Liability
- Collision and jetty damage
- No legal obligation
- Often required by the marina
Insuring a wooden boat
On a wooden vessel, maintenance is not a matter for the brochure but for the policy: it is a condition you have to meet in order to keep cover.
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- 9.5 customer rating for a new policy
- AFM licence 12016589
- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
This page in another language: Nederlands
Work out for yourself what it would cost.
Enter your details; you will receive a proposal within one working day.
- We compare the offerings of several insurers
- An adviser checks whether the cover suits your situation
- We arrange the switch, including cancellation
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
- Independent advice
- Several insurers
- Switching arranged
- Help with claims
In brief
Wood lives. It moves with the temperature, takes up water and gives it off again, and that makes maintenance on a wooden vessel a question not of tidiness but of watertightness. Insurers translate that into a maintenance clause: out of the water periodically, the underwater hull inspected and the paintwork and caulking kept up. If you do not meet it, the insurer can refuse cover for damage that demonstrably follows from it.
The risks specific to wood are almost all gradual and therefore excluded: rot, fungus, longhorn beetle and shipworm. The same applies to seams drying out so that the vessel starts to leak when it goes back in the water. What does remain covered is the sudden event: a collision, fire, storm or a branch falling on the deck while in storage.
On classic and restored vessels the market value also rarely matches what a repair actually costs. We therefore work with a valuation based on expert repair in wood, and usually with an insurer that knows classic vessels. For the difference in materials, see also insuring a fibreglass boat.
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A wooden boat: what is covered?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Own-damage cover
Damage to the boat, the engine and the fixed equipment.
- Fire, storm and sinking
- Theft
- Collision and grounding
Extensions
What you add separately.
- Trailer on the road
- Occupants
- Salvage and wreck removal
What is covered
| Situation | Liability | Own-damage cover |
|---|---|---|
| Damage to another vessel or a jetty | Yes | No |
| Theft of the boat or the outboard motor | No | Provided that |
| Fire and storm damage in the berth or ashore | No | Yes |
| Sinking through a leak or through rainwater | No | Provided that |
| Salvage and removal of the wreck | Provided that | Provided that |
| Osmosis, wear and deferred maintenance | No | No |
There is no statutory insurance requirement for pleasure craft. The WAM applies only to motor vehicles. Marinas, harbours and hire companies do generally require liability cover. Pay attention to the sailing area described and to the lay-up or winter storage period: outside the sailing area or during undeclared storage, cover may lapse.
This overview is general in nature and is not personal advice. What is actually covered, including exclusions, limits and the excess, is set out in the policy conditions and the insurance card (verzekeringskaart) of the insurer; you receive both before you take out cover. Taking out cover without advice? Then read what execution only means for you.
What does your premium depend on?
- Agreed value on a repair basis. On classic vessels the value is determined by what expert repair costs, not by the sale price.
- Year of build and construction method. Carvel, clinker and double laminated wood each have their own vulnerability and their own method of repair.
- State of maintenance. The most recent inspection report and the yard history determine whether, and under what clause, an insurer accepts the risk.
- Wintering in or out of the water. A vessel that stays afloat all year has different risks from one that winters dry in a shed.
- Sailing area. Salt water and shipworm areas set different requirements for protecting the underwater hull than an inland harbour does.
- Excess and claims history. Earlier leaks or rot repairs count heavily, because they say something about the state of the hull.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
How we arrange it
- You request a quoteWe take stock of your situation, your risk and your wishes.
- We compareseveral insurers, on premium as well as conditions.
- You receive a proposalWith an explanation of the differences and the exclusions.
- We arrange the switchIncluding cancellation, so there is no gap in cover.
Why arrange it through Finass Verzekert?
We look at the terms as well as the premium, and stay your point of contact when there is a claim.
Independent
We are not tied to one insurer and compare on the basis of an objective analysis of several companies.
One fixed adviser
You call or email someone who knows your file. No menu options, no changing call centres.
Switching without hassle
We cancel your old policy and align the start date, so you are never a day without cover.
Help with claims
We report the claim and monitor how it is handled. In urgent cases you can reach us on the emergency line.
