Towing Insurance. Do you have it?

sailingdog · Jan 29, 2009

TowBoatUS comes with a BoatUS membership, which is good for discounts on fuel, transient slips, rebates at Worst Marine, etc. It is kind of like a AAA card for a boat. Given how much a tow can go for, getting the unlimited tow membership is generally a cheap form of insurance—especially if you have an older boat, or are less mechanically inclined than most. I have it, and have not needed it on my boat, but did use it on a friend's boat once. That one use paid for all the years of having it I might add, since it would have been about $1000 for that tow.

Tim R. · Jan 29, 2009

I have it through my insurance carrier. It provides unlimited towing from any outfit so I do not have to worry that I have the right carrier for any given area.

Sailm8 · Jan 29, 2009

I had to use BoatUS unlimited towing when I broke down. I was towed for about an hour through our canals to my slip. The cost would have been $650.00 if I did not have insurance. In talking to the BoatUS guy who was a real professional, he said I could have been 40 miles out into the gulf and it still would have been free. Also I found out the the membership applies to any boat I own or charter.

I had a friend call the "wrong" towing service and it cost him $1200 to be towed off a mud bank which took several hours. He had BoatUS and called Seatow by mistake. Just be careful when you make that call you call your service. I don't know if he could have changed services after he made the call or not.

Alan · Jan 29, 2009

Same as Tim,

..but I have never used it. It's hard to imagine what kind of rare circumstance that a sailboat could get into where towing would be needed.

Sailboats have the unique ability to use two distinctly independent forms of propulsion. If the wind dies you can use your motor and if the motor fails you can use the sails. What would the odds be of loosing both at the same time? Based on this ability its seems that towing a sailboat should be an extremely rare occurrence and therefore the cost for insurance should be minimal.

Steve_Catalina · Jan 29, 2009

Towing insurance

Towing,

Remember to sailors land is our enemy. There are two type of sailors, if you had the insurance and have run aground it sure helped.

Steve
(I am in the later):dance:

Tim R. · Jan 29, 2009

Sailm8 said:
I had a friend call the "wrong" towing service and it cost him $1200 to be towed off a mud bank which took several hours. He had BoatUS and called Seatow by mistake. Just be careful when you make that call you call your service. I don't know if he could have changed services after he made the call or not.

Not a problem with mine. I can call anyone from any distance. The only downside is that I pay for the tow and then get reimbursed by my Ins. Co. I can live with that.

Chuckbear · Jan 29, 2009

We have used our towing insurance on a few occasions. In one most recent we were hard aground in the middle of the ICW channel and after several attempts could not get off and an approaching serious storm would have put us in more trouble had we not bee towed off. Yes a sailboat has sails and an engine. But when our engine shut down because of a bad fuel tank, the only repair facilities was up the Miami river. Like 7 bridges and a very narrow waterway that could no way be sailed, the tow was our only option. So you may not need it, but when you do a single tow will cost you what about 10 years of the insurance cost. So do consider that.

Don S/V ILLusion · Jan 29, 2009

I too depend on my insurance company. It's cheap and for the one time I needed it, it was comforting to see them compete trying to be the first one there.

MoonSailer · Jan 29, 2009

We have BoatUS unlimited towing and used it once when the prop shaft coupler broke. It is hard to do the math to figure if it is cost effective. If you are on a lake and stay near home it might not be worth the money. But if you travel and can't expect friends to lend a tow or will be too far out to use your dinghy for a tow then it might be worh the money. right now I figure that we have paid more for unlimited towing than it cost for our one tow. We plan to go cruising soon so the unlimited towing is still in effect.

sailingdog · Jan 29, 2009

There are two types of sailors...those that have run aground, and those that lie about never having done so.

Stu Jackson · Jan 29, 2009

This is a question I simply don't understand

It's your boat and your choice. Only you know:

1. How much time you have on your hands - if you're "stuck" out, can YOU afford to sit until the wind comes up again? Some can't.

2. Can you personally sail your boat into your slip (legal issues aside, can it physically be done?) If you slip is way, way away from open water, you have a different condition than i do, where summer winds are relatively consistent (i.e., San Francisco Bay) and I CAN and have sailed my boat in.

3. How far afar do you cruise? Local day sails and long distance to different waters are completely different issues.

4. What's your risk aversion?

So, whether any of us have tow insurance or not has pretty much NOTHING to do with your choices.

Oh, lastly if it's cost effective, why wouldn't anyone NOT do it? That said, we don't have the unlimited because of the choices WE have made based on the criteria above.

