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Liveaboard boat insurance in Greece

Liveaboard insurance is yacht insurance with your life aboard declared: DigiCare Insurance arranges hull, belongings and third-party liability cover for people who live on their boat in Greece, full-time or through the winter, on the same policy as our yacht insurance. Each boat is quoted individually, and you see the terms and the IPID before you pay.

  • 100% of the agreed value on a total loss of the boat, machinery and equipment, less your deductible
  • Optional: your belongings aboard up to the sum on your Schedule, at most USD 5,000 any one item, pair or set
  • Third-party liability from owning or using the boat, with limits at or above the Greek legal minimum

Theft of belongings is paid only with signs of forced entry, and people living aboard with you are not third parties under the liability cover.

Get a liveaboard quote

Reviewed by Costas Matheou, licensed insurance agent

Questionnaire Q10

What liveaboard insurance covers, and what you must declare

We arrange cover for declared liveaboard use, subject to acceptance; hiding it can void the policy. The questionnaire asks whether the boat is a year-round liveaboard or used as a residence for 12 months, and the contract is void if a material fact, one that would change the premium or the decision to insure, is not disclosed. Greek law also requires liability cover for craft over 7 m while sailing, moored or at anchor (Law 4926/2022, Art. 17).

Third-party liability

Greek legal minimum
Craft under 300 gt. Injury €150,000 per person, €700,000 per event, €2,100,000 per period; property and pollution each €150,000 per event, €450,000 per period

Your liveaboard policy

Limits at or above the minimum, for liability from owning or using the boat; family and household are excluded

Hull, machinery and equipment

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

Agreed value, total and partial loss

Belongings aboard

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

Optional, only with a sum on your Schedule: that sum per event, at most USD 5,000 any one item, pair or set, at actual cash value less the deductible

Theft

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

The whole boat or equipment with visible signs of force; belongings with signs of forced entry

Storm damage

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

Your normal deductible; 10% of the hull value if the storm is named or numbered, with an agreed storm plan

Guests' medical costs

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

Medical payments for third parties aboard, if on your Schedule

Collision with an uninsured boat

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

Injury to insured people aboard after contact with an uninsured or unidentified boat, if on your Schedule

Paid crew

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

Crew liability, if on your Schedule

Winter afloat, living aboard

Greek legal minimum
Not required

Your liveaboard policy

In commission all year with no lay-up period on the Schedule, case by case

On the quote form, declare the months aboard, your berth, winter afloat or ashore, and the months the boat is left.

No published price

How much does liveaboard insurance cost?

We publish no price: the underwriter rates each liveaboard boat individually, and declared liveaboard use can change the premium. The quote is free and commits you to nothing.

  • Every liveaboard boat quoted individually
  • Terms in writing before you pay
Get a liveaboard quote

  • The boat

    What we ask
    Builder, model, year, length, hull material, flag

  • Agreed value

    What we ask
    Hull, machinery and equipment together

  • Life aboard

    What we ask
    Full-time or seasonal, and the months aboard each year

  • Winter

    What we ask
    Afloat or ashore, and where

  • Months away

    What we ask
    How long the boat is left, and who checks it

  • Berth

    What we ask
    Marina, port or anchorage

  • Cruising area

    What we ask
    The navigational limits in your Confirmation of Cover

  • Skippers

    What we ask
    Each named operator: certificates, experience, claims

  • Belongings

    What we ask
    The sum you want on the Schedule

  • Deductible

    What we ask
    1% to 5% of the hull value; your Schedule states which

Quotes are for 12 months, in euro, paid by bank transfer against the invoice.

Placed in the London insurance market through London Marine Insurance Services Ltd, a Lloyd's-accredited broker.

How you live aboard

Your liveaboard pattern and what the policy needs

Full-time aboard, all year
Accepted: Declare it in the questionnaire; priced case by case
Winter aboard in a Greek marina, cruising in summer
Accepted: No lay-up period on the Schedule; afloat, case by case
Aboard in summer, boat ashore in winter
Accepted: Declare the lay-up dates and place; nobody lives aboard during them
Boat afloat while you are away for months
Declare or agree: Declare the months and who checks the boat; the underwriter sets the conditions
Non-EU citizen on the 90/180-day rule
Declare or agree: Declare the absences the rule forces on you
Paid crew or hired help aboard
Declare or agree: Crew liability on the Schedule
Sailing single-handed
Declare or agree: Only with the underwriter's written agreement
Renting out cabins or the boat
Not on this policy: Commercial use: only with the underwriter's prior approval; a private-status yacht may not be used commercially in Greece
Russian flag, or an owner on a sanctions list
Not on this policy: Not accepted
Trimaran, ferro-cement or "cigarette" hull
Not on this policy: Not insured on this policy

Cover for the boat itself is on our sailboat, motor yacht and catamaran pages.

Exclusions

What liveaboard insurance does not pay

  • Injury to your spouse, family or anyone living aboard with you, under liability and medical payments
  • Hotel, travel or car hire while the boat is repaired, and loss of use
  • Money, jewellery, watches, software, furs, china, glass, silverware, antiques and collectibles
  • Theft without visible signs of force or forced entry, and mysterious disappearance
  • Living aboard during a lay-up period on your Schedule
  • Wear and tear, mould, gradual deterioration, lack of maintenance, ice and freezing
  • A boat that is not seaworthy or not appropriately crewed: the policy is void from the start
  • Named windstorm damage without the agreed storm plan
  • Single-handed sailing the underwriter did not agree to in writing
  • Commercial use without the underwriter's prior approval
  • Trimarans, ferro-cement and "cigarette" hulls

Example storm repair

€9,000

You · €1,200Underwriter · €7,800

Illustrative: agreed value €120,000, 1% deductible, a €9,000 storm repair: you pay €1,200, the underwriter €7,800. If the storm was named, the deductible is 10% of the hull value, €12,000, so nothing is paid.

