be held liable for bodily harm or death, as well as property damage to others. If you are sued for an incidence that is covered under your boat insurance policy, liability coverage can also assist pay for your legal defense.
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