Dave-Gibson
10-17-2005, 05:45 PM
especially when the exact cause of damage is not easily determined.
Many of you probably recall that I found damage to my old Mistral when I uncovered it in the Spring of 2004. I quickly determined that the boat had settled during the winter and rocked aft, putting tremendous pressure on the aft jack stands. The main bulkhead was separated from the cabin top by about a half inch. The newly painted cabin top had dozens of spider cracks.
I got the marina owner over to the boat, and after a quick cursory examination he claimed that my stays were too tight, pulling up the deck away from the bulkhead. That didn't sound right to me, since my stays weren't tight, so I hired a surveyor to look the boat over. He found delaminated fiberglass under the port cockpit seat and over the quarter berth, and moisture readings were very high in the cockpit sole and decks. He also described how my boat was blocked improperly, with only one block under the keel instead of two.
I contacted my insurance company, who sent their own surveyor to review the damage. His report said that my boat's problems were caused by old age. He also indicated that the boat wasn't blocked properly.
I told the adjuster that I disagreed with his surveyor's findings. After looking the boat over again carefully, I was convinced that the damage was caused by settling. The adjuster offered to send another surveyor, who showed up a couple of weeks later. This surveyor was only a little more sympathetic to my cause, and reported that the cockpit seat delamination may have been caused by stress, but the rest of the problems were most likely due to old age and water intrusion. He also indicated that the boat was blocked improperly. The adjuster offered to fix the cockpit seat delamination. I declined.
The marina's insurance company showed up at some point, and they denied any culpability whatsoever. They claimed that all the boat's problems were due to old age and water intrusion, and even though the boat was blocked improperly, none of the damage was the marina's fault.
It looked hopeless, but I was sure I was right, and the three insurance company surveyors and the yard were wrong. My insurance adjuster listened to me argue my case, but politely told me that, without agreement from his hired surveyors, there was nothing more he could do.
It really looked hopeless at this point. Was my Mistral headed for the landfill? Or maybe cobbed up good enough to sail on my lake? This just wouldn't do. This is the boat that Jahnn and I decided to take cruising one day, and although the boat was crushed, there's no way my dream of cruising on it would be.
I decided to get the boat fixed. On my own nickel, and then hope for the best.
I contacted Scarano Boat builders in Albany. These guys are experienced and well versed in sailboat design and construction and have built a number of sailboats, including may schooners sailing out of Newport and Annapolis, and the yacht America. Luckily, they were between commissions, and to keep busy, they agreed to do the work over the winter. I asked Bob Gilston, Scarano's manager to please document everything for me, and take lots of photos. If he had any opinions about the cause of damage, I wanted an honest assessment. The boat was hauled to Albany in August of 2004.
After many long months, and many large checks, Hotspur was finally finished. The 1 1/2" thick divinycell cored deck had not cracked, thankfully. The cockpit sole was completely delaminated and had to be cut out and replaced. All the spider cracks on the cabin top were repaired, and the balsa core under the port cockpit seat removed and replaced with divinycell, and refiberglassed. I also had them do some other work while the boat was there, like replace the mahogany cockpit and toerails. Hotspur was now beautiful again, and as strong as she once was. But the day of reckoning was here. What of the damage? Was it old age? Water intrusion? Bad luck? Gilston reported that only some very minor water intrusion was found in the area of the pedestal. No other signs of "old age" was found. He could not make a determination as to cause.
Before beginning this project I had contacted Robert Perry about reviewing the circumstances and facts of this case, and he agreed. I sent him all the information, including the surveyor reports and Scarano's findings. I asked Bob to give me an honest evaluation. If his opinion was old age, tell me. If it was his opinion that the stresses of improper blocking caused the damage, tell me that.
After a couple of weeks, Bob called me. It was his opinion, and that of his engineer, that improper blocking caused undue stress on the hull, and resulted in the damage, no question. He followed this up with a letter which I sent to my insurance company, along with itemized bills, in mid-August.
The waiting game began. As much as I wanted to call the adjuster and insist on a quick settlement, I did not. I didn't want to appear eager to settle. Besides, I had already waited a year and a half, so what's a few more days, or weeks. I finally had a call a few days ago, and with the evidence I had presented to substantiate my claim, the adjuster agreed to pay. They agreed to pay for the hauling to and from Scarano's half the winter storage, and all the repair bills. My surveyor's fee and Perry's fee were not included. I insisted they pay these fees as well, since they were necessary to determine the extent and cause of damage. An email this morning confirms that my insurance company will pay these fees as well, and even agreed to reimburse me my $550 deductible if and when they collect from the marina.
So, the ordeal is now over. Although I was sailboatless for a year and a half, Hotspur is better than ever, and I've recouped all the expenses related to the damage. My advice to anyone reading this is to never give up when dealing with insurance companies. Get your facts in order, back it up with expert opinions, and present it firmly, but politely, and businesslike.
The marina is still storing boats with only one block under the keel, on soft mushy ground. Hotspur was trucked to Scarano's for storage this winter, as it will every winter until Jahnn and I finally head south.