RichH · Jan 29, 2009

READ CAREFULLY the fine print in your "unlimited towing policy". Usually covers only 'soft' groundings that can be remedied in 20-30 minutes, not salvage or extended time recoveries.
Do I have such? You bet as I have a full keel and sail a lot of time the 'skinny water'. Worth its weight in gold.

Ed Schenck · Jan 29, 2009

Worth the peace of mind.

Actually it is very inexpensive compared to other insurances. When we were off the coast of NJ and headed into Manasquan Inlet the engine quit. Now this is a tough enough entrance with all the fishing boats coming in, a flood tide, and a narrow bridge opening. I called BoatUS as I was unfurling the yankee(jib) and sailing away. After I got some sea room I went below and changed the Racor filter, takes about two minutes when the adrenalin is loose. BoatUS came out and asked if I was satisfied with the fix. I wasn't sure it was only the filter so they escorted me in just in case. Sure was a good feeling having them nearby. We went through that bridge at 9+ knots SOG with the engine idling! Without the membership they would not have come out. Maybe the CG would have, don't know.

Auspicious · Jan 29, 2009

I have had unlimited towing from Boat/US as long as I can remember. I don't think I have ever used it. I certainly have run aground; I've either been able to get off myself or some good Samaritan has helped me (I've done my fair share of pulls and towing too, so karma is balanced). The only time I had a failure I was still able to get back to my slip on my own.

Regardless I don't regret a penny of what I have spent on towing insurance. It's the cheapest safety net I can think of.

Here's an interesting perspective from a tower: http://onthehip.blogspot.com/2008/09/dual-citizenship.html

Maine Sail · Jan 29, 2009

Like Tim..

Like Tim I have towing insurance through my insurance company. In Maine this is really the only way to go. We have a couple of Sea-Tow guys along the coast but not enough for the 3000+ mile of coastline. If you lock into Tow-Boat US or Sea Tow you are locked into them. If you have it through your insurance carrier the local lobsterman can pull you to the marina or whom every you can find to do it..

Maine is too geographically spread out for Sea-Tow or any other mambaership driven outfit to cover effectively. If I recall there is no Sea-Tow East of MDI and that is a lot of lonely coastline.

I have never used my towing insurance but I still carry it. One other option, if you are not to far away from shore or your marina/boatyard, is to saddle the dinghy along side and use the ob motor to propel the bigger boat. I have had to do this...

Warren Milberg · Jan 29, 2009

When the "Flying Fickle Finger of Fate" flies up your nose, or some other oriface, having tow insurance can really ease the pain. I have unlimited towing insurance, but have never used it. A friend of mine, however, who sails (sometimes...) a Pearson 28-II, had some fuel-related engine issues last season. His engine would quit about every 3 or 4 times he went out. He spent a lot of his own time and money to try to get this problem fixed, but in the interim, his engine would quit when he least expected it. It always quit in a tight channel or a busy thoroughfare. Sailing out was never a safe option, even if there were favorable winds. He got a lot of emergency anchoring practice. His experience confirmed the need for towing insurance, at least for me, as stuff happens out there...

Benny · Jan 29, 2009

Yes go with the servicer that is predominant in your area. These boats are mostly independent operators that contract to represent the insurance company. Their services may vary. Bring fuel, provide a jump start, get you of a grounding or towing are the more traditionals. Some have divers available which can fix or clear bottom mishaps. The unlimited insurance just means that they will tow you as many times as needed to the closest place where you will be safe and your problem can be resolved. Even that has a limit as if you call to many times they will cancel you. With the cost of a single short tow costing upwards of $200 it makes a lot of sense to be insured. Nobody intends to have to use the coverage but it is worth every penny in peace of mind. One last reason is that if you do not have a contract with a company and choose to call for service the operator may choose to ignore you if making the call is inconvenient for him. They do not usually ignore you when the company representative calls them and then calls you back to see if you were taken care of.

tweitz · Jan 29, 2009

I have had SeaTow for a few years (even though I am a Boat US member), and it is invaluable. I used it only once, when, at the end of the season, my engine ran into problems at my dock and I could not get the boat to the marina for winter storage. The sails were already off the boat and I live up a narrow winding channel which is very hard to sail. Boat US came out on a miserable day and towed us to the marina with no problems. Would have cost quite a bit. Two things to be careful of: as someone already mentioned, call the right service; and be very careful about the difference between towing and salvage. As soon as you get into salvage the value is either agreed on (and while aground is a tough time to negotiate) or "reasonable" as set by a court, considering such factors as the value of your boat, the risk, the danger, etc. Salvage can be a horror story.