Attention Massachusetts Boat Insurance Shoppers!!

When you insure a boat there are two ways that the company will settle a claim. Actual Cash Value or Agreed Value.

Actual Cash Value: This is the same way the insurance company settles your auto insurance claims. ACV is taking into account the year, make, model, of the vessel. It also takes out depreciation. That means as the boat ages, the value decreases eventually to the point where it’s worth very little in the eyes of the insurance carrier.

Agreed Value Insurance is far superior to ACV. Agreed Value means that the insurance carrier will pay the face amount shown on the coverage selections page if the vessel is a total loss. That’s a big deal because, in most cases, each year the value does decreases.

I know a person that owned a really nice cabin cruiser. It was a bit older, 1960’s fiberglass over wood. He was given the vessel by his dad, so there was a lot of sentimental value. The boat was updated with new diesel engines. Carpets, cushions… It had two state rooms down below and was in excellent condition. At the advice of the agent www.jmdins.com , the boat owner reluctantly paid for a new survey. (another $500)
The survey came back with a new value of $165,000. We increased the coverage limit to that amount. The insured wasn’t happy because the premium went up too.
Your insurance policy is like a clock. Tick, Tock, Tick, Tock…All day long.

Not long after that coverage was increased, the phone rings at J.M. Doherty Insurance Agency, Inc…

That newly updated boat was on the bottom of the harbor. Somehow a hose, connected to a through hull fitting, had burst and flooded the boat. That customer was crying for about 1 minute when he found out that the company was going to pay him $165 grand! He was “new” boat shopping within 1 minute after that. He had an agreed value policy.
If his policy were ACV, the carrier would have depreciated that amount by as much as 50%. That’s a huge difference.

Don’t find out after the claim that your policy is not AGREED VALUE! We can review your current plan with you and find out. www.jmdins.com
For more than “37” years J.M. Doherty Insurance Agency, Inc. “steering you in the right direction”.
Thank you!!
HD