What insurance do I need to charter my boat?

Commercial marine insurance for a charter vessel is structured very differently from pleasure boat insurance.

Minimum coverage CharterXO requires: - Hull & Machinery — agreed-value basis preferred, sufficient to repair or replace the vessel. - Passenger Legal Liability — at least $1,000,000 per occurrence. - Protection & Indemnity (P&I) — third-party injury, pollution, crew claims. - For bareboat listings: Charterer's Liability endorsement naming the bareboat charterer as an insured operator, and CharterXO LLC listed as an Additional Insured and Loss Payee. - Captain and crew coverage — USL&H or Jones Act crew coverage where applicable.

Things pleasure-use policies typically DO NOT cover (and why you need a commercial policy): - Any payment in exchange for a trip — even splitting gas — voids most pleasure policies. - Commercial passenger liability (the big one). - Named storms in many pleasure policies unless specifically endorsed.

Practical steps for owners: 1. Work with a specialty marine broker — Pantaenius, International Marine Insurance, or Atlass are common South Florida names. 2. Budget $4,000-$12,000/year for a 40-60 foot yacht on a commercial charter policy. Larger yachts scale up significantly. 3. Get a fresh condition survey (every 5-10 years depending on carrier). 4. Upload the Certificate of Insurance (COI) to CharterXO's listing flow. Policies have to be re-verified annually.

Skipping commercial coverage and trying to charter under pleasure insurance is the fastest way to void both the policy and your ability to list on any reputable platform. After a claim, pleasure insurance carriers will check whether the trip was a paid charter, and if so, deny the claim and potentially pursue recovery.