4 steps

How to insure the boat you live on

  1. 01

    Fill in the quote form

    "I live aboard" is ticked; add your winter plan and months away.

  2. 02

    Complete the questionnaire

    A survey may be asked: approved within 45 days of the start date, its recommendations done within 30 days of the survey date; missing either voids the policy from the start.

  3. 03

    Get the terms and pay

    Terms, IPID and invoice first; 12 months, by bank transfer.

  4. 04

    Keep the certificate on board

    After acceptance and payment, London Marine issues your Confirmation of Cover with the start date. Keep the certificate, in Greek or English, on board (Art. 17(1)).

Documents: registration or flag papers, last survey or photos, skipper licences, a list of valuable belongings with receipts.

  • Registration
  • Survey or photos
  • Skipper licence
  • Belongings list

Months away

Leaving the boat while you fly home

Tell us before you go: the months away, where the boat lies and who checks it. We publish no maximum period away; the underwriter sets the period and conditions for your boat.

  • Tell us before you change marina
  • Keep the boat seaworthy and maintained
Get a liveaboard quote

FAQ

Questions about liveaboard insurance in Greece

Does living aboard void my boat insurance?
Not on this policy, if you declare it and the underwriter accepts it. The questionnaire asks whether the boat is a year-round liveaboard or used as a residence for 12 months, and the contract is void if a material fact is not disclosed. This page is about a yacht you live on and sail, not a stationary houseboat or a dive-liveaboard holiday. For the boat cover itself, see yacht insurance in Greece.
Can I live aboard all winter in a Greek marina and stay insured?
Yes, case by case: the boat stays in commission all year with no lay-up period on your Schedule. If your Schedule shows a lay-up period, nobody may live aboard during it, permanently or temporarily. Whether you may live aboard at a particular marina is for the marina: check its rules and your berth contract.
How much does liveaboard insurance cost?
There is no fixed price: the underwriter rates each boat on the factors in the cost table above. Declared liveaboard use can change the premium; you see the figure in writing before you pay.
Are my belongings aboard covered?
Only if your Schedule shows a sum for personal property (the policy wording's Personal Property section). It pays accidental loss or damage while your things are on board or being loaded or unloaded, up to that sum per event and at most USD 5,000 any one item, pair or set, at actual cash value less the deductible. Money, jewellery, watches, software, furs, china, glass, silverware, antiques and collectibles are excluded. Keep receipts for valuable items.
What if things are stolen from the boat?
Theft of belongings is paid only with evidence of forced entry to the boat or to the approved locked storage where the boat is kept ashore. Afloat, theft of equipment or belongings is covered only with forced entry or removal, or when the whole boat is stolen with evidence of force. Mysterious disappearance is not theft.
Is my partner covered if they are hurt aboard?
Not under liability or medical payments: both exclude your spouse, your family and anyone living in your household. If uninsured-boater cover is on your Schedule, it can pay damages an insured person aboard is entitled to but cannot recover from the owner of an uninsured or unidentified boat, after physical contact between the boats; the Schedule says who counts as an insured person. For other injuries, look at personal accident or health insurance.
Can I leave the boat for months while I fly home?
Yes, if you declare it: the months away, the berth, and whether marina staff or a caretaker check the boat. We publish no maximum period away; the underwriter sets the period and conditions. Keep the boat seaworthy and maintained, and tell us before you move it to another marina or cruising area.
I'm British. Does the 90-days-in-180 rule affect the boat's insurance?
The Schengen short-stay limit of 90 days in any 180 applies to you, not to the boat (European Commission). Longer stays need a national visa from the Greek authorities (GOV.UK). The policy does not change because of the rule, but the absences it forces do: declare them.
What happens if a winter storm damages the boat?
Storm damage is accidental damage and takes your normal hull deductible. Damage from a windstorm named or numbered by NOAA "or any equivalent government organisation" (the policy wording) carries a deductible of 10% of the hull value, and named-windstorm cover needs a storm plan agreed with the underwriter before cover starts. Greece's weather service (ΕΜΥ) names very strong storms with neighbouring services, so a named storm can trigger the 10%. Ask us how your policy treats it.
Do I need compulsory insurance if the boat just sits in the marina?
Yes, for a boat over 7 m: Law 4926/2022, Art. 17 requires cover while sailing, moored or at anchor, with the certificate on board. Without insurance the owner is fined €150 per metre of overall length, a missing certificate costs €50 (Art. 20), and the port authority bans departure until the certificate is shown. Need only that minimum? See third-party liability for boats.
Important information

Cover is placed in the London insurance market through London Marine Insurance Services Ltd, a Lloyd's-accredited broker, and underwritten by the insurers named in your policy Schedule. Terms, exclusions and limits are in the policy documents (IPID and policy wording) provided in English before purchase. Liveaboard use must be declared and is accepted case by case.

The policy is governed by English law; disputes go to arbitration in London.

Greek law requires third-party liability insurance for pleasure craft over 7 m, covering sailing, mooring and anchoring, with the certificate on board (Law 4926/2022, Art. 17).

This page is general information about insurance, not immigration or legal advice.

DigiCare Insurance is a licensed insurance intermediary. Legal information · How we review content

Complaints: contact us first; you can also turn to the Consumer Ombudsman (Συνήγορος του Καταναλωτή).

Reviewed by Costas Matheou, licensed insurance agent · Last updated: