By Core 4 Insurance Team · Licensed Florida Insurance Agency · Miramar, FL
GEICO Marine’s haul-out benefit pays half the labor, up to $1,000, when your boat is inside a named storm’s forecast cone — so a $2,500 haul costs you $1,500. Here is what the benefit leaves out, how to turn a percentage storm deductible into dollars, and why to act before June 1.
Every Florida boat owner has the same conversation with themselves when a cone appears on the forecast: haul it, move it, tie it down or ride it out. What the insurance pays for depends almost entirely on decisions made months earlier.
This guide covers what haul-out coverage actually reimburses, how the named storm deductible works, what Florida law says about marinas during a storm, and what the state expects of you afterward.
What is hurricane haul-out coverage?
The short answer: A reimbursement for part of the cost of hauling, moving or professionally securing your boat when a named storm threatens. It is a benefit you trigger by acting, not coverage for storm damage itself.
The idea is simple. A boat pulled from the water or moved to a safer location is far less likely to become a total loss, so carriers pay part of the cost of getting it there.
Terms vary widely between carriers, which is why the benefit is worth reading closely before the season rather than after the cone appears. Three details matter most.
- The trigger. Some carriers pay when your boat is inside a named storm's forecast cone. Others tie the benefit to a hurricane watch or warning for your area.
- What counts as a cost. GEICO Marine's terms reimburse labor by marina personnel, paid captains, dockmasters or marine surveyors. Your own time is not a reimbursable cost.
- Proof. Expect to submit the invoice and confirmation that you have already paid it.
What does haul-out coverage not pay for?
The short answer: Usually anything beyond the capped share of labor. Storage fees, the full haul-out bill, doing the work yourself, and storms that never threaten your area generally fall outside it.
Haul-out coverage is a partial reimbursement with a ceiling, not a promise to pay for your hurricane plan. Owners who expect more are usually disappointed at exactly the wrong moment.
- The rest of the bill. On a 50% benefit capped at $1,000, a $2,500 haul still leaves you paying $1,500.
- Do-it-yourself work. Moving the boat yourself generally produces no reimbursable invoice.
- Storage while you wait. Rack or yard fees after the haul are often outside a labor-only benefit.
- A false alarm outside the trigger. If you haul out before the storm meets the policy's trigger, the cost may not qualify.
- The storm itself. Damage to the boat is covered, if at all, under the physical damage section and its named storm deductible.
How does the named storm deductible work on a boat?
The short answer: Damage from a named tropical storm or hurricane usually carries its own deductible, and on many policies it is a percentage of the boat's insured value. On a valuable boat, that percentage can mean a five-figure out-of-pocket cost before the policy pays.
Your policy likely has two deductibles. A flat one applies to ordinary losses. A separate one applies when the damage comes from a named storm, and it behaves very differently.
| Insured value | 2% deductible | 5% deductible | 10% deductible |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $1,000 | $2,500 | $5,000 |
| $120,000 | $2,400 | $6,000 | $12,000 |
| $250,000 | $5,000 | $12,500 | $25,000 |
| $500,000 | $10,000 | $25,000 | $50,000 |
Illustrative arithmetic only, not quoted rates. Your declarations page states your own named storm deductible and whether it is a percentage or a flat amount.
What does Florida law say about marinas during a hurricane?
The short answer: Under Fla. Stat. § 327.59, a marina cannot force you to remove your boat after a hurricane watch or warning. It can require securing equipment, take reasonable steps to secure your boat and charge a reasonable fee, and remove it if you do not act, if your contract gives the required notice.
Florida wrote this law so that boat owners are not ordered onto the water in the middle of an approaching storm. It balances that protection against the marina's need to keep the facility safe.
- No forced evacuation. Marinas may not adopt or enforce policies requiring vessels to be removed after a hurricane watch or warning.
- Securing equipment. A marina can require you to have specific lines, fenders and other equipment on hand.
- Marina action after a watch. Once a tropical storm or hurricane watch is issued, the marina can take reasonable steps to secure your boat and charge a reasonable fee for it.
- Removal if you fail to act. The marina can remove or secure your boat itself, but only if your slip contract includes a specific notice printed in at least 10-point type.
- Marina liability. The law generally shields the marina from storm damage claims, except for intentional acts or negligence while moving or securing your boat.
What does Florida expect of you after a storm damages your boat?
The short answer: If a hurricane leaves your boat derelict, Florida law generally gives you 45 days to document the damage and repair or remove it. After that, the state can remove it and recover every cost from you.
This is the part of hurricane season that surprises owners most, because the costs can outlast the storm by months.
- The general rule. Under Fla. Stat. § 823.11, an owner may not leave a derelict vessel on state waters for more than 24 hours.
