Take control of your boat insurance: 5 helpful hints to optimise your coverage & minimise your premiums

Visicover is authorised and regulated by the FCA.

Get the cover you want without paying more than you need

Visicover are passionate about changing the face of boat insurance, offering personal, flexible, low-cost cover that is available and updatable instantly. Here they share their top tips to help you make the most of your insurance without paying over the odds.

Whether you own a RIB, a sports boat or a motor yacht, your vessel is no doubt one of your most prized possessions. So, it’s vital to ensure that it’s properly protected.

Boat insurance offers that peace of mind that you and your vessel are covered in the event of things going awry. However, just like any kind of policy, it’s important to make sure you get the cover that you want without paying more than you need, as well as being able to easily update your insurance policy as your requirements and situations change.

The next generation of boat insurance

Marine cover is one of the oldest forms of insurance, dating back hundreds of years. In 17th-century London, ship owners would meet at the Lloyds Coffee House and form pooled funds to cover the loss of their cargo or vessels.

The world has changed a lot since then of course. Many of us know only too well the perils of inflexible policies, impenetrable pricing, unnecessary paperwork and other modern-day hurdles, such as the frustration of waiting on the phone endlessly in a call-centre queue just to make a simple update to your cover.

But before you descend into a state of despondency, be reassured by the fact, things aren’t all doom and gloom. Led by companies like Visicover, there’s a new generation of online boat insurance services that are empowering vessel owners to take complete control of their policies. It’s an approach that doesn’t just make arranging insurance more convenient; it can also deliver better-tailored cover at a more affordable price.

Family relaxing and making the most of their time on the water. Credit: AzmalL/istockphoto.com

How to get more value from your boat insurance

If you still have a traditional boat policy you might want to consider updating how you arrange your insurance. To get you started, here are some handy hints and tips to help you get better value from your premiums without compromising your cover.

1. Actively manage your policy

Many people arrange their cover once a year, then don’t think about it again until it’s time to renew or they need to make a claim. But life doesn’t stand still, and your insurance needs may well change throughout the year. Perhaps you want to make an extensive refit to your vessel, upgrade its navigation equipment or buy a new outboard. In such cases, you’ll want to protect your investment immediately rather than hold off until your next renewal and risk being underinsured while you wait.

Conversely, there may be an opportunity to reduce your cover. Maybe you no longer use the vessel for a higher-risk activity like racing, or now only cruise in local waters. When this happens, you should consider amending your insurance to see if you can earn a premium reduction for the remainder of the year.

Whenever there is a change in your cover requirements, up or down, consider updating your policy immediately. This ensures you have the coverage you want while avoiding unnecessary overpayment on your premiums.

Gaining your qualifications can be a great way to demonstrate your experience and cut insurance costs.

2. Experience counts

The more experience you have aboard your vessel, the lower your premiums should be. Experienced boaters tend to have better boat-handling skills, (or at least should have!), and be more likely to understand the service and maintenance needs of their specific vessel, allowing them in the process to make better decisions as to its care, both afloat and ashore. All of which plays into the risk assessment that insurers make when it comes to calculating premiums.

Because qualified mariners are statistically less likely to be involved in an accident, gaining or upping your qualifications can be a great way to demonstrate your experience and cut costs. You should also consider restricting who you allow to skipper your vessel. Ideally restricting it to a suitably qualified and experienced helmsman.

3. Invest in security

The safer your vessel is, the more likely you are to enjoy reduced premiums. Installing and maintaining strong anti-theft protection and fire prevention equipment onboard will help keep your costs down. Don’t forget to immediately update your insurance if you install new equipment, as it might help reduce your premium.

Though it’s not always possible, you should also consider keeping your vessel in a secure storage location or marina, which can also reduce risk and your premiums substantially.

Think about keeping your vessel in a secure marina or dry stack facility.

4. Consider your excess

If you can, committing to paying the first part of any future damage claim will help to lower your premiums. The higher the excess you select, the greater the savings. That’s because insurers, (and this is valuable insight), see owners who are willing to pay higher excesses as being more invested in their boat’s safety.

In addition, vessel owners with a higher excess are more likely to fund small repairs themselves, rather than make a low-value claim. As well as protecting the owner’s claims history, it saves the insurer the cost of administering low value claims, savings which can then be passed on as excess discounts. Therefore, it’s prudent to look for a policy which lets you choose your excess rather than imposing a predefined value. But as you can see, knowing how insurers think, as well as understanding things from their perspective, can help you make better decisions regarding how you buy and manage your marine insurance.

5. Choose flexible cover

Many traditional boat insurers offer catch-all policies designed to provide blanket coverage for a host of different vessel types and owner requirements. The problem with this ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach is that it often bundles together covers that many boat owners simply don’t need but still have to pay for, all of which makes insurance unnecessarily expensive.

More flexible policies are now available with options to tailor your insurance to suit your requirements, so you only pay for the cover you want. Opting for an online service, which also enables you to update your cover as your requirements change, can also help you to make additional savings. Factor in the often-lower administrative costs of operating online, which can also be passed back to customers, and you can see that the premium savings from using a modern, flexible online service can be considerable.

What makes Visicover different? 

Visicover is an award-winning online service that’s setting new standards in boat insurance. Our easy-to-use website gives you complete control, enabling you to fully tailor your coverage.

By empowering you to manage your policy yourself, we’re not just making boat insurance more flexible, we’re making it much more affordable.

Because you can instantly update your cover at any time, you’re able to tailor your insurance, adjusting your protection throughout the year so that you only pay for what you want. It’s all part of what we call the Visicover Standard: Personal, flexible, low-cost boat insurance, that’s available instantly. No compromises.

Why customers choose Visicover for their boat insurance

Be it a RIB, a sportsboat, motoryacht, or weekender, Visicover is interested in hearing from you. As trusted, independent insurance experts, we are here to help you find the right solution. These are just some of the reasons why our customers trust us for their insurance:

• Coverage you can trust – With wide coverage underwritten by one of the world’s largest insurers, you can trust Visicover to protect what matters most to you.
• Flexibility and customisation – Instead of rigid catch-all policies, our customers can tailor their cover, so they only pay for what they want, when they want it.
• Easy-to-use – Our simple-to-use online portal makes it easy to tailor, buy, update and renew your policy in just a few minutes, with no call centre queues or document delays. You can even spread your payments at no extra cost.
• Competitive pricing – By allowing you to manage your own coverage, we can keep costs down and pass those savings on to you.
• No hidden costs – See how amendments impact your coverage costs in real-time. No hidden fees. No nasty surprises. Just transparent pricing that works for you.
• Great customer service – Our customer support team and personalised 24-hour claims hotline means that you have the support you need, when you need it. Don’t believe us? Take a look at our 5* Trustpilot reviews.