| Captains of busy charter or private yachts today carry a huge amount of responsibility, both moral and legal!
Sadly, an often-neglected issue is that of the well being of your crew in the case of illness and/or accident. In many cases, during our discussions we hear “the boat insurance will cover us”.
This, while sometimes true, is certainly not always the case. Clearly the overall boat insurance can offer some crew cover, but just how comprehensive is it? Does it cover any illness or accident, both on or off the boat, whilst at work or at play? Concern in this area has led to an increasing number of crew opting to have their own portable health insurance, the majority, however, will depend on what the boat provides.
We feel that a Captain [or Pursers] time is most profitably spent running the boat and looking after guests, not sorting out crew health problems, especially in remote or very expensive parts of the world. A comprehensive crew health insurance package specifically for the job is the efficient solution, giving you both peace of mind, and time to get on with the real job in hand.
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In reviewing the solutions on the market, we have identified these key issues:
• The provider must be a specialist health insurer with a worldwide reputation. With boats traveling further and further afield, if the insurer is not widely recognized, hospitals and doctors may not accept the health plan.
• The plan must be offer simple administration, an email or fax from you should be sufficient to add or subtract crew.
• The cover must be truly worldwide in scope, including the USA [the most expensive health industry in the world!] and provide Evacuation Cover to transport you or your crew to the nearest centre of medical excellence if necessary.
• The rates must be competitive and non age – related, providing a really cost-effective solution, ultimately acceptable to your owners or management.
• The benefits should be straightforward, unlike some health insurance products, which have so many exclusions it is difficult to know what cover are provided.
• You should know that you and your crew are covered both on and off the boat for illness and accident, including sports injuries, e.g. diving and winter sports.
• In the event of a claim you or your crew need access to a network of affiliated hospitals worldwide, and a professional and efficient 24 hour claim/advice management service, with the ability to settle a claim directly whenever possible[avoiding spending your money].
This research has led us to work closely with BUPA International, the clear market leader in world-wide health insurance, in the creation of BUPA Maritime, a product tailored specifically to the needs of the yachting industry.
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