boat on freeway...

[ole doc martin]

catchy title? First post here, so hope this is the correct part of the forum. looking for insight in what to expect (from insurance) from other boaters who may have a similar experience...or enjoy a comical story.

This all happens after a great week of boating. We decided to leave early in the a.m. to avoid most traffic and to let my two small kids sleep in the car on the way home. We are only on the road about 1/2 hour and the freeway was pretty desolate (before 7am on a weekend).

I'm doing about 60 when all the sudden a friggen Hyundai runs into the back of my boat! I'm pretty sure the driver fell asleep at the wheel and never saw it coming. I don't know exactly how fast this guy was traveling but it took my 2600lb, 19foot bowrider and basically turned it into a missile! He hit the left rear of the boat and best I can tell he must have come between the boat and the trailer, lifting the boat off the trailer and thrusting it forward and to the right, off the front of the trailer. The boat hit the right back end of the car (suburban) on it's way forward before flying at least up to the right rear door (marks on the door and the right rear fender is toast) before sliding off the right shoulder. Remarkably, the boat never flipped over, and just slid along the left side (dragging the outdrive)!

Now for those who think I must not have secured my boat very well, I have it secured with the winch strap, another thick strap to the front eyelet and boat frame, along with two very thick rear straps (it broke the frame where one of the straps hooks in). It knocked the trailer off the ball after bending the hitch down quite a bit (but the cables holding the trailer on kept it behind the car). It broke the winch tower off where it was welded and strapped to the frame with two u-bolts and the boat was basically still "hitched" to nothing on the side of the road. I have a spare tire mounted to the trailer frame on the right (mounted vertically) and the cover wasn't even torn! That basically means he got the boat airborne over the top of it! No small feat, in my opinion!

Okay, story over. So here is what I'm getting at if anyone knows. How the heck to they evaluate whether the boat is salvageable or not? Okay, sure...glaring holes/cracks in the hull, or the transom cracked from hitting the outdrive so hard on the asphalt aside. My boat was an 01 but was always covered/garaged and kept in flawless condition. I basically used it for a one week trip every summer and maybe 5-6 weekends other than that throughout the year. It has about 100 hours on the motor (it was "unused" for many years before I bought it from someone who got it new but whose wife decided she "hated" boating). I think if the insurance scraps it, I'm gonna get hosed on how much it's worth, for sure. If they fix it, I don't know about how safe it might be? I mean, this isn't like running it over a sandbar at 30mph, this is hitting asphalt at 60mph!

any thoughts?

 

[airdvr1227]

Re: boat on freeway...

Salvageable is based on whether it would cost more to repair than it's worth. Glad no one was injured.

 

[oops!]

Re: boat on freeway...

your boat will be written off.

dragging the out drive will be 3 thousand to replace it and there is enough damage on the hull to require a total keel repair.

(havent seen the boat....dont have to)

start searching for similar boats in good condition, and getting prices on them.

if you can buy back the boat.....it may be worth while, as the motor and other parts are still good.

the motor might recoup you two grand or so.

 

[vegasphotoman]

Re: boat on freeway...

ok thoughts...uhh...this is covered by insurance Im guessing...the ahole with the hyundai...nailed it hope his insurance is covering it...

I would guess its a total loss since it is 9 years old and major damage etc...so Im guessin they will write you a check...Im sure it wont be what you would like....

then they may give you the option of buying the boat back for mebbe 30% of the settlement...etc.....as a salvage boat title type boat...

prob is lik ethe others say OUTDRIVE does it have a hole in it now? leaking oil
the hull ....mebbe theres some holes...that can be repaired....what about broken stringers? wood inside hidden could be busted in 1/2....I wouldnt want to risk it myself...jut get another boat and move on might be the best option...otherwise...if you really want to mess with it...see if you can get ot cheap and do the fixes...hope to see the fix on the forums here!

 

[H20Rat]

Re: boat on freeway...

generally its only 75% repair to book value before they will total it. Also, keep in mind but boat 'salvage' titles don't exist in many areas, and many states don't even have boat titles.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: boat on freeway...

