To help reduce the financial risk of companies in related marine industries, marine insurance policies can be created. Marine insurance commonly covers the loss or damage of ships, cargo, and ship terminals.
1. Customized Marine Insurance
The ocean can be a hazardous place, with potential problems lurking at every
turn. Storms, rough waves, underwater hazards, and others can pose
problems for maritime transport. To help reduce the financial risk of
companies in related marine industries, marine insurance policies can be
created. Marine insurance commonly covers the loss or damage of ships,
cargo, and ship terminals.
Since there are both commercial and personal aspects to marine insurance,
the types of policies and coverage can vary widely. Commercial marine
insurance can include cargo insurance, hull insurance, liability insurance, and
freight insurance. Cargo insurance covers the cargo onboard the ship, as well
as the belongings of the people on the ship. Hull insurance protects the costs
of repair to the hull of the ship in case of damage, as well as much of the
equipment and furniture on the ship that is not cargo. Marine liability
insurance provides compensation if a ship crashes or collides. Freight
insurance protects merchant vessel corporations from financial responsibility
in the event of lost cargo from one of their ships. These commercial marine
insurance policies can be broken down or have variants to allow for
merchants the flexibility to create a marine insurance policy that fits the
needs of their business.
For more personal marine insurance policies, coverage like cargo and freight
insurance is not needed. However since boats and yachts can be significant
investments, boat insurance is necessary to protect the owner from financial
responsibility in case of an unforeseen event. Additionally, many states
require boat insurance, just as most states require auto insurance to protect
the monetary damages motorists can inflict on each other. Boat insurance is
2. actually available as a form of marine insurance, or as an additional coverage
on a homeowners’ insurance policy. Water craft liability insurance is the most
basic form of personal marine insurance available. Water craft liability
insurance covers damage to people or property due to actions on the boat,
whether it is in the water or being towed to or from the water. Sometimes
added to personal boat insurance is a medical payment insurance that covers
medical expenses of the operator and passengers in the boat if they injured in
an accident covered by the liability marine insurance. Wreck removal and
pollution coverage is another recommended marine insurance addition to
the standard boat insurance. After a boat is wrecked, removal is required in
a timely manner. Depending on the damage to the boat and whether it has
sank or not, this can be a costly undertaking, especially since the turnaround
for removal must be expedient. Also, if any gasoline or oil leaks, the owner of
the boat will be fined for the pollution to cover the cleanup costs. Wreck
removal and pollution marine insurance coverage ensures these costly bills
are not solely covered by the owner of the boat.
Similar to cars, many boating accidents take place within a short distance of
the home port, so marine contractors’ insurance can be helpful coverage.
Marine contractors’ insurance covers workers in the port or marina where
the boat or ship is docked, sheltering the owner from costs if a dock contract
worker is injured while attending to their craft.
Marine insurance can protect one of the most significant investments people
make outside of their home. While the insurance coverage varies depending
on the type of boat or ship and the purpose, the insurance can more than pay
for itself in the event of an unforeseen accident. Getting the right coverage
and the right marine insurance policy is important, so asking questions to
insurance agents to find out all the details is a must.