The nuances of property and premises in the boatyard

When working with boat yard clients as a broker, it can be easy to focus on the day-to-day exposures – like their boat, stock and customer assets. Yet, as brokers know, risk often runs deeper, and the yard itself can be a blind spot when assessing the full scope. It’s often these overlooked areas that cause the biggest issues.

At Geo, we’re dedicated to helping brokers cover their shipping clients for not only the standard areas of risk they face, but also those hiding in plain sight. In this article, we outline some key areas of risk that are often missed. 

Marine installations and staging zones

Under standard property definitions, you might find that floating pontoons, fixed marine infrastructure including slipways and staging areas aren’t covered. When not declared, they will often fall outside the scope of your client’s policy. This is particularly true for installations that are over 30 years old which often need a marine survey to be considered insurable. The type of structure is also important; insurers may exclude coverage for older, exposed or non-standard installations unless fire is the cause of loss.

Risk from hot works

When it comes to hot work, like workshops with welding or GRP work, there’s an increased fire risk. To help insurers, they will need to know about risk prevention measures taken, such as fire extinguishers, smoke alarms, ventilation, and PPE protocols. Additionally, welding fumes and GRP chemicals have the potential to trigger environmental liability concerns, which means pollution cover may also be required.

Seasonal stock fluctuations

As with many other businesses, your boat yard clients will be affected by seasonal stock fluctuations, including pre-regatta surges, winter layups, or spring refits. These can all increase stock levels above what’s considered normal for your client. If you client’s sum insured doesn’t reflect these seasonal increases, they could find that they’re underinsured should they need to make a claim.