Who wants to buy a computer and bookstore?
http://www.fultoncomputer.com/cwbb/DaveGibson_HotspurLDR.jpg[/img]
Many of you probably recall that I found damage to my old Mistral when I uncovered it in the Spring of 2004. I quickly determined that the boat had settled during the winter and rocked aft, putting tremendous pressure on the aft jack stands. The main bulkhead was separated from the cabin top by about a half inch. The newly painted cabin top had dozens of spider cracks.
I got the marina owner over to the boat, and after a quick cursory examination he claimed that my stays were too tight, pulling up the deck away from the bulkhead. That didn't sound right to me, since my stays weren't tight, so I hired a surveyor to look the boat over. He found delaminated fiberglass under the port cockpit seat and over the quarter berth, and moisture readings were very high in the cockpit sole and decks. He also described how my boat was blocked improperly, with only one block under the keel instead of two.
I contacted my insurance company, who sent their own surveyor to review the damage. His report said that my boat's problems were caused by old age. He also indicated that the boat wasn't blocked properly.
I told the adjuster that I disagreed with his surveyor's findings. After looking the boat over again carefully, I was convinced that the damage was caused by settling. The adjuster offered to send another surveyor, who showed up a couple of weeks later. This surveyor was only a little more sympathetic to my cause, and reported that the cockpit seat delamination may have been caused by stress, but the rest of the problems were most likely due to old age and water intrusion. He also indicated that the boat was blocked improperly. The adjuster offered to fix the cockpit seat delamination. I declined.
The marina's insurance company showed up at some point, and they denied any culpability whatsoever. They claimed that all the boat's problems were due to old age and water intrusion, and even though the boat was blocked improperly, none of the damage was the marina's fault.
It looked hopeless, but I was sure I was right, and the three insurance company surveyors and the yard were wrong. My insurance adjuster listened to me argue my case, but politely told me that, without agreement from his hired surveyors, there was nothing more he could do.
It really looked hopeless at this point. Was my Mistral headed for the landfill? Or maybe cobbed up good enough to sail on my lake? This just wouldn't do. This is the boat that Jahnn and I decided to take cruising one day, and although the boat was crushed, there's no way my dream of cruising on it would be.
I decided to get the boat fixed. On my own nickel, and then hope for the best.
I contacted Scarano Boat builders in Albany. These guys are experienced and well versed in sailboat design and construction and have built a number of sailboats, including may schooners sailing out of Newport and Annapolis, and the yacht America. Luckily, they were between commissions, and to keep busy, they agreed to do the work over the winter. I asked Bob Gilston, Scarano's manager to please document everything for me, and take lots of photos. If he had any opinions about the cause of damage, I wanted an honest assessment. The boat was hauled to Albany in August of 2004.
After many long months, and many large checks, Hotspur was finally finished. The 1 1/2" thick divinycell cored deck had not cracked, thankfully. The cockpit sole was completely delaminated and had to be cut out and replaced. All the spider cracks on the cabin top were repaired, and the balsa core under the port cockpit seat removed and replaced with divinycell, and refiberglassed. I also had them do some other work while the boat was there, like replace the mahogany cockpit and toerails. Hotspur was now beautiful again, and as strong as she once was. But the day of reckoning was here. What of the damage? Was it old age? Water intrusion? Bad luck? Gilston reported that only some very minor water intrusion was found in the area of the pedestal. No other signs of "old age" was found. He could not make a determination as to cause.
Before beginning this project I had contacted Robert Perry about reviewing the circumstances and facts of this case, and he agreed. I sent him all the information, including the surveyor reports and Scarano's findings. I asked Bob to give me an honest evaluation. If his opinion was old age, tell me. If it was his opinion that the stresses of improper blocking caused the damage, tell me that.
After a couple of weeks, Bob called me. It was his opinion, and that of his engineer, that improper blocking caused undue stress on the hull, and resulted in the damage, no question. He followed this up with a letter which I sent to my insurance company, along with itemized bills, in mid-August.
The waiting game began. As much as I wanted to call the adjuster and insist on a quick settlement, I did not. I didn't want to appear eager to settle. Besides, I had already waited a year and a half, so what's a few more days, or weeks. I finally had a call a few days ago, and with the evidence I had presented to substantiate my claim, the adjuster agreed to pay. They agreed to pay for the hauling to and from Scarano's half the winter storage, and all the repair bills. My surveyor's fee and Perry's fee were not included. I insisted they pay these fees as well, since they were necessary to determine the extent and cause of damage. An email this morning confirms that my insurance company will pay these fees as well, and even agreed to reimburse me my $550 deductible if and when they collect from the marina.
So, the ordeal is now over. Although I was sailboatless for a year and a half, Hotspur is better than ever, and I've recouped all the expenses related to the damage. My advice to anyone reading this is to never give up when dealing with insurance companies. Get your facts in order, back it up with expert opinions, and present it firmly, but politely, and businesslike.
The marina is still storing boats with only one block under the keel, on soft mushy ground. Hotspur was trucked to Scarano's for storage this winter, as it will every winter until Jahnn and I finally head south.
Who wants to buy a computer and bookstore?
http://www.fultoncomputer.com/cwbb/DaveGibson_HotspurLDR.jpg[/img]