The value of insurance.
by Pantaenius 3 Jul 10:45 BST
Fire an boats is never a good mix © Pantaenius Sail and Motor Yacht Insurance
It is so very easy to suggest that the value of your insurance is the number on the front page of your policy. Alas, what if it was more? Much more. What if the value was indeed so totally immeasurable? You know, save your bacon type level. And what if the response was immediate, the care considerable, and the payout swift? Would that not then constitute your policy actually becoming priceless? You'd have to think it would.
Fire and boats are never a good mix. In the old days much of it ended up being blamed on gas, whereas today, electricity is often the route cause. Yet, what if your brand-new vessel was happily tucked up in a marina, all squared away, and then the next thing you knew it was a total loss?
Furthermore, what if the melting to the waterline had nothing to do with your craft at all? What if the video evidenced clearly identified the other two vessels that went up early, and you just happened to be third by virtue of proximity, nothing else? Now everyone in Australia is required to have AUD10M of Third Part Liability (TPL) insurance to dock in a marina. So, you would be inclined to think that number one's insurer had to pay out vessels two and three...
If nothing else, this particular story asks, nay begs, you to think again. Three boats totalled in a densely populated area that overlooks not only the marina, but also the gorgeous waterway that is Pittwater on Sydney's Northern Beaches, is hard to disguise. Acrid smoke, and a bunch of fire engines arriving is just a little obvious. Afterwards, you could put floating hoarding around outside of the containment boom, but the 90-tonne crane that showed up to extract said vessels and the debris from the bottom kind of gets noticed.
The thing is, no negligence could be proven by the forensic investigators during their work in the latter part of 2023, which obviously means everyone fends for themselves. As it turns out, and with the damage elsewhere was so catastrophic, the only thing that the investigators could prove was the vessel insured with Pantaenius was not at fault.
Imagine if you were left with just your TPL insurance? Wee gap to recover the cost, you know... No one to go to and spend yet more money in a court battle. It is the ultimate in handwashing. Fortunately, the owner of the new Integrity Sedan Cruiser got paid out rapidly to the number, no exclusions, and went around and immediately ordered a new one.
Unfortunately for him, the 'second' new craft had gone up by 40% once it arrived some 12 months later at the end of 2024, so he did have to put his hand in his pocket, but only for the difference, not the total sum. Alas, we have just seen the REAL value of comprehensive boat insurance.
One outcome hurts, the other could be enough to make you walk away all together. The cost is a small differential to pay for a substantial alternate reality if it goes a little sideways on you. Needless to say, the insured is once again covered by Pantaenius. No surprise there.
To highlight that these types of events are not so isolated, and the joy of absolute global coverage that is available with Pantaenius, literally on the other side of the world a similar situation occurred just a couple of months earlier. The location was Grenada in the Caribbean, and the Pantaenius insured was an Outremer performance sailing catamaran that was on the hardstand.
Same thing. Three vessels involved, the Outremer was not the first to go up, but was a total loss as result of the one next door burning to the ground, as too the third craft who did not have comprehensive cover. No cause of fire could be established; hence everyone was left to their own devices. Now an Outremer is not a cheap vessel, as the word 'performance' in the name denotes carbon fibre. The owner had wisely chosen Pantaenius' fully comprehensive cover, and the loss was settled in full, which instantaneously removes a multi-million-dollar headache. Phew.
As you have just read, value takes on a whole new meaning when it comes to marine insurance. Given that it is not just the same as car, or house and contents insurance, but so definitely unique, you don't just want someone who knows it. You NEED someone who lives it, so that if you have to turn around and use it, no matter the cause, situation, or location, you have a valued team member who stands up with you.
Should your recreational marine policy not quite cover you like you think it should, or you want to have complete peace of mind with genuine, comprehensive cover, then a call with Pantaenius Sail and Motor Yacht Insurance is in order. After all, no harm in asking, and better now than experiencing tears later...