Insurance Coverage

The Four Dominant Criteria of Yacht Insurance

It is generally understood that the insurance coverage of a luxurious Yacht can be a headache for her owner, not having the necessary knowledge and sufficient information to make an educated decision with confidence, especially in a changing and challenging international insurance market.Yacht insurance traces its roots in an official sense back to the 17th century and falls within a special category, specifically Marine Insurance, which requires advanced knowledge and experience…

Marine Insurance: Protect Your Yacht, Yourself

All my life, I grew up around boats. My dad was a captain for 23 years, and I would travel on his ships throughout the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes. My first job out of college was in San Francisco, so naturally I bought a 30-foot sailboat and lived on it on the San Francisco Bay. In more recent years, I have enjoyed yachting with my family on the inland lakes of Virginia. No matter where you have launched your yacht, boating is an exhilarating experience. It can also be dangerous and fraught with risks.

Seacurus: Yachting Sector Seafarers Need Attention

Specialist marine insurance intermediary Seacurus has called for more flag states to establish a process of compulsory registration for all providers of Seafarer Recruitment and Placement Service (SPRS) in the yachting sector. Thomas Brown, managing director of Seacurus, says, “More countries need to follow the initiatives shown by the likes of the UK MCA and France, with the latter making company registration compulsory for SRPSs in the yachting sector. The measures introduced by the French authorities…

US Obamacare Impacts the Global Marine Industry

The Affordable Care Act (ACA), otherwise known as Obamacare, the recent healthcare plan in the United States, is affecting the international superyacht industry, according to yacht insurance expert Eva Maria Karlsson of Superyacht Insurance Group (SYIG). Maria, who is president/broker at SYIG, said, “The biggest challenge presently is Obamacare. Interestingly enough, it’s actually affecting the international marine industry, in that we now have to cope with tighter guidelines regarding time spent in-and-out of the U.S. waters. Most underwriters require that the yachts spend at least six months outside the U.S. in a 12-month period.

XL Offers KRE Cover to Yacht Owners

To help yacht owners navigate increasingly risky waters, XL Group is adding a Kidnap, Ransom & Extortion (KRE) Crisis endorsement to ShipShape, and ShipShape Plus, its recreational marine insurance coverages. "Crisis events like kidnapping, disappearance and hijack are increasingly real threats, especially on open seas," explained Denise Balan, Country Manager of XL's US Crisis Management business which developed the KRE endorsement. According to Rick Salway, Vice President of XL Group's Recreational Marine business, "Our ShipShape insurance pulls together the most relevant…

More Coverage Expected from New Federal Regs

Legislation passed on Tuesday, July 29, 2014 by the U.S. House of Representatives will bring a benefit to improve insurance coverage at lower cost to companies and their workers in the recreational boating industry, said the Marine Industries Association of South Florida (MIASF), a trade organization dedicated to promoting, protecting and growing marine business jobs. H.R. 3896 achieved this by amending the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act to provide a simplified definition of recreational vessels for purposes of the Act. The legislation was spearheaded and introduced last January by U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz of Florida.

Insurance Covers Relocated Sandy-damaged Boats

Boats removed from specified location for repair elsewhere may create a lapse in insurance coverage. Maritime Program Group, which is a program administrator for North American Specialty's recreational marine program, agreed to provide an extension of coverage under NAS' Marina Operators Legal Liability section of the policy for customer's vessels stored in undisclosed locations. Many marine facilities that were badly damaged by Super Storm Sandy have been forced to move their customer's boats to alternative locations for temporary or replacement storage.