Marine vehicles, like cars, have compulsory insurance. The philosophy, in fact, is the same. The pleasure boat, as explained by the Ministry of Public Works itself, is likely to cause damage to third parties, both docked and in motion, and it is important that the victims of these damages have the certainty that they will be suitably repaired; certainty arising from the existence of compulsory insurance.

In Spain, owning a pleasure boat means having to insure it, and that is why there are currently some 193,000 insurances of this type in force in the country, of which the majority (140,000) are motorboats; 19,300 are sailing vessels; 13,000 are jet skis, and the rest are of other types.

According to statistics, a pleasure boat has an accident every 16 years on average. This is the frequency of motorboats (the majority), which is much lower in jet skis (statistically, a mishap occurs every 37 years), but it is more serious in the case of sailing boats: an event every ten years.

This group of pleasure boats had more than 12,000 mishaps in 2020, that is, about 30 mishaps a day.

According to statistics, a motorboat has a mishap every 19 years and a sailing boat every 11 years.

In fact, the probability of having a mishap in a pleasure craft is approximately 75% of the probability that there is of having a sheet metal blow if we have a motor vehicle. They look quite alike, and this is something that seems to clearly justify the need for this compulsory insurance figure.

The cost of mishaps on ships

The greatest justification for boat insurance is the magnitude of its mishaps. Think, for example, of jet skis. Now you get the same for between 10,000 and 20,000 euros; But, did you know that the average mishap of a jet ski generates costs (which if there was no insurance you would have to pay) of 3,250 euros? A single mishap, well, already raises the price of the motorcycle by 25%.

In general terms, the mishaps caused by recreational boats, in their average costs, do not fall below that figure of 3,000 euros.

For this reason, the insurance for pleasure boats is an important element to provide security and tranquility to the practice of navigation. Tranquility and security that, in any case, cannot replace your own diligence and responsibility. Do not forget, then, the advice of the Civil Guard on how to perform at sea. They are logical, not difficult to follow, and will help you have that great ride that, without a doubt, you deserve.

The Spanish fishing fleet captures some 950,000 tons of fish, worth more than 2,000 million euros, each year. That Spain is a country that fishes are more than evident. Fishing is one of our economic engines, and that is why it is so important to take care not only of the fish but of those who fish it. Does fishing insurance have something to do with this? It has.

Why take out fishing insurance?

First of all, in Spain, you cannot fish if you do not have an insurance policy. Boats, like motor vehicles that circulate on land, have compulsory insurance because, just like their friends with wheels, they are likely to cause damage to third parties, and the legislator considers that it cannot be that the victims of these damages depend, at the time of being financially repaired, on the person who damaged them having enough money. Therefore, in a first step, fishing boats have insurance like all boats, so that everyone who comes across it has the peace of mind knowing that, if it causes damage, it will repair them for them.

This, however, is insurance, to use the terminology to which car drivers are well accustomed, to third parties. But the boat itself is not covered because the insurance deals with damage to others. Therefore, many fishing vessels contract fishing insurance that has guarantees on the hull of the vessel, its machinery, its gear, etc., as well as coverage from which the crew benefits, such as death, disability, or unemployment.

The average cost of mishaps in fishing boats is around 20,000 euros.

Policies beyond liability to third parties may also cover higher compensation for damages to third parties or include other assumptions in addition to those contemplated by compulsory insurance (such as for example, pollution). These insurances “above” the mandatory can become very important if they cover, for example, the recovery of the boat in the event of being in a situation from which it must be rescued, which is an operation that can become very expensive. . This is not a business to fool around with: every time there is a mishap on a fishing boat, an average of 20,000 euros “fall.”

Finally, the other great chapter of the possible fishing insurance protections is, logically, the cargo, that is, the merchandise. It is obvious that a fishing boat is worth what its fishing is worth, and, for this reason, it is highly recommended that the contracts also take care of protecting it.

We have told you before that the official statistics themselves tell us that the fish caught by fishing vessels amounts to some 2,000 million euros. For the rest, thanks to the ICEA statistics, we know that what the fishing vessels pay for their insurance comes to about 74 million euros between all the clients and all the Costco auto insurance they take out. The fishing insurance, therefore, protects the fish and the boats that fish it for approximately 4% of its value.

If they say fish is expensive, it certainly isn’t because of insurance.