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Katrina & Boat U.S.

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Sea Trac
Master Marine Consultant

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Vanuatu
1357 Posts

Initially Posted - 09/15/2005 : 17:21:35

NEWS From BoatU.S.
Boat Owners Association of The United States
880 S. Pickett St., Alexandria, VA 22304
BoatU.S. News Room at http://www.BoatUS.com/news/releases.asp

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Scott Croft, 703-461-2864, SCroft@BoatUS.com
Date: September 15, 2005

BoatU.S. Catastrophe Response Team Adopts
New "Play Book" With Hurricane Katrina

With Reports From TowBoatU.S. and BoatU.S. Coop Marinas

The BoatU.S. Catastrophe Response Team has been forced to adopt a new
set of post-storm recovery operations with Hurricane Katrina, says
Carroll Robertson, senior vice president of Claims for BoatU.S. Marine
Insurance. Widespread and severe damage from the storm - affecting a coastal
area 150 miles in length - is the leading factor.

BoatU.S. Marine Insurance has teams in Alabama, Mississippi and
Louisiana and is working with local salvors to recover vessels as quickly as
possible, but the biggest challenge facing them is getting access to
heavily damaged marinas. Aerial photos of the destruction can be found at
http://www.BoatUS.com/hurricanes

Unlike past storms where Robertson says her team could usually find a
habitable staging area, this is not the case with Katrina. "With
Hurricane Andrew, our team could go to Ft. Lauderdale to file paperwork
electronically, re-supply, provision and then get back in the field. With
Katrina we've needed to be completely self-sufficient from the start.
There simply are no staging areas with the necessary infrastructure. We
went in supplied with food, water and fuel, issued snakebite boots, and
made sure everyone got inoculated. The affected coastline is a narrow
corridor hemmed in by forest and the Gulf, the roads are filled with
debris, and the bridges gone in many places. Simply moving around is a
challenge."

Another major initial problem, communications, is a bright spot as
Robertson says cellular telephone service has improved dramatically in just
the past few days.

Robertson says that contacting insureds has been difficult as many have
evacuated the area. "Without a physical residence, many of our insureds
have evacuated. We ask that all BoatU.S. insureds call us as soon as
possible at 800-937-1937, or go directly to http://www.BoatUS.com and
file a claim online. She also says that if they can safely do so,
insureds should try to prevent any further damage to their boat, such as
placing a tarp over to protect from rain.

Robertson expects that some vessels, such as those on the south shore
of Lake Pontchartrain, LA, will need to be recovered and removed via a
waterborne route, as roads are impassable or under security
restrictions. The team has several barge and crane companies contracted to assist
with the task. Recovery activity on the north shore of the lake is
already underway.

Another major difference is that Katrina left few operable repair
facilities nearby. BoatU.S. Marine Insurance expects that repairable boats
will have to be trucked considerable distances to unaffected repair
facilities. "Yards in the Northern climates may find themselves busier
than usual with repair work this winter," said Robertson.

Jerry Cardarelli, Vice President of BoatU.S. Towing Services, reports
that the TowBoatU.S. ports directly in Katrina's path - Biloxi, MS;
Pascagoula, MS; and Mobile, AL - largely weathered the storm by removing
towboats and personnel to safe ground, but the Biloxi office disappeared
and the owner's home is destroyed. As of today, all of the towing
service's Gulf ports, including Dauphin Island, AL and Perdido Key, FL, are
fully operational and their TowBoatU.S. captains report that rivers are
black as oil and smell worse than raw sewage. TowBoatU.S. teams from
as far away as Woodbridge, VA, Charleston, SC, and Big Pine Key, FL,
have sent salvage recovery vessels and crews to assist in the recovery
effort. "As the waterways gradually open up, we're in there," said
Cardarelli.

Jim Schofield, Manager of the BoatU.S. Cooperating Marina Program, says
23 marinas have been destroyed or damaged. Schofield says, "We hope
that their families and employees are safe and their businesses return."

