If you own a Jet Ski, Sea-Doo or WaveRunner, you may be focused on the next carefree ride, but before you hit the water, consider your insurance. Having the right mix of coverages can keep you out of financial trouble if an accident happens. Here are the essentials and some optional coverage enhancements that might be right for you.
What Does Watercraft Insurance Cover
By definition a personal watercraft is not quite a boat, because you don’t sit inside it, but it is a Class A motor craft. It is more like a ride-on lawnmower or motorcycle meant for skimming across the water. A personal watercraft is powered by an inboard jet drive and is operated while sitting, kneeling or standing on the vessel. Use and construction are governed under U.S. Coast Guard rules. Common brands are Jet Ski, Sea-Doo, WaveRunner and Yamaha VX and GP.
You may have some insurance for a personal watercraft under your homeowners insurance, so that is the first place to look for coverage. You need to find out if the vessel itself is insured for damage and if you have protection for monetary damages if you are found liable for payments to others after an accident. The first coveragewould be found under your homeowners property coverage; the second is under your homeowners liability section.
Even if you have some coverage under your homeowners insurance, it might not be monetarily enough — that is, the limit of insurance might be too low for the value of your vessel or the potential liability costs you could incur. As a result, insurers offer personal watercraft (PWC) insurance. It can cover physical damage to the watercraft, theft, and your costs associated with PWC injury to others or harm to their property.
Property Insurance for Personal Watercraft
Property insurance can cover damage to your vessel from an accident, including its hull, engine and even equipment, whether built in or brought on board. Collision insurance covers impact with other vessels or objects, including docks and pylons, as well as running aground.
If you opt for comprehensive insurance, you will also be insured for theft, vandalism, and damage from non-collision causes, like lightning, flood or fire. You may be able to add a trailer for your watercraft if it’s not already included in the policy. Often, you can find comprehensive coverage that will insure your personal watercraft during off-season storage as well.
You can typically choose between actual cash value coverage, which calculates the depreciation of the vessel’s value over the years; replacement cost coverage, which provides money to buy a new watercraft of similar make and model; and agreed-value coverage, which is based on a specified dollar value agreed upon by you and the insurer. Some higher-end policies will help you pay to move your personal watercraft to safety to avoid a named peril, like a hurricane.
In rare cases, you can find personal watercraft coverage that helps with extreme events caused by wear and tear, though the wear and tear itself would not be covered. These events might include fire, explosion, or stranding due to worn parts or electrical components.
Know that modifying your vessel for higher performance could nullify coverage and that many policies exclude use between sunset and sunrise. In some cases, you can insure the vessel for competitive event damage if you participate in races or shows, so talk to your insurance agent about your use of the watercraft to see what options you have for special usage.
Lastly, you may wish to get uninsured watercraft coverage since many boaters and watercraft operators use their vessels without adequate — or even the minimum required — liability insurance. If they were to crash into your watercraft and have no insurance (or not enough), you would be stuck with the bill for repairs and injuries unless you were carrying uninsured watercraft coverage.
Liability Insurance for Personal Watercraft
Some states require a minimum level of personal watercraft liability insurance, which may be based on horsepower, size or another consideration. An independent insurance agent who sells personal watercraft policies will be able to guide you on compliance with these requirements.
What’s Included in Liability Coverage?
Liability insurance can cover physical damages and injuries for which you are responsible after an accident. Typical examples of costs you can opt to cover include:
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Injured party medical expenses
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Legal defense costs
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Injured party lost wages
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Non-economic damages, such as pain or suffering
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Funeral or other fatality costs
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Damage to the property of others
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Fuel spills or other environmental damage and cleanup
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Emergency rescue or salvage
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Passenger or towed-skier/inner-tube rider medical expenses
For “passenger or towed-skier” coverage, it’s important not only to check whether it’s covered but also to verify what the policy limits are, as some policies do not provide the same level of coverage for passengers. And find out whether medical expense and legal liability protection are included for passengers. The same coverage issue applies for towed-skiers and wakeboarders.
You may be able to insure against liabilities for the operation of your vessel by others, even if they are not named on your insurance policy, but you should speak with your agent about permissive use. There may be restrictions.
Excess liability or personal umbrella insurance can be helpful for users of personal watercraft. These policies increase the dollar limit of coverage provided by your personal watercraft insurance. An excess liability policy would expand only the PWC coverage. A personal umbrella policy can do the same for multiple policies at once and could be an especially good option if you are going to rely on homeowners insurance for your PWC protection.
If you have an excess liability insurance policy covering your home and vehicles, find out what policy limits are required for your personal watercraft policy. Typically, you will need to carry at least $300,000 in primary coverage. Otherwise, you could be on the hook for the difference until the excess insurance limits are reached if you have a claim.
Boating Safety Can Prevent Many Woes
Safety on the water, at the shore and in your travels to activities can help you avoid many accidents and other causes of personal watercraft loss. These measures include:
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Sober operations
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Total attention to steering
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Safe speed and distance from other vessels
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Extreme care when towing people
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Deference to large vessels, which may not see you
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Avoiding shallow or vegetative areas
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Maintaining the vessel to avoid spills and stranding
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Limiting permissive use to trustworthy, experienced operators
Boat U.S. Foundation provides a good set of guidelines for new PWC users and a refresher for seasoned riders that can help keep you accident-free while having fun with your personal watercraft.
For financial protection that can give you peace of mind while you enjoy skimming the waters, talk to a personal watercraft insurance agent. Find an independent insurance agent specializing in personal watercraft insurance near you.