It sounds totaled to me, the outdrive took two impacts, first from the striking vehicle, second when it hit the highway. Chances are the car hit the prop, so not much in there will be salvageable. (Even if the internals look ok, Would you really want to chance any unseen damage that may appear later?)

The hull also took a hit, the transom, plus most likely the stringers and any other surrounding structure will be damaged, meaning a near complete tear down and rebuild to properly repair.
The boat is 9 years old in the insurance companies eyes, they won't necessarily see how well or how little it was used when making their evaluation.
Remember to be sure they value the trailer as well as the boat, both sound like a total loss. The same for the truck and it's damage. All repairs need estimates. I'd get a few from places you trust and would deal with. Don't let the insurance company dictate who or where it gets repaired.

If your looking for a big project, or have another boat in mind that uses that same drivetrain, then maybe buying it back will be an option, otherwise, walk away and try your best to recover its value.

Its been my experience that the insurance company will most likely use NADA for a value on that boat, plus the value of the trailer, plus the damage to the Suburban.
Every state seems to be different, and I'm sure the insurance company will read read every case differently. I probably wouldn't get too worried till you actually get some numbers in hand. I've seen cases where they paid far more than I'd have expected just to prevent any further claims or litigation in court.

Was anyone injured in either vehicle?

 

[ole doc martin]

Re: boat on freeway...

thank goodness no one was seriously hurt, including the driver of the other vehicle. Had there been a passenger in his car, they probably wouldn't have survived. Luckily for me the second row in a suburban puts them pretty far from the back of the vehicle.

sounds like the consensus is that the boat will be totaled, which is pretty much what I expected. Hopefully the insurance will be very accommodating since the other driver had been drinking underage. I'm not looking to gouge anyone, but I certainly don't think I should be screwed cause this kid got all messed up, fell asleep driving and ruined all my stuff I worked hard to pay off. Thankfully his car was less than three months old and insured through mommy and daddy who have great insurance!

 

[jonesg]

Re: boat on freeway...

Looks like you'll do alright with their insurance.

 

[Brewman61]

Re: boat on freeway...

The guy who hit you will be primarily responsible, but that's between your insurance company and theirs. They will determine fault.
Sounds like it's entirely the person who hit you. Hopefully they are insured and have adequate liability limits. They're going to have to pay for your boat, and the damage to your vehicle.
As many others have posted, it's likely they'll just consider your boat a total loss, unless it's worth more than the cost of repairing it. Hopefully you'll get enough out of the settlement to get a similar boat.
Perhaps you'll want to start researching on your own what your boat might be worth, so when/if they offer you a settlement, you'll know if they're at least in the ballpark.
It's also not a bad idea to get yourself checked by a doctor if you haven't yet- you never know if sometime in the near future you'll see symptoms that may take some time to appear, and at least you'd have it on record that you saw a doctor.

 

[JimKW]

Re: boat on freeway...

Thank goodness nobody was hurt! I read your story and think I missed the comical part?

Some drunk kid at 7:00 am hits your boat and totals it? That's not funny to me at all. I agree that you need to do as much research as possible on the replacement value of your boat. You really have the guy and his insurance right where you want them. They are going to have to pay and they know it. If you don't get what you think is a fair price on your own, talk to an attorney. Just threatening that you are going to talk to an attorney will probably get you the settlement you are looking for.

 

[maharg]

Re: boat on freeway...

Pics?

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: boat on freeway...

even though it may seem like a good idea to try to pull parts off to save, unless you have a lot of free and vacant storage it's seldom worth it. The exception would be if you found an identical boat today that needed specific parts--a seized engine block would be good.
As others said, you don't know what got torqued where in a wreck like that. So with the exception of electrical/electronic, you take a chance on saving stuff.
We took an outboard off a basic boat hull that was wrecked; the outboard just had a small ding in the cover. it never worked well after that and died a few months later; that blow to the cowl must have slapped something around inside. it was worth a shot but not surprising.

