NEWPORT – Gowrie Group, an independent marine insurance agency, is launching a “classic yacht” insurance program for high-end wooden-boat owners.
To be eligible, boats must be made of wood or cold-molded wood. They also should be maintained by a marina or boatyard with expertise in keeping wooden yachts, have a hull value greater than $75,000 and a length greater than 26 feet.
When Your Period Is Disrupting Your Life, It’s Time to Talk About It
For many women, heavy or irregular menstrual cycles are often brushed off as “normal”—something to…
Learn More
The new insurance is designed for “financially successful families and [those] driven by a purpose of doing what is right for them,” the company said.
Gowrie is managing the new insurance offering. It has primary offices in Newport; Westbrook and Darien in Connecticut; Marshfield, Mass.; and Annapolis, Md. The new insurance is being underwritten by Pure Insurance and endorsed by the Classic Yacht Owners Association.
Carter Gowrie, the company’s CEO, is a competitive sailor and owns a 34-foot yacht, a centerboard yawl built in 1926, the company said.
“I have always felt that the insurance needs of yard-maintained wooden yachts have never been properly met,” he said. “With our new program, we can offer owners of finer classic yachts the specialized protection their yachts need and deserve.”
Bill Lynn, executive director of the Herreshoff Marine Museum and managing director of the Classic Yacht Owners Association, approached Gowrie last fall with the idea of creating a niche insurance product to meet the coverage needs of wooden-boat owners. They also surveyed the association’s membership on what they would look for in such insurance.
“Classic Yacht Owners Association members are incredibly passionate about their yachts, and the way they are cared for reflects this passion,” Lynn said.
Scott Blake is a PBN staff writer. Email him at Blake@PBN.com.
