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Wooden boat insurance
Short answer
We insure wooden boats. Wood is not a higher risk, badly kept wood is, so what decides here is the documented condition, not the building material.
Wooden boats have a worse name in the insurance world than they deserve. The reason is statistical: a neglected wooden boat causes costlier damage than a neglected GRP boat, because rot, worm and opening seams build up over years and then become structural. On well-kept boats that picture is wrong, and that is exactly why the records matter.
What we want to see is proof of regular care: when it was last hauled, which coatings, what work on planking and frames. Anyone who documents that gets cover on terms that need not hide behind those for GRP.
One point worth knowing: the classic exclusion in most wordings is not wood but gradual action, that is rot, worm and leaching. It is not treated as a claim, because it is not a sudden event. What is covered is the gale that tears off the cover, not the moisture that seeps in over ten years.
Questions and answers
What owners of these boats ask
Do you insure wooden boats?
Yes. Wood is no reason for us to decline, unlike several competitors who refuse across the board. What counts is condition and proof of care, not the building material.
Is rot covered?
No. Gradual action such as rot, worm or leaching is covered in no wording we know of; it is not a sudden event but a question of maintenance.
What documents do you need?
Photos of the current condition, details of the most recent work and, at higher values, a survey. Exactly what is needed we settle in conversation.
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