The deadline is not June 1. It is the moment a storm gets a name.
Hurricane season runs June through November, but the date that actually constrains you is the one you cannot see coming. When a system is named and watches or warnings go up for Florida, carriers impose binding moratoriums. New policies stop. Limit increases stop. Adding hurricane haul-out coverage stops. Lowering a deductible stops. Everything you might want to change becomes unchangeable, usually several days before the weather arrives.
The second deadline is the yard. Your policy may require you to haul or relocate the vessel, and every other owner on the Treasure Coast has the same requirement and the same week to satisfy it. Lifts and yard space are finite. A storm plan that assumes you will find a slot when the time comes is not a plan.
Both of those mean the same thing. The work has to be done in advance, and the useful time is now rather than when the forecast gets your attention.
Settle these on the policy
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Confirm the policy is in force, paid, and not about to lapse mid-season
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Confirm the hull value reflects current engines, electronics, and any work done since the last renewal
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Confirm whether the policy is agreed value throughout, or agreed value on the hull with depreciation applied to machinery and canvas
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Get the named storm deductible as a dollar figure, not a percentage
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Confirm whether hurricane haul-out reimbursement is included, what it pays, and what triggers it
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Confirm the storage location on the policy matches where the boat actually is
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Confirm the trailer is listed, if you have one, since it is what lets you move the boat
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Confirm salvage coverage and whether it sits inside or above the hull limit
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Confirm pollution liability is present and whether it shares the liability limit
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Confirm the boat is scheduled on your umbrella and meets the underlying limit required
Read the storm provisions before you need them
This is the part owners skip. Your policy specifies what you must do when a storm is named, and those requirements are conditions of coverage rather than suggestions. They may dictate where the boat goes, whether it must come out of the water or off a lift, whether canvas must be removed, and by when relative to a watch or warning.
If you have not read that section, read it now. The consequences of getting it wrong are covered in High-Value Boat Insurance in Florida, and they extend past your own hull claim to liability for whatever your boat hits after it breaks free.
Your written plan needs these answers
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Where the boat goes, specifically, with a second option if the first is full
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Who physically moves it, and whether that person is available if you are not in town
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Who has keys, codes, and dock access
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Whether you have a standing arrangement with a yard or hauler, in writing
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Marina contact and the dockmaster’s storm procedure
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Whether the trailer is roadworthy today, including tires, bearings, lights, and the coupler
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Your carrier’s claim line and your agent’s number, stored somewhere that survives a dead phone
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Current photographs of the vessel, engines, electronics, and how it is secured
When a storm is named
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Execute the plan on the policy’s timetable, not the forecast’s
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Photograph the boat as you leave it, secured, with the date visible if possible
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Keep every receipt for hauling, transport, storage, labor, and storm preparation, since reimbursement generally requires them
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Do not assume the marina will move your boat for you unless that is in the dockage agreement
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Do not wait for a call back from anyone before acting on a requirement your policy imposes
Afterward
Report promptly, prevent further damage where it is safe to do so, and photograph everything before anything is moved or cleaned up. Keep receipts for temporary repairs. Do not authorize major work before the carrier has responded.
Have the review done while it can still change something
Atlantis Insurance is an independent agency in Stuart serving boat owners across the Treasure Coast, Palm Beach County, and Florida’s west coast. Once a system is named, our ability to help is limited to filing the claim. Before that, we can still change limits, add coverage, correct a storage location, and tell you what your policy actually requires of you.
Send us the policy and we will go through it before the season does it for us.
Atlantis Insurance Inc 850 NW Federal Highway, Suite 129 Stuart, FL 34994 561-983-4333
