Boat Insurance Ontario

The Right Boat Insurance For Your Ontario-Based Watercraft

Ontario's lakes and waterways offer some of the best boating in the world. From fishing trips and family outings to networking opportunities and romantic evenings on the water, the boating lifestyle can take your recreational time to the next level. Our boat insurance brokers are from Ontario and have many years of experience in offering insurance for boats and watercraft of all types and sizes, from large cruisers to fishing boats and sailboats to power boats. We have well-trained, experienced, knowledgeable boat insurance brokers who will work with you to develop a personalized boat or watercraft policy so you can feel covered adequately during the boating season.

What Is Boat Insurance?

Boat insurance in Ontario helps protect motorized watercraft, including leisure craft, yachts, fishing boats and sailboats. Boat or watercraft insurance in Ontario covers you and your personal watercraft or its equipment in the event of an accident, emergency or another unfortunate event. Boat insurance coverage can include:

• Collision damage.
• Property damage (including damage to another boat, dock or other structures).
• Personal injury.
• Comprehensive and additional coverage plans.

Who Needs Boat Insurance In Ontario?

If you own a boat, it is highly recommended that you have the right boat insurance in Ontario due to its high value. A minor incident can lead to thousands of dollars worth of damages. Many financial institutions will require a boat insurance policy if you take out a loan to purchase your boat or watercraft. It is also common for marinas to require boat insurance in order to dock and store boats at their location.

Most importantly, you can rest easy knowing your investment is protected when you have the right boat insurance. Ontario boat enthusiasts often dream about their big purchase for years—maybe even decades—before pulling the trigger and getting the beautiful watercraft they've always wanted. Whether you have purchased a luxury yacht with all the bells and whistles or a little speedboat to zip around, it would be heartbreaking to see it damaged or even totalled beyond repair.

But life happens, and that's why having the right boat insurance is so important. Ontario watercraft owners can get peace of mind knowing that a comprehensive boat insurance policy backs them. Whatever life throws at you—and your boat—you won't have to worry about losing your investment and then some to recover property damage costs, medical bills, legal fees or replacement costs in the event of a disaster like theft, vandalism, accidental damage, wreck removal, third-party bodily injury and more.

Is It Required to Have Boat Insurance in Ontario?

No. It is not legally mandatory to have watercraft insurance in Ontario. However, operating without it is extremely risky. You'll have to take on all the expenses yourself should any loss or damage occur to your boat. Also, while you're not legally required to have boat insurance, Ontario boat owners should be aware that there are some situations in which it could be difficult to operate without it. For example, if you're financing your boat, your loan lender will require you to get the boat insured. A Morison Insurance expert, personal insurance agent, can assess your situation and provide expert advice and boat insurance products to help clarify your boating insurance needs.

What Does Boat Insurance Cover?

Most policies will include property damage liability in a collision, replacement cost coverage, damage caused by your boat to someone else's property, medical expenses for bodily injury, theft and vandalism. It depends on the insurance provider in terms of the details. While a standard package often doesn't cover every risk that may concern you on your boat insurance, Ontario watercraft owners can choose to purchase extra coverages that you can purchase to ensure you are protected from bow to stern.

Specialized Coverage

Do you have an expensive upgrade that you added to your boat? A high-end propeller or a state-of-the-art navigation system? Your boating equipment can be individually insured with additional coverage. This way, you can know that the investments you worked so hard to make in your boat are safe from potential loss or damage. You may also need additional coverage for expensive fishing equipment or other special equipment stored and used on your boat.

The cost of your boat is another factor that warrants consideration. Suppose it's a high-end, luxury watercraft. In that case, you will likely need more than the standard coverage limits to ensure you are adequately protected against financial loss if the boat is damaged or destroyed.

Emergency Towing Coverage

Breaking down on the side of the road is one thing, but having your boat motor stutter to a halt in the middle of Lake Ontario is even less ideal—you certainly won't be calling roadside assistance or hitchhiking to the nearest gas station. Emergency towing is optional coverage for marine assistance that will help you get your boat back to safety when stuck out on the water. Towing coverage lets you go out onto the open water with the peace of mind that comes with knowing emergency services for water towing will respond should anything go wrong.

