Nonboater's Equipment Covered by Boater's Insurance?

[Sam]

Last year, while my club was fishing on a lake for the first time, there was a boating accident when an uninsured boater turned into one of club member's bass boat, destroying the boat; destroying or throwing overboard the boater's and nonboater's  tackle; but no one was injured as the uninsured boat went over the passenger side console and into the bass boat in front of the where the boater was sitting.

 

Had the uninsured boat been 8 to 12 inches to the right, he could have killed both guys.

 

The bass boat was totally destroyed and both guys lost their rods, reels, tackle, etc. either by impact or thrown into the lake.

 

North Carolina game wardens knew the uninsured boater and told us that he was a menace on the water. However, there was nothing they could do to take him off the water as this accident had no witnesses other than for those involved.

 

The boater's insurance paid for the bass boat as a constructive total loss and paid the boater for his lost tackle. The nonboater did not get a cent for his damaged or lost tackle, rods, and reels.

 

I called my boat insurance company, Progressive, and finally got a claims person and asked him if any nonboater in my boat had his tackle damaged or destroyed due to an accident would there be any recovery from Progressive to him? Simple answer; NO!

 

We like to take others fishing in our boats and we as boat owners have the protection for the boat, electronics, our fishing gear, and third-party liability to others. The nonboater has nothing unless his homeowners/renters policy is endorsed to cover his tackle via a Personal Property Off Premises endorsement, if offered by their insurance company.

 

I will now tell all guys who I take out on my boat that my Progressive policy does not cover their tackle, lunch, clothes, rods, reels, baits, iPhones, etc.

 

I also suggest you query your boat insurance company to find out if they offer nonboater tackle and equipment insurance in your policy.

Just food for thought.

Thanks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[gim]

Interesting.  Never really thought of this.  Gonna have to check my policy.

[Glenn]

Yep, homeowners/renter's insurance will cover it. In some cases you'll need an endorsement.  Sometimes it's the same with boater's insurance too - anything not attached to the boat isn't covered, but could be covered with homeowners/renter's insurance.

 

Same thing with valuables in your car. Auto insurance won't cover them, but homeowners/renter's insurance will.  

 

Check with your carrier. YMMV

[airshot]

If the non boater has his own home insurance he can file a claim with his own ins.  An accident report is needed and proof of loss.  But...like any claim...will it raise your rates ??  And will filing a claim be worthwhile ?  Most polocies have a 500 dollar or more deductable...  Hopefully they filed a civil suit against the uninsured boater !!

[Junk Fisherman]

Without getting into the ethics behind it, what if the boat owner said it was his equipment?  I believe I have 5K of insurance on my tackle which would not cover a nonboater's gear in addition to mine but if it was another boater's fault their insurance would cover it.  It's a shame in the case of the OP's situation that the guilty boater's insurance would not cover the nonboater's gear.  Wonder if that was something that could be handled in small claims court.  

[gim]

2 minutes ago, Junk Fisherman said:

Without getting into the ethics behind it, what if the boat owner said it was his equipment?

 

That would technically be insurance fraud.  Maybe that's what you meant by "ethics."

[airshot]

2 hours ago, Junk Fisherman said:

Without getting into the ethics behind it, what if the boat owner said it was his equipment?  I believe I have 5K of insurance on my tackle which would not cover a nonboater's gear in addition to mine but if it was another boater's fault their insurance would cover it.  It's a shame in the case of the OP's situation that the guilty boater's insurance would not cover the nonboater's gear.  Wonder if that was something that could be handled in small claims court.  

I understand that the boat that caused the accident did not have insurance, so there would be no coverage.  The boat that was damaged was insured but the ins comppany won't cover the guests equipment as it is not listed in the policy.  So...the non boater will have to rely on his own personal insurance to cover his losses, thus the civil suit.  Correct me if I read this wrong.  I have toys myself and carry insurance on my own personal stuff just in case !!

[Sam]

4 hours ago, airshot said:

If the non boater has his own home insurance he can file a claim with his own ins.  An accident report is needed and proof of loss.  But...like any claim...will it raise your rates ??  And will filing a claim be worthwhile ?  Most polocies have a 500 dollar or more deductable...  Hopefully they filed a civil suit against the uninsured boater !!

As far as I know, the at fault boater had no insurance and he "lives off the grid." Legal actions would not be fruitful.

[GaryH]

5 minutes ago, Sam said:

As far as I know, the at fault boater had no insurance and he "lives off the grid." Legal actions would not be fruitful.

How about illegal actions?  JK 😂😂😂

[gim]

2 hours ago, Sam said:

As far as I know, the at fault boater had no insurance and he "lives off the grid." Legal actions would not be fruitful.

Well he must have a vehicle to tow it with. Any assets are legal game in litigation.

[airshot]

3 hours ago, gimruis said:

Well he must have a vehicle to tow it with. Any assets are legal game in litigation.

As long as their value exceeds a certain amount.  You cannot remove a persons means of surviving.  Clothes off you back, basic roof over your head or basic means of transportation..  Probably while he lives off grid.....nothing to sue for !!  Criminal liability might be the best bet....but in all probability will have to use their own insurance !!  Uninsured motorist coverage is there for a reason !!

[Sam]

6 hours ago, airshot said:

As long as their value exceeds a certain amount.  You cannot remove a persons means of surviving.  Clothes off you back, basic roof over your head or basic means of transportation..  Probably while he lives off grid.....nothing to sue for !!  Criminal liability might be the best bet....but in all probability will have to use their own insurance !!  Uninsured motorist coverage is there for a reason !!