- The hurricane window. If a hurricane caused the damage, the owner generally has 45 days, provided the event is documented and the boat is repaired or removed.
- Who pays. Every cost the state or a local agency incurs to relocate, remove, store or dispose of the boat is recoverable from the owner.
- Registration. The state can refuse to register the vessel until those costs are paid.
- Penalties. A first offense is a first-degree misdemeanor, rising to a felony for repeat violations.
This is why wreck removal coverage matters so much in Florida. Check whether your policy includes it, and whether it sits inside the hull limit or on top of it. Other derelict and at-risk vessel rules are covered in is boat insurance required in Florida.
When can you still buy or change boat coverage before a storm?
The short answer: Only before a named storm threatens. Once a storm is in the forecast area, Florida carriers routinely stop writing new policies and stop allowing coverage increases until it passes.
This practice is often called a binding moratorium. It applies across personal lines, and boats are no exception. The window to lower a named storm deductible, add wreck removal or buy a policy closes exactly when the risk becomes visible.
The same rule affects homes and cars. Our Florida hurricane insurance guide covers the homeowners side.
What does a Florida boat hurricane plan look like?
The short answer: A written arrangement for where the boat goes, your named storm deductible in dollars, photographs and documents stored off the boat, and a timeline that starts before the season. Some carriers ask for a plan as a condition of coverage.
- Before June 1. Reserve a haul-out slot, dry storage or a hurricane hole in writing. Capacity disappears in the days before a storm.
- Know your two deductibles. The flat one and the named storm one, in dollars.
- Photograph the boat. Hull, engines, electronics and equipment, with the images stored off the boat.
- Keep documents off the boat. Registration, policy, slip contract and survey.
- Know your marina's clause. What it will do, what it will charge, and what equipment it expects you to have.
- When a watch is issued. Strip canvas and electronics, double the lines, and remove anything that can become a projectile.
- After the storm. Photograph the damage, report the claim promptly, and track the 45-day derelict vessel window if the boat is down.
How does this work for boats in Broward and Miami-Dade?
The short answer: South Florida boats sit on lifts, in canal-side slips and in coastal marinas with direct surge exposure, and dry storage fills fast before a storm. Plan earlier here than anywhere else in the state.
Much of Broward's and Miami-Dade's boating happens behind the house or in dense coastal marinas rather than on trailers in a garage.
- Boats on lifts. Common on Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood canals. A lift can fail or be overtopped by surge, and the lift, dock and seawall are separate coverage questions.
- Coastal marina slips. The most surge exposure. Your slip contract's storm clause is doing real work here.
- Dry stack facilities. Popular and generally safer, but slots before a storm go first to those with arrangements.
- Running to a hurricane hole. Only if you can get there and back safely, and only with the policy's navigation limits in mind.
How homeowners policies treat docks, lifts and seawalls is covered in our Fort Lauderdale insurance guide. Call (954) 420-1501 and we will check your haul-out benefit and named storm deductible before the season. Disponible en español.
The bottom line on hurricane haul-out and boat insurance
Haul-out coverage is a partial reimbursement for acting before a storm, not a hurricane policy. On published terms like GEICO Marine's, it pays half the labor, up to $1,000, when your boat is in the cone, and only with a paid invoice.
The bigger numbers are elsewhere: a named storm deductible that may be a percentage of the boat's value, a marina contract that decides who secures your boat and at whose cost, and a 45-day window after the storm before Florida can remove a derelict boat and bill you.
All of it is decided before the season. Know your deductible in dollars, get your haul-out arrangement in writing, and bind any changes before June 1.
More Florida boat insurance guides.
- Best boat insurance in Florida — which carriers offer the strongest storm terms
- Agreed value vs actual cash value — what a storm total loss actually pays
- How much is boat insurance in Florida? — how deductibles change your price
Related Florida coverage guides
Other guides from the Core 4 team that connect to this one:
About this guide
Who wrote it. Written and reviewed by the Core 4 Insurance team — licensed Florida insurance producers based in Miramar, Broward County, a short drive from the Fort Lauderdale and Miami boating markets.
Where we work. Statewide across Florida, with our office and deepest local experience in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties.
How we source it. Haul-out benefit terms are quoted from GEICO Marine's published haul-out claim page as one example; other carriers' terms differ. Marina rules trace to Fla. Stat. § 327.59 (2025), and derelict vessel windows and penalties to Fla. Stat. § 823.11 (2025). Named storm deductible figures are illustrative arithmetic, not quoted rates.
Regulator. Core 4 Insurance is licensed by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation.
Last reviewed by the Core 4 Insurance Team on September 22, 2026. Carrier storm terms change between seasons. We re-verify this guide before every June 1. For the broader picture, see our Florida hurricane insurance guide.