Has anyone ever had their boat hit from behind ?

Long time ago, my 10 year old Glastron ski boat got blasted from behind.

Took it to a few shops for "transom inspection/repair". Of course they were relatively high.

Insurance ran their numbers, totaled the boat, and then I bought it back from then.

Had the steering cable repaired and ran it for years, then gave it away.

I was trailering my old Tim’s flat when someone plowed into the back of me. Pushed the boat up on the trailer about a foot and bent the front post by the bow. Also cracked the transom and damaged the lower unit. Tim’s marine fixed it all and billed her insurance company.

Supposed to hit the women from behind, but the boats! I’ve never had it happen, but I would absolutely have every inch inspected. That’s the kind of things that cause other issues you don’t know about. I would expect insurance to cover everything but I wouldn’t expect to gain extra from it.

have the transom xrayed

Keep in mind that if anything was slightly damaged on the structure of the boat there may be some flex. That may show up down the road like cracks etc. If a shop shows no damage take good pictures but I would not sign off without a year or so grace period. Depending on the boats age, and hull warranty etc. it may be a good idea to run it by the boat builder to make sure your bases are covered. They may want to inspect it to make sure your hull warranty stays in tact.

You aren't going to like this answer but call a lawyer. If it moved your boat that far up, it caused damage to an aluminum transom or stringers if its fiberglass. If the hull is buckled at all it'll never be the same again.

How do I know? My mom rear ended a guy who had no lights on his trailer. Dude thought he just had some minor cosmetic damage but it had actually put a nice hump in the bottom of the boat right before the motor that wasn't visible. Boat was never the same, and insurances went back and forth for over 2 years.

quote:

---

You aren't going to like this answer but call a lawyer.

---

Hate to be that guy, but that is what I would do. Not Gordon but a local reputable firm. Perhaps you know a lawyer that would help at least give you some cheap/free advice on how to move forward. If the boat is insured I would let your insurance company do the haggling with theirs, as insurance companies love to take your money then not pay out fully when their policy holder is at fault. A lot of time your policy claim adjuster will take care of dealing with their adjuster and a lot of coverage will have a lawyer that will be assigned to your claim if it were to come to that.

Just because like others have said, just because it looks fine now does not mean it won't have problems in a year from now. If the at fault party is cool you may not need to haggle much.

Cool story bro incoming….
Knew a dude who broke down in the fog on the way to duck hunt. Went and pulled the cover off the outboard.
A boat come full speed and slams into his boat. Knocks him into the cold arse water.
Took a sheriff’s posey to find the dude. He lived .
Morale of the story, anything can happen at any time . It’s dangerous stuff we do.

Take it where ever you’d like to get it thoroughly inspected. Send the bill to his insurance company along with any of their findings and the estimate.


If liability is clear and they have sufficient property damage limits I’m hoping it wouldn’t be a problem for his insurance to pay for your repairs or for the value of the boat, motor, and trailer.


As far as filing with your own company, that’s up to you. Some folks want their insurance taking care of them, some are vehemently against filing a claim if they weren’t at fault.

Personally I would file with my own carrier as well as they can handle your claim immediately and won’t have to wait on liability to be determined. You already paid for the coverage it’s there to use if you desire. You may incur your deductible(s) on the front end, but should get them back if the other driver is insured.