Naseem was sailing his boat out of the local marina when it unexpectedly started to take on water and ultimately sank.
What we said
Naseem was sailing his boat out of the local marina when it unexpectedly started to take on water and ultimately sank.
The vessel was recovered and lifted into a dry dock. Naseem’s insurer inspected the vessel and noted the hull had some corrosion because it had been in salt water for long periods and during the winter. The insurer declined the claim on the basis that the vessel wasn’t seaworthy, and this had resulted in the loss.
Naseem disagreed and said that he couldn’t have known about the corrosion as it was below the boat’s waterline. So he made a complaint to his insurer. Unhappy with its final response, he contacted our service to investigate his complaint.
What we said
We asked Naseem about the boat’s history and for its servicing and maintenance records. Naseem said he’d bought the boat about four years ago. He said he didn’t use it very often, so he didn’t think he needed to have it serviced. He confirmed that the boat hadn’t been in dry dock throughout this time.
We thought that if Naseem had taken his boat for a service at some point during the last four years, the corrosion would have been noticed. As he hadn’t, we thought it was reasonable for the insurer to decline the claim.