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Sailboat InsuranceAustralia · Independent guide

How to Make a Boat Insurance Claim

How to Make a Boat Insurance Claim. Covers immediate steps after a boating incident and documents required for a boat insurance claim.

By Gabriel3 min readUpdated Last reviewed

Storm-damaged sailing yacht being photographed on a boatyard hardstand
Preserve evidence, prevent further loss where safe, and follow the insurer’s claim process.Original AI-generated editorial image · Illustrative, not evidence of cover

Claims

Immediate steps after a boating incident

A practical boat insurance claim sequenceFive connected steps: make the situation safe, notify the insurer, preserve evidence, support the assessment, and resolve the decision or use the complaints process.1Make safePeople, pollution, further loss2NotifyUse the policy claim contact3PreservePhotos, parts, records, timeline4AssessCause, scope, quotes, policy terms5ResolveDecision, settlement or complaintKeep one contemporaneous record across every stepDates · contacts · instructions · invoices · original files
Emergency safety comes first. The policy tells you whom to notify and what authority you have for urgent work.
  1. Deal with safety first. People, then the vessel, then the paperwork.
  2. Take reasonable steps to prevent further damage — this is a condition of almost every policy, and reasonable costs of doing it are usually recoverable under a sue-and-labour provision.
  3. Photograph and video everything before anything is moved, cleaned or repaired.
  4. Preserve the failed component. The hose, clamp, seacock or fitting that failed is the single most important object in the claim.
  5. Notify the insurer, using the emergency number if it is out of hours. Early notification is a policy condition, not a courtesy.
  6. Report to the police, the harbour master or the marina where the incident type requires it, and keep the reference number.
  7. Do not authorise repairs beyond making the boat safe until the insurer or their assessor has seen it.

Documents required for a boat insurance claim

DocumentWhy it is asked for
Proof of ownership and current registrationEstablishes insurable interest
The most recent survey and any recommendationsShows known condition and whether recommendations were actioned
Maintenance and service recordsSeparates sudden failure from gradual deterioration
Photographs before and after the eventEstablishes pre-loss condition
Logs, chartplotter track or AIS historyEstablishes position, speed and navigation limits
Weather and sea-state dataTests whether conditions were forecast and foreseeable
Quotes from a marine repairerEstablishes quantum
Police or authority report referenceRequired for theft, collision and pollution

Marine assessors and survey reports

A marine assessor or surveyor appointed by the insurer is not there to argue with you. Their report answers two questions: what caused this, and what does it cost to put right. Cause is the one that decides the claim, because most marine exclusions are cause-based — wear and tear, gradual deterioration, lack of maintenance, pre-existing damage. Be present for the inspection if you can, answer factually, point out the physical evidence, and ask for a copy of the report.

Evidence mistakes during a claim

  • Guessing at the cause in writing. 'It must have been the old seacock' becomes the insurer's finding.
  • Delaying notification because you are hoping to handle it yourself.
  • Cleaning up thoroughly before photographing, or repairing before inspection.
  • Admitting liability to another owner or to the marina.
  • Answering the assessor about events you did not witness as though you did.
  • Failing to mention that someone else was operating the vessel.

Disputing a declined or underpaid claim

A declinature is the start of a process, not the end of one. Ask for the decision in writing with the specific policy clause relied on, request the assessor's report, and use the insurer's internal dispute resolution process first. If that does not resolve it, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority can consider the dispute at no cost to you, and its determinations bind the insurer.

Read the wording before you need it

Almost every disputed marine claim turns on a definition, an exclusion or a condition the owner had never read. The PDS guide explains which sections decide claims.

Read the PDS guide

Preparing boat insurance claim records

  1. Keep the PDS, the certificate of insurance and the emergency number somewhere you can reach from the boat without power.
  2. Photograph the vessel, the rig, the engine bay and the electronics at the start of each season.
  3. Keep invoices, survey reports and service records off the boat.
  4. Check your sum insured against what replacement actually costs now, not what you paid.
  5. Read the conditions section once, in the calm, so you know what you are required to do.
General information onlyThe information on sailboatinsurance.com.au is general educational information only. It may be wrong, incomplete or out of date, and you should not rely on it as a substitute for the current policy documents or professional advice. It does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs and is not personal financial product advice. Insurance cover depends on the actual policy wording, Product Disclosure Statement, certificate of insurance, endorsements, exclusions, limits, sub-limits and underwriting decisions that apply to your vessel. Always read the current policy documents before buying, renewing or changing cover. For legal, financial or insurance advice about your own circumstances, consider speaking with an appropriately licensed professional.