Salvage Coverage

As much as we may try to avoid them, boat accidents happen. Sometimes, a mishap may leave your boat damaged and stranded somewhere as a result. Salvage coverage would protect you from the associated expenses of getting your boat off of the damage site. Protection of this sort will also help you get your boat out of the water if it ever sinks or gets so damaged that you cannot remove it by your own means.

Uninsured Watercraft Coverage

Sometimes, having coverage for yourself is not enough; you need to take other people's actions and decisions into account as well. If you are involved in a collision on the road, you can be reasonably certain that the other driver will have auto insurance. But boat insurance isn't mandatory like car insurance. Watercrafts can collide on the water or at the port or dock. Although you're insured, the other boater might not be. What then?

Uninsured watercraft coverage can help ensure you're covered if you collide with an uninsured or underinsured boater. That means if they are at fault, you won't be left with no way to receive compensation for the damage to your watercraft, and you can get back out on the water sooner with a lot less hassle, expense and stress.

Do I Need A Marine Survey To Get Boat Insurance In Ontario?

That depends on the boat insurers and the age of the watercraft that needs boat insurance. Ontario insurance companies will typically request a marine survey for a boat over 10 to 15 years old, including vintage and antique boats. The process is carried out by an independent surveyor who will assess your watercraft's value, condition and seaworthiness and identify potential safety or repair issues that need to be addressed even if your boat is newer but has been out on the water before, having a marine survey done can be advantageous for your own peace of mind.

Does My Home Insurance Policy Cover My Boat?

Home insurance covers a small boat, but this is often an additional type of coverage you'll have to add to your homeowner's policy. This coverage, however, can be limited. Sometimes, it covers only the boat while parked on your property, but not when you take it out on the water. This means the loss must occur at home for your boat to be covered.

That means you can still include a small, inexpensive watercraft on your homeowner's insurance rather than getting a separate policy for boat insurance. Ontario insurance brokers at Morison Insurance will discuss your options and coverages with you to ensure you and your family's safety is adequately protected.

What Are The Boater Eligibility Requirements To Get Boat Insurance?

Regarding specific eligibility requirements for those who can obtain boat insurance, Ontario insurance companies can vary a bit in their individual rules. That being said, the main things they will look at to determine eligibility are factors such as your driving record, including driving tickets, boat ownership experience, previous boat insurance losses, and overall insurance claims history. It may also depend somewhat on the type of watercraft, navigational limits, and other factors.

What Information Do I Need To Provide When Purchasing Boat Insurance in Ontario?

The more your insurance broker knows about you and how you intend to use your watercraft, the better they will be able to tailor your policy to your unique needs. Your Morison Insurance expert will be happy to go over all the information you need to provide in-depth, but generally speaking, you will need to provide information such as:

• The type, value and length of your watercraft
• Its market value and current condition
• How you choose to use your watercraft
• How frequently do you use your boat
• How do you store your boat
• The condition of the water where you intend to use your watercraft
• Past claims history
• Boat ownership experience

How Is My Premium Calculated for Watercraft Insurance in Ontario?

When determining your boat insurance costs, the most heavily weighted factors are the types of boats you own, engine size, speed capabilities, and how old they are. Some other factors that may also affect the cost of boat insurance are your boating experience, what type of water you will be using it on, how often you plan to use it (some people change boats into their primary dwelling), whether anyone other than you will be operating it and what condition your boat is in.

Are There Any Possible Discounts Available for Boat Insurance in Ontario?

Whether or not you are eligible for discounts on your boat insurance premiums does vary based on a number of factors. Still, some insurance providers do offer discounts for various reasons. It's fairly common to get a discount on your insurance premiums if you have a claims-free record, for example, and that's generally true for boat insurance as well. Some insurance companies may also offer discounts for taking an approved boating safety course, as this education can significantly lower your risk of needing to file a claim on your watercraft insurance. Ontario policyholders should speak to their brokers at Morison Insurance to learn more about discounts they may be eligible to receive.

What Is a Deductible for Boat Insurance in Ontario, And How Does It Work?

