MERLIN ROCKET FORUM

Topic : Insurance?

Dare I ask how much it usually costs to insure a Merlin? After a quick conversation with the insurers, Bishop Skinner who were very helpful, I found I'm currently paying around £115 which suprised me (I'm easily shocked)Thats with about 3 or 4 years no claims.
Is this a normal premium? They also told me that the costs are getting higher for MRs - probably due to increased claim values.


Posted: 22/02/2011 00:21:42
By: KM
Mine was £103 with Bishop Skinner last October for an insurred value of £3500 with claims in 2006 2008 and 2008 with the middle one being a claim against the Bishop Skinner insured Thin Ice which holed Finlandia at the Midland Mug. They have however always paid up realy quickly and never been anything other than a pleasure to deal with.


Posted: 22/02/2011 08:07:37
By: Smokin
There is no such things as no claims with most dinghy policies to my knowledge.

We haven't broken that many masts this last year in spite of a windy champs so i wouldn't expect a big hike.


Posted: 22/02/2011 08:25:02
By: Chris M
My insured value is £3500 as well, so compares quite closely.  The person I spoke to referred to my policy having collected 15% NCB but this being offset by MRs moving into a higher risk group recently - my policy hadn't moved yet, but it still didn't seem to be especially cheap. So it doesn't seem to be miles out of step but I was curious. By comparison I can potentially wreak more havoc with a motorcycle I insure for £100 per year


Posted: 22/02/2011 09:02:05
By: KM
Quite a bit of potential for wreaking expensive havoc with Merlins, particularly in confined spaces full of moored boats in a F6 (the Salcombe experience)


Posted: 22/02/2011 09:43:56
By: Andrew M
Bishop Skinner, for a carbonised Winder (3643), is around the £200 mark...and this was the cheapest. The insurers still 'fear' carbon. There is a lot of ignorance about the cost of carbon repairs, etc. The Underwriters aren't sailors, they are just business-people and 'take a position' as a result of previous data. We are currently suffering from the previous 'spurious' claims which 'allegedly' were made in relation to carbon spars, in all classes, not just Merlins, in the early days.


Posted: 22/02/2011 09:53:45
By: Alistair
Craftinsure are £25 PM for my Winder 3645. Sounding a little steep right now but they have always given me 1st class service and Richard is a sailor and knows what he is talking about. I did find they were cheaper for my OK though?


Posted: 22/02/2011 12:52:21
By: Jez3645
I had the same issue when insuring my 1959 Proctor mkVIII....No sign of carbon or Mylar and worth only £400 - to some! Even so many insurers mentioned Carbon masts/booms, poles etc as the excuse for the high premium. I eventually insured it for £80 odd through and insurance company that was advertised on the RYA website.

It was quite an eye-opener when I rang my then current insurer (Newton Crum) who refused to cover me at all!

So who's fault is this then?


Posted: 22/02/2011 13:12:08
By: Steve Hawkins
...those people who 'accidentally' reversed over early cartbon masts which were too stiff/floppy/starting to delaminate, etc!!!


Posted: 22/02/2011 13:27:13
By: Alistair
Once they stopped using 'cartbon' thnigs got a bit better!


Posted: 22/02/2011 13:29:14
By: Alistair
Given the year we had in 2009 for broken masts the insurers can probably be excused for being a bit jumpy, but bit must be remembered that nearly all of the masts broken at the Whitstable champs got stuck in the bottom and at Salcombe it was so gusty that the masts that broken were mostly quite literally blown off the boats.

I don't think ally masts would have fared much better in those circumstances.


Posted: 22/02/2011 21:22:08
By: Chris M
Link to Y&Y this AM.

http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/?article=155907

Posted: 01/03/2011 08:49:45
By: David Child
In my experience bishop Skinner were cheap but incompetent. I ended up with Noble and never looked back. My boat wasn't worth much anyway so the extra premium didn't break the bank.


Posted: 01/03/2011 09:21:26
By: Mark

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