 

[BTMCB]

Re: boat on freeway...

I wouldn't worry about what YOUR insurer may or may not do; I'd be looking to THEIR insurer to pay and, IF they step to the plate, you should be made whole. Remember - you have a Third Party liability claim against the other driver and that is entirely different than a First Party claim with YOUR insurer. I would report it to my insurer as a precaution against any future late notice issues, but I would demand that the other driver's insurer handle the claim. Just my .02!

 

[tswiczko]

Re: boat on freeway...

Glad no one was hurt.

Having had to deal with insurance companies quite a bit in the past couple of years I can tell you they probably wont give you more than NADA value for the boat. They will they probably try and lo ball you. I'm not sayig you need to hire an attorney I would at least consult with one if ou feel you are being taken advantage of.

I would also contact my ins. co. and see what their course of action will be.

Insurance companies are like every one else, they are trying to get out as cheaply as they can, if you let them they will give you less than you deserve and they have a team of lawyers to help them do just that.

 

[The Famous Grouse]

Re: boat on freeway...

Very good advice posted by Brewman and tswiczko above.

So far, we're assuming that the person who hit you was insured. I hope for your sake that this is the case. It it turns out not to be, you have a longer and more expensive road in front of you.

Assuming they were insured, first consult your insurance agent and take his advice on how to proceed. Do NOT talk to anyone representing the party who hit you until you have taken advice from your insurance company and are well versed in what to say and not to say. In some cases, dirty insurance companies will do everything they can to get the other party to admit some partial liabilty or error that makes them partially at fault. Be careful and assume everything you say is being recorded and anything you write and/or sign can be use against you. Do not do anything that admits even the slightest fault or liability on your part.

Remember, you do NOT, REAPEAT "DO NOT", have to accept whatever their insurance company comes in with as a first offer! This is critical and sadly many people think this is a "take it or leave it" situation. It is not.

It is highly likely they will try to lowball you by using NADA. To counter that, you need to do research and find comparable listings of the same or similar boats to show what the local market value is. Now you have to be realistic here as well, don't try to turn this into a lottery win.

Insurance companies are aware that time = money, so it's very likely they will increase their settlement when they encounter a polite but firm person who has done his homework and is pushing back against thier offer. This is especially true when their client was 100% at fault. Don't be nasty or vindictive, be polite but firm: Your goal is to be put back in the position you were in before their client damaged your property. Simple as that.


Grouse

 

[Brewman61]

Re: boat on freeway...

It would be very important to report this to your own insurance company, even if it's the other guys fault. It's probable that the other persons insurance company might want this information anyway. Believe me, the poster's insurance company will come to bat for their client if it keeps them from paying anything!

 

[ole doc martin]

Re: boat on freeway...

Very good advice posted by Brewman and tswiczko above.

Your goal is to be put back in the position you were in before their client damaged your property. Simple as that.


Grouse

This is exactly what I am getting at. I realize I did not have a 2011 MasterCraft or anything like that and don't expect that in return. What I really want is everything to be as it was before I was hit. Realizing this is never going to be the case, I just am looking to minimize being victimized. This kid is gonna be in enough trouble I'm sure, I'm not looking to screw anyone...just not get screwed myself. Thanks for all the good advice here, getting advice from others experience can always make a difference...

if I can figure out how to send pics from my iPhone, I'll post some. pictures are worth 1000 words, and crash pics are always fun for everyone to see. Sometimes you just have to laugh at life and take it for what it is. No one was hurt, that is the main thing...everything else is trivial.

 

[ole doc martin]

Re: boat on freeway...

some pics to look at...

 

[lkbum]

Re: boat on freeway...

DANG! That guy really did hit your boat. I would stand firm when dealing with the insurance companies. Made whole and nothing less.

 

[superbenk]

Re: boat on freeway...

Holy crap! That's insane! I read your story earlier today, but those pics really send it home. I sincerely hope you get a good resolution to all this & I'm glad no one was hurt.