Suppose you're ever in an accident and have resultant repairs. In that case, the boat insurance deductible is the cost you've agreed to cover on your own before your insurance company covers the rest. Very often, a standard deductible is about $500. For example, if your boat requires $2,000 worth of repairs, you must cover $500, and your insurance policy will cover the remaining $1,500. Remember that the lower your deductible, the higher your insurance premium will be. For example, a policy with a $1,000 deductible will cost less annually than if the deductible on the policy were $500.

Is Agreed Value Coverage Available for a Brand-New Boat?

There's no doubt that a boat can be a costly investment, especially for a recreational vehicle, but most watercraft enthusiasts find the pleasure of boating well worth the cost. But when boat owners purchase a brand-new watercraft that they may have spent quite some time saving for, it can be nerve-racking to actually get the boat out on the water and use it because that increases the risk of a total loss. With agreed-value coverage, you can enjoy your brand-new boat all you want without worrying about what would happen if your watercraft were destroyed.

Agreed value coverage is an optional addition to boat insurance. Ontario policyholders can typically opt into agreed value coverage as long as it's a relatively new vessel—most insurance companies will consider a boat eligible for agreed value coverage as long as it's under ten years old and, in some cases, under 15 years old. If you are involved in a situation that ends in a total loss for your boat, you can expect insurance compensation for the agreed value so you can replace it with the same or a similar model.

Are Dinghies and Boat Trailers Included With Boat Insurance in Ontario?

Suppose you have a larger watercraft, such as a yacht. In that case, it's likely necessary to have a small dinghy on board that you can use as a tender to transport crew and yachters to and from the boat when it is moored offshore. Your crew can also use it to carry out any boat maintenance checks and other tasks while the larger boat is in the water. It may also be used as a lifeboat in a marine emergency. Some people consider this tender or dinghy to be basically an extension of the larger watercraft and, therefore, assume that it will be covered under the larger craft's boat insurance. Ontario policyholders need to know that this is not the case. Your insurance company considered the dinghy a separate watercraft, which will not be automatically included in the boat insurance coverage for the yacht or other large watercraft.

That said, you likely don't need an entirely separate policy to cover your dinghy with watercraft insurance. Ontario insurance companies can, in most cases, modify your existing boat insurance policy with an inclusion that extends the coverage to the dinghy or tender that goes with your larger watercraft.

Many people need a boat trailer to transport their watercraft across the land, and it's also worth noting that your boat trailer will likely not be automatically included in your policy for boat insurance. Ontario watercraft owners who rely on a trailer to get their boat to water should speak to their Morison Insurance broker to ensure they have trailer coverage and are protected against financial loss related to damage to that critical piece of equipment.

Does Boat Insurance Coverage Apply While a Boat is Being Hauled on a Trailer?

When considering this aspect of boat insurance, Ontario policyholders need to separate liability and property damage coverage in their minds. In most situations, the property damage coverage on your watercraft insurance will apply if your boat is damaged while on the trailer. However, liability concerns related to the boat on the trailer will be covered by the liability insurance portion of the auto insurance for the vehicle that is pulling the trailer.

For example, if you are using your truck to pull a trailer with your boat on it and you get in a collision that causes the trailer to tip sideways and partially crush another vehicle, the damage to the boat would fall under your boat insurance. You could get insurance compensation to deal with the cost of repairing or replacing it. However, the damage to the other vehicle, partially crushed by your trailer and boat, would be handled under the liability coverage of your auto insurance for your truck.

Where Can I Get A Quote For Boat Insurance?

You can contact Morison Insurance to get a quote for boat insurance. Ontario insurance experts on our team are happy to help you get the best insurance policy for your comprehensive coverage needs and budget. We understand that your insurance needs are as unique as you are. That's why we're here to provide you with the best insurance products and help you through the process from start to finish. Contact us by picking up the phone and calling 1-800-463-8074 or by filling out the contact form on our website—we promise it will be smooth sailing.

This content is written by our Morison Insurance team. It is provided for general information only. Insurance needs differ from person to person, and this article is therefore not a substitute for professional advice about your individual insurance needs which can be obtained by speaking to one of our brokers.