9.5New policy
9.8Claims handling
Customers rate our service on four aspects: personal service, service delivery, availability and the outcome. The reviews are collected and published by NH1816 and come from customers who have actually taken out a policy with Finass Advies B.V. or reported a claim.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
The maintenance clause is a condition of cover
Many policies for wooden vessels state how often the vessel has to come out of the water and what is checked then. That is not advice but a condition. Keep the yard invoices, the photographs of the underwater hull out of the water and the report of the last inspection. If those are missing and the damage turns out to stem from a latent defect, you are empty-handed in front of the surveyor.
Rot, fungus and shipworm are never covered
Deterioration of the wood takes months or years and is therefore not a sudden, unforeseen event. That applies to consequential damage too: if a rotten frame gives way and a leak develops, that leak is not covered either. Insect attack and mould also appear as separate exclusions in almost every set of conditions. Only an identifiable event, such as fire or a collision, opens up the cover.
Being out of the water is not without risk
A wooden vessel that stands too long and too dry shrinks. The seams open up and, when it goes back in the water, water flows in until the wood has swollen again. Insurers regard that leak as a foreseeable consequence of the way the vessel is built, not as damage. Lower the vessel in under supervision, keep a pump ready and do not leave it unattended for the first few days.
Craftsmanship costs more than the vessel appears to be worth
Repair in wood calls for a shipwright, suitable materials and time. On a vessel with a modest market value that quickly means the insurer concludes on a market value basis that it is a total loss, at the very moment when you want to keep the vessel. A valuation based on the cost of repair rather than the sale price prevents that, but has to be agreed in advance and renewed periodically.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Is rot covered?
No. Rot develops over a longer period and falls under gradually operating influences and deferred maintenance. Consequential damage, such as a leak through an affected plank or the failure of a rotten frame, therefore stays outside the cover too. What is covered is damage from a sudden event, such as a collision, fire or storm, even if the vessel takes on water afterwards.
Do I have to have my vessel inspected every year?
That depends on the clause in your policy. Insurers of wooden vessels often prescribe a periodic inspection in which the vessel comes out of the water. That interval is stated literally in your policy conditions. If you let the inspection lapse, the insurer can rely on that failure when a hull or leak claim arises.
May my wooden vessel stay afloat in winter?
Often yes, but it has to be declared and it sometimes rules out a lower storage premium. If the vessel stays afloat, requirements usually apply to supervision of the mooring and to bilge pumping and heating arrangements against frost damage. Damage caused by drifting ice is also separately excluded in a number of policies; check that before the season ends.
What if I restore the vessel myself?
Declare it in advance. During a restoration the risk changes fundamentally: there is sanding, welding and burning off, and the vessel is often not ready to sail. Many policies have a separate conversion clause for this, or exclude damage during work carried out by the owner altogether. Also record what you add, so that the valuation keeps pace with the restoration instead of lagging behind it.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
- Compare pleasure craft insuranceThe main page
- Insuring a polyester boatOsmosis, maintenance, valuation
- Insuring an aluminium boatMaterial, corrosion, valuation
- Compare exclusive yacht insuranceValuation, sailing area, crew
- Boat insuranceLiability, own-damage cover, sailing area
- Insuring a houseboatNot a building, mooring, classification
- Insuring a yacht and motorboatOwn-damage cover, sailing area, winter storage
- An aluminium boat on pleasure craft insuranceOwn-damage cover, corrosion, sailing area
Read more
Ready to compare?
Request a quote without obligation. We will look at which insurer best matches your activities and your risk.
Prefer to call? 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 09:00–17:00.
Claim on the road? Emergency line 06 - 55 20 40 72.
About our service
Finass Verzekert is a trading name of Finass Advies B.V. We advise on and arrange non-life insurance on the basis of an objective analysis of several insurers, and receive commission for this from the insurer, which is included in the premium. You pay no separate advice fee. Before you take out cover, we establish your wishes and needs.
You will find our licence, KvK and Kifid details and our complaints procedure at the foot of every page.
This page was compiled by Finass Verzekert (LinkedIn). Last updated on .
The information on this page is general in nature and is not personal advice.