According to insurance industry experts, choosing a higher deductible may be worthwhile if you can save between 10 and 15 percent or more on your annual rate. Most boats have a 2 percent baseline deductible, but insurance industry professionals advise increasing it to 3 or 4 percent. Be mindful, though, that a higher deductible can result in thousands of dollars more in expenses in the event of an accident. Increasing your deductible is one way to lower your premiums, but there are several other things you can do to do so when getting boat insurance Cape Coral. They include the following.
Complete a boating safety course
Taking a boating safety course from a recognized provider like the U.S. Power Squadrons, State-approved outfits or Boat U.S. can help you save as much as 10% on marine insurance premiums. The reason for this is insurers will consider you to be a safer boater.
Limit your boating season and range
Another method you can use to save on boat insurance Cape Coral is to limit both your range and safety course. Boat insurers will charge you more if all you boat most times of the year. This is the reason it is more expensive to get insurance cover for boaters in the Southern States than it is for boaters in the Northern States. Northern States experience harsher winters and thus the boating seasons are shorter. In southern states, boat owners can boat all year thus the reason it costs more. Needless to say, it makes no sense to pay year-round insurance coverage whereas your boat spends six months on a trailer in your garage. You can save money by asking your insurance agent to limit your range and season.
Insure the right hull value
As years pass, the value of a boat declines. There are many boat owners that never adjust what their insurers call agreed hull value. If your boat is getting old, you need to adjust the value. Talk to an experienced marine surveyor to calculate the value of your boat. You can then discuss with your insurance agent an actual cash-value policy.
Omit full coverage
Keep in mind that this option will not be available when financing your boat. However, if you outright own the boat, you may want to consider getting a liability-only policy. This cover will not pay for damages resulting from damage or theft. It will only protect your finances in the event of an accident. You should, however, not be too stingy. Make sure the policy covers salvage costs because it can be very expensive to retrieve a sunken boat.
Avoid filing lower-cost claims
Last but not least, the more claims you file, the higher your premiums will go. Experts say paying for damages that are a little more than the cost of the deductible can keep insurers from increasing your premiums.
As you work to cut costs on boat insurance in Cape Coral, make sure you don’t scrimp to the bare-bone coverage. Involving a boat surveyor can help you know what to insure and for how much.