Crew on a long passage: how is the crew on your own boat insured?

For an Atlantic crossing or a circumnavigation, many owners take crew aboard: friends, family or people found through a crew finding site, often sharing the costs. That turns a private cruise into a small community with risks worth thinking about before departure. What happens if a crew member is injured mid Atlantic, falls seriously ill or goes over the side? Who pays the doctor in the Caribbean, and who pays for the flight home?

Three things belong together. First, travel health insurance for each crew member, valid for the whole voyage and on board a yacht. Second, a personal accident policy that includes not only the owner but everyone aboard; check the wording for who counts as an insured person, and note that the sum insured is often divided by the number of people on board. Third, a clear understanding of who does what. A paying guest may stand differently in law from a friend who simply comes sailing. And a paid crew is a professional crew, which has to be declared to the policy.

Keep a crew list with name, passport number, nationality, emergency contact, blood group and medical conditions; port authorities ask for it at clearance in and out anyway. Ask each crew member to confirm in writing that they have health insurance, and go through the safety rules before casting off, such as harnesses at night and the watch system. A short crew agreement on cost sharing avoids arguments about money and duties. Then look at your own policy: whether crew count as insured persons under the third party cover, and whether claims between people insured under the same policy are excluded, as they often are.

Worth remembering

If you take crew, settle the insurance before you cast off.