I will definitely have to look into this. I fish several club tournaments a month, and need to protect me from any liability and my partner if any from hospital expenses. I have State Farm for everything, last year I planted a Honda in my truck passenger door when she scooted under me during a left turn, first claim in 40 years, $7000 payout total including two $1000 to passengers to shut them up, they raised my rates by 30%.
I use Boater's Insurance Agency. They insure a lot of the top BASS Elite and FLW Pro's as well (Randy Howell, Chris Lane, Edwin Evers, etc.) 5 Years of replacement coverage (replaces old boat for brand new), $10,000 coverage for rods/reels, tackle, unlimited towing and disappearing deductible. Saved me a few hundreds over home/car companies too. www.bia.us
Originally Posted by dnolen
They won't ask many questions regarding a physical damage claim. Once it's a liability claim, they will be asking plenty of questions.....
M
State Farm is over rated. Give Bob a shout or go to the insurance forum and get his info.
@kennethandmacy
2004 Triton 196
200 Merc
1199/898
No
2015 Ranger RT188
2015 115 PRO XS
This is who I have coverage with. I never asked him directly if it is covered if entered in a tournament though, anyone know for sure?
2017 Ranger RT188, Dual Console, Crystal Red Metallic, Mercury 115 Pro XS Four Stroke, Command Thrust with Tempest 24P, 52 MPH GPS @ 5200 RPM
Motor Guide 80 lb Xi5 Pin Point/GPS , Lowrance HDS 7 w/Totalscan @ Console, Lowrance Elite 7 TI @ Bow; Romans 6:23
no. The lower unit was replaced right after I started the insurance. Then not even 6 months later my boat was totaled. But I had a adjuster out. He snapped a pic of the building that landed on top of my boat.
Yeah.... they may *pay* a claim that you randomly send in. Say hull damage, bottom end, etc.
BUT.... if you ever tell them you need a "dec page" (declaration page) then they need to know *why*. At that point they tend to say it's a commercial policy.
The differences between a commercial policy and not, are more than minor. Of course the biggest part of a commercial policy is liability. That is where SF (and a few other older companies) just are not interested in extending their liability into that arena. The extent of carrying commercial liability via individuals that are not normally associated with the commercial end of the spectrum is usually associated as a higher risk than say a business that does it day-in day-out. (And they don't insure them either.)
Thing is.... a commercial policy should generally apply to those that are 'for hire'. Fishing tournaments with yourself and your partner doesn't necessarily make you a 'business', because you are not charging for your services.
Mine is through United Marine Underwriters, has 1 Mill liability coverage, and actually will PAY ME for lost tournament entry fees (up to $1500) if my boat is disabled. Yet it also says that I'm not insured as a 'commercial' policy. So at least they understand the difference! (Haven't fished a tournament yet, and may not ever, but it's there if I need it.)
The devil is indeed in the details.
Later,
Dixie Chicken
12 Nitro Z9 DC, 250 Opti w/SmartCraft Gauges
Bobs 12"
NightFishion HD8 rubrail, W/Nav Lights
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Carbon 12's & 9 on Precision Sonar mounts and A/T.
GHOST w/3-in-1 & 360.
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KVD Edition Hydrowave
Not me. Wrote a check for 6k to replace my torque master. Never looked at it.
My Allstate agent knows I fish tourneys and said no problem. I used to have Prudential and they would not insure my boat cause it went over 55 mph. I said guess what so do my vehicles and so I am out of here. Course they said they would then insure my boat and I said nope. As for State Farm they are the aholes that tried screwing over New Orleans folks during Katrina saying the hurricane did not cause the damage to their homes and it was the water that caused it so claims were denied. State Farm lost that one in court.
2018 Phoenix 920 Pro XP
Any and all insurance companies will look for an out. Trick is not to voluntarily give it to them.
i had two lower unit claims in under 6 months, they didn't drop me. They told me if I had three claims in a year they would drop the boat coverage. Apparently they think I was hard on the boat? :)
Never had a problem with State Farm insurance company in over 25 years Home ,trucks, boat, jewelry etc. But pretty much zero claims. SoI hope that that continues with age
We had a few but no problems. I'm definitely not changing at this point.
Last edited by pa.X19; 01-16-2018 at 03:37 PM.
This is only true for Professional anglers, who certainly have higher risks and usage than recreational fisherman. It's a business exclusion, and fairly common in the industry. There certainly are carriers that target the commercial aspect for those who are professionals and treat bass fishing as a business.
If you aren't filing tax returns for your fishing earnings/expenses you are fine.
Before you drop them......ask your trusted marine repair shop who they most like/hate to deal with. You'll stay with State Farm.
Current: 2014 Sportsman Masters 207/150 Yamaha
9 previous Rangers
I'm not with state farm for my boat, but if they tell me I am not covered when fishing a tournament, I will not be using or paying them for coverage.....I don't care WHO the repair shops like.
If you aren't covered, YOU are footing the bill.
Daiwa / St. Croix / Abu Garcia / Sufix / Humminbird / Motorguide
T & H / Power Pole / BlueWater / Loc-R-Bar / Bravo 1 / MercMonitor
Interesting. My agent knows I fish tournaments and has never said anything.
My State Farm Agent knows I fish local tournaments and replaced my lower unit damaged in a tournament no questions asked.
Talked to mine and he said as long as I don't LLC or become a business that files a separate tax return I'm good to go. If I start a tax paying guide service,commercial fishing,or fishing professional tournaments as a main source of income,State Farm will cover a claim. No danger of any of these for me. Even though I am a pro(in my own mind!)
The State Farm agent at Lake of The Ozarks is a tournament fisherman, has 10 BFL wins to his credit, including the BFL All American. I'm pretty sure he has State Farm insurance.
Aren't we all ???Talked to mine and he said as long as I don't LLC or become a business that files a separate tax return I'm good to go. If I start a tax paying guide service,commercial fishing,or fishing professional tournaments as a main source of income,State Farm will cover a claim. No danger of any of these for me. Even though I am a pro(in my own mind!)
Daiwa / St. Croix / Abu Garcia / Sufix / Humminbird / Motorguide
T & H / Power Pole / BlueWater / Loc-R-Bar / Bravo 1 / MercMonitor
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