Anybody ever total a boat out?

[Seth]

I was talking with some other guys about how my boat is leaking but I can't find the hole. They looked and said that since there is a decent crease in one of the ribs that insurance would probably total it out. Do they really total boats out that easily? One guy showed me a hole he put in his boat and said that insurance gave him ten grand and he just used that money to upgrade from a 150 to a 250ho etec and then fixed the hole himself.

So my other question would be if they were to total the boat out, would I get a check from the insurance company and then they would get the boat? The motor and everything else is fine but I wouldn't mind getting a new hull and putting my current motor and everything else on it if it wouldn't jack up what I currently owe on it. The new Legend hull have some design changes that I wish my current boat had.

 

[semojetman]

Yes, they will total it over rediculousily small amounts of damage.

Ive known several to do it and come out good.
Get a new hull and buy their old hull back for scrap aluminum price.

 

[Seth]

Thanks! If that is the case, you might see me changing my signature from a blue boat to a blaze orange Legend in the future. 8)

 

[Darkside]

Seth- It is easy to total-out an Aluminum Boat. Most insurance policies are written to return crafts to “as new” or “as pervious” condition and while many welders are capable of creating strong welds, they lack the ability or desire to return the craft to a “pretty” shape. Meaning the boat will function the same but be scarred.

I put a dent in the side of my boat, it was sizable- maybe 2’ long by 12-18” wide and as deep as 3”. Boat ran fine and from the inside of the boat you really couldn’t tell. The insurance company was willing to total a $30K boat because they didn’t want me to be disappointed. I pleaded with them to reduce it and for a modest repair, they insisted on giving me 2X the cost and I had to sign off on the fix as being final and I would not seek further payment. I was told this was standard practice for aluminum crafts.

In 2004 I was at the boat ramp taking out when a guy rolled up in a panic. He threw me the keys to his SUV and asked if I would back his trailer in. He hit a rock and tore a hole in the rib of his boat. The only way to keep the water out was to keep the boat on or near plane. Water was coming in faster than the bilge could pump it out. Once loaded, I crawled under the 2002 SeArk and looked at the kinked keel rib. Gave him my card and told him to call me after talking with his insurance. As expected, they totaled the boat and I advised him to buy it back.

Was a win-win for him. In both cases, the boat damage was visible. Your case is a little different and I am not sure it applies unless you are really getting a lot of water in the craft.

 

[Seth]

There is a pretty good crease in one of the keels on the back driver side of the boat and where I suspect the water is entering but I don't see a hole. The water leak isn't enough to stop me from using the boat. I ordered a Johnson float switch that I was planning on installing for the time being so that it would just pump the water out for me every so often instead of me just manually turning the bilge pump on for a bit while running to different fishing spots. Honestly I love my boat and would just assume keep it if it's fixable. It runs fine. I'm going to take it to Cowtown after the Cabin Fever run and see what happens. If they want to total it and it's easy to fix, I just assume take the money and fix my current boat and then use the money for electronics or something else. Heck my first boat had a hole in the driver side corner that the original owner patched with JB weld and it held up from the day I bought it to the day I sold it and it was in place for who knows how long before I bought it.

 

[chabel]

Seth,
I had my insurance co. send an adjuster to look at my damage. It turned out he was a Certified Marine Surveyor. He totaled my boat for it's insured value. I bought it back but could only get a salvage title and could not register it with that title. I found a welder to repair it and install UHMW. When the repair was complete before the UHMW was installed I hired a Certified Marine Surveyor in the local area where it was repaired to inspect the work. He inspected it a second time when it was all back together. Then he wrote a report with pictures and sent it to me. I filled out the necessary forms and sent them to the boat commission with his report and applied for a reconstructed title. It was successful and I can now legally register my repaired boat. This is how I did it in PA.
Best wishes if you want to go that route. I can't imagine your insurance co. will give you any more than the boat is insured for.
Regards,
Chuck

 

[lukeD]

seth....my nephew totaled out a little boat he had last summer. he got about $4k or maybe a little more out of it. and had maybe $1k in the boat so he bought a brand new Alweld hull and redone his while setup and now has a dang nice rig.