# Looking for Insurance



## BeallPirate (May 2, 2020)

Hi everyone 
I am looking for insurance company recommendations, 51 ft boat, livaboard, in Florida
Thanks for the input!


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## RegisteredUser (Aug 16, 2010)

Its not easy to find affordable insurance in Palau
Sorry, no leads


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## Anastasius (Mar 5, 2015)

I believe there are many alternatives.....I've had Pantaenius (very expensive if south of 30 degrees North) and am now paying just under $2,000/year for a 2010 38' Leopard cat; also, Boat US has given me an excellent (Geico) quote.....hope these alternatives help....I shopped around and found many options willing to quote....
Best,
Richard


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## warren9mm (Jun 14, 2020)

My brother has insurance from Pantaenius as well, and he says it's pretty reliable agency, with friendly and smart agents. And by the way, if you had questions about some insurance cases, I can suggest this resource I could find ( link: https://www.general.com/articles/amac-vs-aarp ), where they give pretty useful information for the clients and potential ones. As I can see, they explain everything telling literally about real situations.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

If the OP is living aboard in FL and that is their year round cruising grounds, references really need to be specific to FL. Each state regulates their own insurance industry and, as a result, the same company can have different terms, pricing, etc, in each. 

Hurricane coverage, for the hull, in FL must be pricey. I wouldn’t be surprised, if you can get it at all, it would only cover a hauled out boat. Not sure of that.


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## outbound (Dec 3, 2012)

Pantaenius US is now a separate company from pantaenius. We had pantaenius. I’m told due to number of claims and suits pantaenius split into this division and due to number of claims (last round of hurricanes) Caribbean coverage from them is ridiculously expensive. 
Depending on value (not size) of the vessel whether your residence is in Florida and other variables (such as are you ever leaving the US) you might want to talk to who is insuring your house. When you say liveaboard do you mean no other residence?. If so and you go out of the country (even if just the Bahamas) would talk with IMIS and Concepts special risk. I have Concepts as they will modify coverage on an ongoing fashion ( staying in hurricane zones during hurricane season or not), cruising area, haul or wet, etc. ). 
Geico apparently also wanted to decrease exposure after last cycle of claims so depending on circumstances getting insurance from them maybe difficult but is worth a try. 
It’s getting harder and harder to get decent coverage for liveaboard cruisers. Especially if international and in the zone. The number of vendors is shrinking, less coverage for more money with more restrictions. Best of luck.


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## RichF28 (Jun 17, 2015)

BeallPirate said:


> Hi everyone
> I am looking for insurance company recommendations, 51 ft boat, livaboard, in Florida
> Thanks for the input!


We just switched to Modern American. I don't know much about the company, but they have a local rep. and were half of what we were paying Progressive. In Charleston SC, agreed value policy only $294 per year.


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## jvlassak (Oct 1, 2009)

We have Geico Marine Insurance. This past year we had two claims, neither of which was through our own fault. They were quite easy to deal with and made good on the policy. However, their coverage seems to be getting worse for older boats because they recently started depreciating parts even on agreed value policies. At the same time their premiums have been going up significantly.


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## OrioninHawaii (Mar 7, 2009)

We liveaboard in Hawaii (Celestial 48, 30+ years old) and have had the same insurance agent since we started living aboard (2003). 
We have similar hurricane issues as Florida does along wiht Tsunami threats (had damage in the 2010 tsunami)
Our policy is both hull insurance and also liability/pollution/salvage (which is required by pretty much all US and foreign marinas/harbors. the underwriter has changed through out the years - I think we started with a company called Zephyr and now have Atlantic- we have specific cruising grounds stated and the months that apply - they allow a self survey (which is an issue all by itself - it allows the insurance company to say that you mis-stated the boat's sea worthyness) but I suspect that if you were a new client you would need an actual survey or recent haulout invoice (we submit all of our haul out invoices to our insurance company ) our costs run right around $300/month. 
The thing is, back in the day, either marinas did not require insurance and liability was super easy to get - 
As the years have passed we have noted increased requirements and it's not so easy for some types of boats - We have had discussions with other boaters who either have their boat on their home policy or have a cheap policy - they have the paperwork to submit to the harbor BUT we have seen at least two instances where when the boat sank at the slip the insurance company failed to cover pollution remediation and salvage - the owners were stuck with a sizable bill and liens put on property- 
My prediction will be that cruisers will eventually end up having no insurance while cruising and liability applying only while in a marina- 
It would be my recommendation to get a good insurance agent who specializes in boating policies and stick with them - they are worth their weight in gold...


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## PhilCarlson (Dec 14, 2013)

Minnewaska said:


> Hurricane coverage, for the hull, in FL must be pricey. I wouldn't be surprised, if you can get it at all, it would only cover a hauled out boat. Not sure of that.


Not hard to get, but my Named Storm deductable is $3k on an agreed upon value of $7k. (Geico/Boat US)


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

PhilCarlson said:


> Not hard to get, but my Named Storm deductable is $3k on an agreed upon value of $7k. (Geico/Boat US)


Got it. That essentially means no coverage, unless a total loss, and then you get just over half the value back. Knew there would be some sort of harsh reality to obtain hurricane coverage.


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## Anastasius (Mar 5, 2015)

The major "break-point" for my Pantaenius policy was location of the boat north of 30.5 degrees Latitude as the Floridian OP has noted. A quick look shows that to be very close to the Georgia border. 

Pantaenius sent me the same "addendum" about Named Storms (needing to be on the hard with specifications for types of jacks/stands and tie-down CHAINS)...there must have been prior experience with ropes or straps that failed....I'm not too informed on such. At any rate, the increased deductible and other "caveats" mentioned all applied to my policy at a rate of $4,200 per year until North of 30.5 degrees....YIKES!
I paid it because I had understood Lloyd's (the only alternative for me in Belize & through the Panama Canal, I was told) paid only depreciated value on any replacements under coverage. 

Researching whether or not to stay with Pantaenius yielded the following results. The same-boat, similar deductibles annual quotes I've recently received are:

Pantaenius $1850
Progressive 1184
Farmers 1333
Geico ....can't find my quote, but around $1200.

...my philosophy on insurance is "you get what you pay for"....if it was only a requirement for me to live aboard or to stay in a certain marina and IF I DIDN'T CARE ABOUT PERSONAL PROPERTY PROTECTION AND LIABILITY COVERAGE, I probably would go with the "lowest bidder". I have not investigated the competitors' claim pay-outs history. I have experience with a Farmers home policy that was pretty chintzy giving me only 25% of damage claim on roof damage due to windstorm in Arizona....I carry large deductible to keep premiums lower.

I hope I have not missed some aspects of the OP question. I have stayed with Pantaenius for Southern California live-aboard for the next year for the reasons listed above.

Enjoy the summer & stay safe, these are challenging times in which we live!
Sincerely,
Richard
Luna Sea


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## YellowScooter (Jul 23, 2020)

warren9mm said:


> My brother has insurance from Pantaenius as well, and he says it's pretty reliable agency, with friendly and smart agents. And by the way, if you had questions about some insurance cases, I can suggest this resource I could find ( link: https://www.general.com/articles/amac-vs-aarp ), where they give pretty useful information for the clients and potential ones. As I can see, they explain everything telling literally about real situations.


Thanks for this post with the link!


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## jefjam7812 (Jul 19, 2020)

Google It. You Will Find Many


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