Keeping your new houseboat afloat

If you live near open water and you want to experience sheer pleasure, buy yourself a houseboat. This simple act is guaranteed to give you years of unlimited pleasure.

But you must look after your houseboat and keep it insured properly. Otherwise, you could lose everything you put into the venture. In the marine insurance industry, houseboats are categorized together with jet boats, ski boats, sailboats, cabin cruisers and party boats as a pleasure boat. For this reason, this kind of coverage is not generally handled by regular insurance companies. You should carefully shop for underwriters who specifically handle these policies.

The first houseboat insurance rule you must follow is to find a reliable insurer who will service your needs. Conduct the search both ways.
o Ask boating friends for insurance recommendations.
o Conduct research on the recommended insurance carriers, the company in-charge of providing you coverage.

You will need to know the following about your houseboat:
o horsepower,
o size
o age
o type of craft
o where it is used
This information will determine coverage you will need and the premium you will pay for your houseboat.

Now you are ready to talk to insurance companies and try and keep the insurance costs down. Finding cheap houseboat insurance is not easy but it can be done by changing your mindset. Treat it as though you are looking for cheap car insurance - get a few different auto insurance quotes to start. You know how to handle the subject of finding cheap car insurance. You start off with auto insurance quotes and move on from there, checking one cheap car insurance policy against the other and calling for more auto insurance quotes as you go along. Finally you have list of all the companies with their insurance quotes and details and you can decide which cheap car insurance policy is best for you.

Because your houseboat is classified in the same pleasure boat category as a cabin cruiser, certain rates, coverages, restrictions and terms will be similar.

But there are differences. The function of a houseboat is different from a cabin cruiser. The construction of a houseboat reflects this. They are normally flat-bottomed and designed to navigate slowly through the waters. Most houseboats are bulkier, because they are fitted with sleeping and living areas, a full galley and enclosed head.