Mid Size Power Boats

Portrait of a Happy Boat Owner

One doesn’t have to be rich to own a boat, but one does need to be able to afford what one owns in terms of size, price and cost of ownership.

The people who get the most pleasure from their boats are those who get into boating not merely for fun, but as an avocation or hobby.

They’re eager to learn as much as they can, and they understand that you don’t just buy a boat and become an instant expert because you own one.

A boat owner should be a mechanically inclined person who has some interest in things mechanical and electrical and is not afraid or disinclined to learn more.

Far too many boat owners today are the sort who have no interest in things mechanical, are not good with their hands, and who attempt to rely entirely upon others to see to it that their boats are kept in good condition.

And more often than not, such people will attempt to pay their maintenance people as little as possible because maintaining a boat is costly.

The faulty logic in this should be painfully obvious. In all things in this world, we basically get what we pay for, so that if we pay for cheap help and service, that is what we get.

The bottom line is that people who get the most out of their boats and boating are the sort who love boats for all that they involve, including the work, the adventure and the dangers.

They see a challenge in every aspect, from fixing a bilge pump, to painting the bottom, to learning the art of navigation.

If this describes you, then the odds are high that you’ll love boat ownership and boating.

“There is nothing so fine as just messing around with boats.” - Anonymous

“Ya gotta be nuts to own a boat” - An opinion expressed by thousands.

“A boat is a man’s first love and first wife. Second loves and wives are optional and ill-advised.” - Barnacle Bill

Definition of BOAT: Break Out Another Thousand

Insurance

It has been my experience over many long years that far too many boat owners rely on insurance to cover for their lack of diligence.

Please be aware that all insurance policies that I have seen contain what is known as a Due Diligence clause.

Due diligence simply means that the insured is required to exercise a similar degree of prudence common to that which is performed by other knowledgeable boat owners.

For example, if you leave your boat unattended for six months and it sinks, that is not due diligence but gross neglect and your claim for damages could be denied on that basis.

Similarly, no insurance policies cover the failure to maintain a boat properly.

If you don’t change the engine oil and the engine goes BANG!, this probably won’t be covered. Should the boat sink due to a failure to maintain, that may not be covered either.

Understand that boat insurance is intended to cover accidents, primarily events from without the vessel.

Insurance is not intended to cover maintenance issues or any other issue that is the responsibility of the manufacturer.

Insurance is not intended to cover events occurring from age, deterioration or mechanical breakdown.

However, marine insurance policies can vary greatly on these points. Before you buy insurance, I strongly recommend that you obtain sample policies of those you propose to buy, and then READ THEM.