Summer is upon us and that means hitting local waterways with your friends and families. If you’re a boat owner, whether it’s a bass fishing boat, high performance wakeboarding boat or a party barge, you need to make sure your boat is properly insured.

If you have a small boat that goes less than 25 miles an hour, this includes kayaks and canoes as well; you will more than likely be able to insure those under your homeowners or renters insurance policy according the Insurance Information Institute (III). But larger, more powerful boats require a separate insurance policy to protect them.

For physical loss or damage, coverage includes the hull, machinery, fittings, furnishings and permanently attached equipment as part of either an actual cash value policy or on an agreed amount value basis. These policies also provide broader liability protection than a homeowners policy. But there are distinct differences between the two types of policies (III).

Actual cash value polices will cover the replacement cost of your boat less depreciation. Agreed amount value policies are policies were you and your boat insurance provider agreed on an amount of what your boat is worth in case of a total loss.

Boat insurance also covers:

• Bodily injury–for injuries caused to another person
• Property damage–for damage caused to someone else’s property
• Guest passenger liability–for any legal expenses incurred by someone using the boat with the owner’s permission
• Medical payments–for injuries to the boat owner and other passengers
• Theft

It’s important to make sure you also have plenty of life jackets and other safety devices onboard your vessel to go along with your boat insurance coverage. You never know when you might hit an iceberg sending your boat to the bottom of a lake.