Boat equipment or personal belonging?
Many pleasure boaters confuse boat equipment and personal belongings. This may not seem to be a problem, but from an insurance point of view, it’s best to know the difference.
Boat equipment
Strictly speaking, equipment includes all machines, material, equipment, and pieces of furniture, fittings or other goods that are an integral part of the insured boat. Your broker will therefore take into account all boat equipment upon appraising the value of your boat.
All fixed or removable equipment, be it for navigation or boat safety purposes, is also an integral part of the boat and covered by basic policies.
Boat safety equipment
- Manual propulsion devices (paddles, oars)
- Anchors
- Bailers and manual bilge pumps
- Life buoys
- Life jackets
Navigation equipment
- Sound signaling devices
- Navigation flares
- Radar reflectors
Fire prevention material
- Portable fire extinguishers
Personal belongings
Some people believe that fishing equipment constitutes boat equipment. Not so! Fishing equipment, as well as the insured’s clothing, personal and sporting items and those of guests and volunteer crew members aboard the ship are considered to be personal belongings.
Your NautiMax policy includes coverage for personal belongings with a basic limit of $5,000 and a deductible of $500.
In the event of a claim, you will receive compensation for your boat according to your policy type (an agreed value or an actual cash value), plus compensation for any lost, stolen or damaged personal items up to $5,000 minus the deductible.
If you believe that the value of your personal belongings is in excess of this amount, you can increase the limit to $10,000 for a surcharge of $50.
Note that personal belongings are not only covered on the water, but also during their transfer between the craft and a land vehicle and vice-versa.