Marina operators may have legal liability for damages to others property (think boats) due to their operations such as fueling, docking, boat repair, dry storage, hauling/launching, and consignment sales. Boat Dealers and Resort operators may have the same legal liability due to some of the above operations. A standard General Liability policy excludes damages related to “care, custody, or control” of others property so the insurance industry has created a specific coverage called “Marina Operators Legal Liability” hereafter referred to as MOLL. MOLL can also be referred to as Ship Repairers Legal Liability for boat repair operations. MOLL will pay for damages to others property caused by you or your employees.
There are some very important exclusions to beware of that could affect your business in a claim situation. One such exclusion is customer’s property that you have given “care, custody, control” of to another bailee. If you perform some limited boat repair services but subcontract some of the work to a more specialized repair operation, your MOLL coverage will not pay if that subcontractor bailee damages your customer’s boat. Another common exclusion is for damage to others property that you have accepted for storage without charging a storage fee. To avoid this exclusion, do not offer free storage. If you allow a customer to store a boat or trailer on your property, you need to have a written agreement with stated storage fees. MOLL will not pay for some damages such as “loss of use” of others property, damages caused by insects, animals, vermin, etc. so it is important to protect others property from damages associated with these things.
MOLL usually is offered with a deductible, usually at least $1,000 and sometimes higher. To avoid MOLL claims, it is important to analyze your operations where you or your employees take over “care, custody, or control” of others property and to see where you can make improvements to avoid potential damage to others property. Ask yourself if you have provided the best possible employee training, if your property is in a state of good repair so that your property can’t cause damage to others property? If not, now is a good time to provide the training and making any needed repairs.
Doug Timmons, CIC, CMIP
Commercial Risk Service
I want to know about the safety tests that a boat has to pass before sailing? I have heard about some safety tests. I am also finding a boat repair company online.
ReplyDeleteBoat repair
Richard,
ReplyDeleteThere isn't a mandatory safety inspection that I know of but local coast guard auxillary units will often do a safety inspection. You should be able to find one in your local area.
If you are looking for an inspection on a boat's condition before purchasing, you can hire a marine surveyor to do an inspection and they will do a very thorough inspection of the entire boat. You can expect to pay somewhere around $500 for that kind of inspection. You should be able to google on marine surveyor to find one in your area.
I can refer you to Grand Mariner Yacht Service on Stockton Lake in Stockton, Missouri for boat repair services (sailing specialists). His number is 417-276-4840. Depending on the type of job, they can travel to do the work if you aren't in their area. I hope this helps.
Doug Timmons, CIC, CMIP
Commercial Risk Service