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Fishing and diving gear on board: is it covered with the boat?
Short answer
Rods, reels, fishfinders, cylinders and regulators can cost more than a small boat.
In a boat policy they are often covered only when listed as scheduled items with their own sum
insured.
For anglers and divers the boat is often just the way to get there; the real value lies in the gear. A set of good rods and reels, downriggers, a portable fishfinder, cylinders, regulators, a dive computer and a drysuit soon add up to several thousand. If the boat is broken into, capsizes or catches fire, the question is whether any of it is covered. The answer sits in the list of insured property in the wording, not in the sum insured for the hull.
Many hull wordings sort property into three groups. Equipment fixed to the boat, such as a built in echo sounder, counts as part of the boat. Sports equipment such as fishing tackle and dive gear is often covered only when it has been declared and appears in the schedule with its own sum insured. Personal effects such as clothing are usually covered only to a small limit, if at all. Gear that was never declared often brings nothing in a claim, even when the boat itself is paid for.
Make a list with photos, serial numbers and receipts, and declare the total as scheduled items. Take expensive pieces such as dive computers and portable fishfinders home after a trip, or keep them locked away. Ask whether the gear stays covered over winter in your garage or cellar, and whether your home contents policy steps in there. Note too that loose items lost overboard are excluded in many wordings, so a lanyard on a rod is cheaper than an argument.
Worth remembering
Not declared
often nothing in a claim
Declared
scheduled with its own sum insured
Gear that costs more than a weekend away belongs on the schedule.
Questions
What owners ask us about this
Are my fishing rods covered by the boat insurance?
Usually only if you declared them as sports equipment with their own sum insured. Otherwise they often do not count as insured property at all.
Is dive gear stored at home over winter still covered?
That depends on the wording. Some policies extend to scheduled gear kept locked away ashore, others stop at the boat, so ask before the season ends.
Will the insurer pay for a rod that went over the side?
As a rule, no. Losing loose items or dropping them overboard is excluded in many wordings, whatever the item is worth.
Related
Not sure whether you qualify?
Whether it is “Fishing and diving gear on board: is it covered with the boat?” or another question: send us your residence and the flag your boat flies. You will get a straight answer in one email; including a no, if that is the answer.
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