Helping Your Boat Insurance Claim To Go Smoothly

You’ve insured your boat, and you’re hoping that you don’t need to make a boat insurance claim. However, your boat insurance is there to protect you and here are some steps that you can take to help the process of making a claim run smoothly.

  1. Choose a reputable and trusted insurance company with a good track record and excellent customer service reviews.
  1. Know your insurance policy. Make sure that you provide full and accurate information when you take out your boat insurance policy and check your policy documents thoroughly when you receive them.
  1. Choose your insurance cover carefully. Talking to an experienced insurance adviser will help you to consider additional cover options such as for personal possessions, cash and credit cards. However, also be aware of any limits to the policy. This applies to single item limits (such as watches and jewellery) as well as the overall limit. In addition, make sure that you follow any security and safety measures that are required by your boat insurance policy.

Knowing what you can claim for on your boat insurance could save you a lot of time and disappointment if you later discover that you’re not covered.

  1. Keep your paperwork in good order. Keep your boat insurance policy documents in a safe place and somewhere that you can find them easily. Keep records of servicing and safety checks with your insurance documents as well as receipts of equipment or other items that you’ve boat for your boat. If you need to make a claim on your boat insurance, then having all the information in one place will make it easier. Also, the more evidence you have that you owned the items, and that you kept your boat in good condition will help to avoid difficulties and disputes about the value of any compensation.
  1. Take photographs of your boat and equipment. An accurate photographic record will also help with your boat insurance claim, especially if photos are date-stamped. They will give a clear indication of the condition of your boat and any additional equipment or accessories that you have on board if you need to make a claim. Also, make sure that you back up digital photos – either in a cloud account or on a CD or external drive. This is good practice anyway as many photographs have great sentimental value.
  1. Act quickly. As soon as you realise that you need to make an insurance claim for your boat, do it as soon as possible. By contacting the claims handling department straightaway, they will be able to tell you what information and evidence you need to provide. This will reduce the risk of forgetting important information and help you to get your compensation sooner.
  1. Report theft or criminal damage. If your claim relates to theft or criminal damage, you’ll need to report it to the police. An incident report number will usually be required by your boat insurance company so this will be a standard procedure for the police.
  1. Keep a written record. Take notes of your telephone conversations with your boat insurance company and who you spoke to when making your claim. This will help you to keep track of the process and what’s happening next. It’s a good idea to include references to emails in your communication log too, so that you can find them easily if you need to refer back to them.
  1. Stay calm. When you discover that you need to make a boat insurance claim, it can be a difficult and distressing time. However, try to remain calm, and if you’re dealing with an experienced claims handler, then they will support you through the claims process. Remember, the calmer and more co-operative you are, the more likely it is that your boat insurance claim will run smoothly.

Hopefully, you won’t have to make a boat insurance claim and will enjoy safe and happy boating. However, if you have selected the appropriate insurance, then the process of making a claim should be straightforward and stress-free.

This is a marketing article from Assist Insurance Services, a UK based family run business with more than 41,000 leisure policyholders. Each of our policies provide comprehensive cover as standard, with plenty of optional extras to choose from. For more information about our insurance services, please call one of our boat insurance specialists on 01604 946 779. Alternatively choose your product of interest below to find out more:

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