Airshot, thanks for the information.

 

This also illustrates the need for us to have the highest amount of Uninsured/Underinsured auto limits for your vehicles and your watercraft.

 

Thanks to all for responding to this thread. It was not only a close call but a wake up call for us all.

 

Glenn, you must be back from your visit to Japan. Pick up any "special secret" baits???

 

[Bankc]

11 hours ago, airshot said:

As long as their value exceeds a certain amount.  You cannot remove a persons means of surviving.  Clothes off you back, basic roof over your head or basic means of transportation..  Probably while he lives off grid.....nothing to sue for !!  Criminal liability might be the best bet....but in all probability will have to use their own insurance !!  Uninsured motorist coverage is there for a reason !!

It depends on the state.  Different states have different laws regarding all of this stuff.  Same with insurance.  Different states will have different laws regarding insurance, so two people using the same insurance company can have different results depending on what state they live in.  It's all a big mess.  

 

It's often wise in situations like this to talk to a lawyer.  They'll let you know right away if there's anything you can do, or if what you can do is worth actually pursuing.  

But yeah, often times it's best just to forgive and forget and move on.  

 

Though I will say this, it's not uncommon for the police, especially in small towns, to not want to get involved with stuff like this.  So they'll often tell you there's nothing they can do, when the truth is, there's just nothing they WANT to do.  It's a lot of paperwork and it won't really fix anything.  But people are just like water.  They always take the path of least resistance.  So if you make it more difficult for them to do nothing rather than do something, like contacting their boss, city council, the mayor, anyone and everyone they answer to and demanding action until, they'll often be forced to take action.  You'll make more enemies than friends doing it that way, so keep that in mind.  There's a good chance you'll make things worse.  But if you need things done in this world, sometimes being the bigger problem is the most effective way to get those things done.  The squeaky wheel gets the oil, as they say.  

[slonezp]

Did anyone try to go after the uninsured boater?

[Sam]

6 hours ago, slonezp said:

Did anyone try to go after the uninsured boater?

 

The North Carolina game wardens know who he is.

 

No idea if any charges were filed against him. Remember, only witnesses were the three guys involved in the accident. The nonboater, never saw the uninsured boater heading his way until impact.

[TnRiver46]

On 2/8/2024 at 11:45 AM, Sam said:

.

 

I will now tell all guys who I take out on my boat that my Progressive policy does not cover their tackle, lunch, clothes, rods, reels, baits, iPhones, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lunch ? What is the monthly premium on cheese n crackers? 

[A-Jay]

17 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Lunch ? What is the monthly premium on cheese n crackers? 

How much & what kind of cheese are we talking about here ?

A-Jay

[airshot]

Heck if they are gonna pay for my lunch, it was prime rib !!

[immortl]

Insurance is an interesting topic that I don't know a whole lot of details about, but have learned over the years to ask a lot of detailed questions.

 

I'm surprised to hear of those saying non-boaters gear isn't covered.  I had a motor vehicle accident once and my passengers 'stuff' in the truck was all covered by my insurance but my 'stuff' wasn't.  First and foremost both my passenger and I were ok, and a close second, the rifles were all ok.  I didn't need any of my personal property covered, but I learned to ask.  

 

Now with vehicle, cargo trailer, motorcycle, and travel trailer insurance, I ask about what is/isn't covered and how to cover that which by default isn't.  My policies all now cover my stuff, passengers' stuff, trailer contents up to X dollars, etc..  It was a long phone call with the agent, but it was worthwhile digging into the details, and taking notes as we made adjustments.  The weirdest to me was the trailer for the motorcycle is actually covered under the motorcycle policy and not on its own policy like the rest of the trailers.

 

Another odd one I've been reading into a bit is the old, "rental vehicles on your CC have insurance through the CC".  I need to look into that more because the fine print caught my attention where my CC said it would be the 'secondary insurance if 'something' was waived at time of rental.  That leads me to think my personal insurance would be primary?  I don't know how it all works but want to figure it out.  My desire would be to have the wrecked hulk returned to Hertz or whatever and walk away washing my hands of the ordeal.  Doesn't quite sound like CC insurance would accomplish that.

 

Anyways, like others have said, don't assume and dig into the details with your agent and explore the options. 

[airshot]

By all means check !!  Policies and companies are different and can be different in each state !!  

[Gera]

What happen to the others guy boat? Hopefully he is off the water for good. 

[Sam]

On 2/15/2024 at 3:57 PM, Gera said:

What happen to the others guy boat? Hopefully he is off the water for good. 

No idea.

[TnRiver46]

On 2/15/2024 at 3:57 PM, Gera said:

What happen to the others guy boat? Hopefully he is off the water for good. 

His lunch sank 

[Woody B]

On 2/15/2024 at 9:31 AM, immortl said:

I had a motor vehicle accident once and my passengers 'stuff' in the truck was all covered by my insurance but my 'stuff' wasn't

 

That's interesting.  As I stated in another insurance thread I have good liability coverage, but minimal coverage on my boat with no coverage on my equipment.   I wonder if my liability insurance would cover a co boaters equipment.  

 

[Sam]

On 2/15/2024 at 3:57 PM, Gera said:

What happen to the others guy boat? Hopefully he is off the water for good. 

No idea what happened to the gentleman's boat.