On Sep 20, 11:26*pm, Jere Lull wrote:
On 2008-09-20 21:51:31 -0400, GSS said:

Does anyone have any tips or experience they could share on how to deal
with insurance adjusters for significant boat insurance claims? My boat
was one of many badly damaged in Hurricane Ike...I'm guessing $50k+ in
damage (boat is worth about a $100k). *Flybridge was crushed, radar,
Loran, radio & gps antennas, flybridge enclosure, T-top, and
outriggers/center rigger all trashed. *bow pulpit yanked off too & Port
Engine engine won't start, plus the whole dock box gone and everything
in it.

The damage was extensive & I was really surprised she stayed afloat,
but it doesn't appear the boat would be totaled...my policy is a
declared value policy, for what I paid for the boat as opposed to a
replacement value policy. *Please respond to the group & thanks in
advance.

IF your insurer is honest, you're home free.

We had a relatively larger claim against a BOAT/US insurer (the other
boat's carrier, we had other insurance) and received zero hassle as it
was clearly their fault. We were moored almost on the shore and they
ran over our boat while we were securely moored and away from our boat.

Even when I screwed up and wrapped a dock line around our prop as a
BOAT/US insured boat, they questioned far fewer of the outrageous
charges than I did. Yeah, they were usual and expected charges, but I
felt them still way out of line.

If you trust your company and their adjusters, you have no problem.

If you don't, I really do suggest you work with the local BOAT/US insurers.

If the two are the same, I have to say that your expectations are
unrealistic. The BOAT/US insurers really do know boats and I have heard
no report that they didn't give their insured the strong benefit of the
doubt.

As horrible as it sounds, I agree with Wilbur that you guys had more
than a week to prepare for Ike. In a week, I could be 1000 nm away from
the target area, I could also add a mess of lines to ensure that our
boat would stay exactly where I wished her to be. Last year, a friend
on this list and I even worked out a way to keep the floating docks in
the right place should the surge surpass the pilings.

If you don't prepare, it doesn't matter who your insurer is.

--
Jere Lull
Xan-à-Deux -- Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD
Xan's pages:http://web.mac.com/jerelull/iWeb/Xan/
Our BVI trips & tips:http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI

I don't know who Wilbur and didn't see his post, but I'm guessing it
was criticism for Texas Hurricane boat victims...I doubt it was
sympathy...I'm not seeking either. I just wanted some tips on how to
work with the insurance company...your tip is to trust them & thank
you for the advice. By the way, I paid for insurance, took reasonable
measure to protect the boat, and suffered far less damage than
EVERYONE else in the marina. I suppose I could have pulled the boat
out of the water, but most of the boats that you saw on the highway
came out of the work/storage yards, not marinas. Then again, I could
have moved it to Central Texas, just to be really safe.