BoatU.S. - Boat Owners Association of The United States - is the
nation's leading advocate for recreational boaters providing its 620,000
members with a wide array of consumer services including a group-rate
marine insurance program that insures nearly a quarter million boats; the
largest fleet of more than 500 towing assistance vessels; discounts on
fuel, slips, and repairs at over 825 Cooperating Marinas; boat financing;
and a subscription to BoatU.S. Magazine, the most widely read boating
publication in the U.S. For membership information visit
http://www.BoatUS.com or call 800-395-2628.

J.B. Manley s/v Sea Trac Allied Seawind II #65
DPO s/v Antares Catalina 25 #4849
Association Treasurer 2002 - 2006
Association Bookkeeper 2002 - 2008
Association Quartermaster 2004 - 2008

Edited by - on

Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 09/15/2005 : 19:54:22

I guess they will be happy to receive my renewal dollars I sent them tonight.
PS. I used the discount through this site and saved a couple bucks

Edited by - on

Doug
Captain

Members Avatar

USA
457 Posts

Response Posted - 09/16/2005 : 00:09:32

For what it's worth: When we got the 34 we got quotes from both State Farm and BoatUS. Same limits, essentially the same coverage. State Farm was $450 and BoatUS was over $700.

Edited by - on

Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

Members Avatar

Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 09/16/2005 : 07:54:42

I use State Farm, when my Hobie died in a storm I posted the pictures on my site and called them. The adjuster went to the site while I was on the line with him, he said "OH, I'll get you the check out today", and he did. For my 89 I have 14k on the boat and 2k on the trailer with the usual liability coverage and it is 24.41/mo

Edited by - on

Don B
Captain

Members Avatar

USA
317 Posts

Response Posted - 09/16/2005 : 10:15:35

I was curious about the Boat US insurance so I requested a quote...this was the response:

"Type of Boat : CATALINA 25 1986 CATALINA YACHTS 25

We appreciate your interest in the BoatU.S. Marine Insurance
Program. All the information requested during the application
process is used to determine insurability. We are unable to offer
an insurance quotation based on either your claims history,
automobile moving violations, or limited boating experience.

We regret that we were unable to be of assistance in this matter.
The following is a list of insurance carriers that may be able to
offer an insurance quotation.

AMERICAN UNDERWRITING MGRS 800-236-2637
AMERICAN MARINE INSURANCE SERVICES 800-283-5646
BLACKADAR MARINE INSURANCE 800-292-0092
NATIONAL MARINE UNDERWRITERS 800-262-8467

If you feel the information that you provided was entered in error,
please call 1-800-283-2883 and ask to speak with an Underwriter.

Again, thank you for considering BOATU.S."

-Claims history: $1,500 bad weather related claim I filed last year.
-No auto moving violations
-After taking the beginner and advance sailing classes through the Red Cross, I have been sailing (mostly singlehand) at least once a week out on Tampa Bay for the last year.

Oh well, I guess I'll just renew my Progressive policy for $390

Edited by - on

pjeffarch
Navigator

Members Avatar

USA
135 Posts

Response Posted - 09/16/2005 : 21:37:45

My Progressive coverage for my '79 C25 is $135/year. Maybe 'cause I'm on a lake in Nebraska...ya think?!

Edited by - on

britinusa
Web Editor

Members Avatar

USA
5404 Posts

Response Posted - 09/17/2005 : 07:37:00

Don, this is a case of 'Location, Location, Location'!!!!
Our BoatUS coverage is $1200, could it be related to our location?
(midway between palm beach and miami) JD is kept at our 'slip' (the grassy area on the side of our house :)

Edited by - on

lcharlot
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Antigua and Barbuda
1301 Posts

Response Posted - 09/17/2005 : 08:14:27

I am paying about $325/year for Boat-US to insure Quiet Time (boat and trailer) at Folsom Lake; like Paul in Omaha, I guess it's less expensive on inland lakes than the same policy for a C-25 kept in a marina on the ocean. I used to have the boat insured with State Farm, but got less coverage at the same premium, so for me at least BoatUS offered more "bang for the buck" than State Farm.

Edited by - on

Don B
Captain

Members Avatar

USA
317 Posts

Response Posted - 09/17/2005 : 15:09:36

Paul, you are on the mark regarding insurance carriers and location...they are not in the game to lose

. Once their numbers say that's it...their gone. Yeah, sure, sometimes I would like to "minimize my exposure" also.

Edited by - on

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The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.