Marina insurance may seem like a niche policy that only protects the few people who own marinas, but that’s not the case. Boat dealers and marina owners often require the same type of coverage. Also, boat repair yards may also benefit from these policies.
Take a look at the details below to learn how to protect your business from losses that are often quite unique to the marine industry.
What is Marina Insurance?
Marina insurance, at its base, is coverage designed for any closed body of water upon which boats are housed. Generally, a marina operates a bit like a private club. You pay a fee to join, monthly dues, and you may dock your boat there. Many times, boat owners use the marina as a bit of a second home, staying on their boats for days or even weeks at a time (even living on their boats), hosting parties, and driving off whenever the mood strikes them.
Marina insurance, then, helps marina owners and managers mitigate the risks involved with managing such a unique (and often crowded) space.
How Does Marina Insurance Work?
Marina insurance is designed to protect the facility, structures, and businesses operating the marina. Think of a marina in the same way you would an apartment complex. You, the renter, must insure all the items in your apartment. You’re paying rent, so you don’t own the space in which you live.
The owner(s) of the complex must insure the buildings, grounds, and everything else related to the operation of the property. The same is true of a marina. Marina owners don’t insure the boats—they insure everything else.
What Does Marina Insurance Cover?
Marina insurance should cover “everything”, but there’s a question about what “everything” entails because your marina is different from every other. Therefore, tailored plans from our team at Cormarc are recommended, especially because we have access to all the carriers on the market.
Generally, marina insurance should cover:
- General and commercial liability
- Business income and interruptions
- Commercial property
In these cases, you’re covered when injuries and losses occur on your property. Your business income is protected in the event of a shutdown or disaster (the COVID-19 pandemic comes to mind,) and losses caused by property damage across the marina can be recovered.
Additionally, you need coverage for:
- Flooding
- Commercial vehicles
- Leased vessels or barges
- Boats or barges your business owns
- Pollution liability
- Third-party liability (for pilots, repairmen, etc.)
Things to Consider When Buying Marina Insurance
When purchasing marina insurance, remember that you must protect yourself against all the things that could occur on the property. You need third-party liability coverage because other pilots, repairmen, or vendors could cause damage to boats or the marina itself, cause injuries or accidents, or commit crimes on the property.
Commercial auto coverage helps protect the vehicles your business owns. No, you cannot pass off your personal vehicle as a work vehicle—you need commercial auto coverage. The same is true of your boats. You need owned or leased barge/vessel coverage to safeguard those vessels and pay for losses that could be caused by those boats. You also need coverage to either repair those vessels or replace them in the event of a total loss.
Flood insurance is required because, as with most policies, flooding is not automatically included. At times, you might hear about “wet and dry liabilities” because you must protect yourself from incidents on the water and incidents up on the docks. Much of what was described above happens on the docks, but when the water comes up to your office, need coverage.
Pollution liability is especially important because you operate in a delicate ecosystem and there are several ways that pollution could occur—intended or not—especially as it relates to the storage of fuel or oil.
Finally, you need coverage for business income or business interruptions when your marina cannot operate as normal. Yes, you must bring the marina back to its former glory or pay for judgments, settlements, and fines related to losses on the property, but you also much recover income lost in the interim.
Contact Us for More Information on Marina Insurance
Reach out to our seasoned insurance team at Cormarc when you want to learn more about marina insurance or other forms of marine coverage. We have decades of experience in the industry, and we can help you mitigate risk, reduce costs, and create a safer environment for your team.