Marina Operators Liability Insurance in Türkiye

What Is Marina Operators Liability Insurance?

Marina operators liability insurance is a legal liability insurance that aims to cover, up to the limit in the policy, the liabilities that may be legally imposed on a marina or boatyard operator for loss of or damage to boats and engines belonging to others that are in the operator's care, custody and control. The concept at the centre of this framework is property in the insured's care, custody or control (CCC).

The policy is not a hull insurance covering the boat owner's own damage; physical damage to the boat is the subject of the owner's Hull & Machinery (H&M) or Yacht and Pleasure Craft policy. The question in marina insurance is whether the operator has become legally liable and whether the policy responds to it.

This page is for general information. It is not legal advice, and it does not indicate any particular insurer's capacity, any commitment to provide cover or a price quotation. The wording information on this page is based on a product page and policy terms published by one insurer; it does not mean that this is the standard policy text used by all insurers in Türkiye.

Sea Tourism Regulation Article 51: Who Must Insure?

Under Article 51(1) of the Sea Tourism Regulation, sea tourism facility businesses certified under the Regulation must take out third-party financial liability insurance, marina liability insurance or port liability insurance.

• The obligation applies to certified sea tourism facility businesses. Whether a marina or boatyard is certified under this Regulation should be verified separately.
• The provision lists options joined by "or": third-party financial liability, marina liability or port liability insurance. A marina operators liability policy should therefore not be presented as the single compulsory policy for every marina; which option satisfies the requirement depends on the business and on the assessment of the competent authority.
• The second paragraph of Article 51 concerns sea tourism vessel businesses and provides for insurance covering losses the vessel may cause to its crew and third parties; for vessels carrying passengers, the page on Compulsory Liability Insurance for Passenger Vessels may also be consulted.
• Whether a policy satisfies the requirement depends on whether the policy covers the facility's activities and the cover sought.

Covered Activities and Care, Custody and Control (CCC)

In the sample policy terms, cover is given for loss or damage to private yachts and/or commercial craft and their engines belonging to others, while in the insured's care, custody or control at the marina, in respect of liabilities imposed by law arising from any of the following operations:

• Repair, replacement and maintenance
• Storage (which may include storage on land and winter storage; details are defined in the policy)
• Mooring at slips, premises or moorings leased by the insured
• Towing or launching not connected with repair or storage
• Temporary fuel or miscellaneous services

The same insurer's product page lists repair and overhaul work carried out under control and supervision, storage, hauling onto a slip, mooring to a berth or buoy, lifting out or launching and refuelling; it states that the transport of boats is covered provided it is within limits set by the insurer. The product page also lists car park liability, premises risks and tenants' liabilities among the cover headings; their scope should be confirmed in the policy clauses.

• The CCC requirement: Liability relates to loss arising while the boat or engine is in the operator's care, custody or control. When and through which activity the boat passed into the operator's control, and when that control ended (the moment of hand-over), may be disputed; berthing, winter storage and haul-out contracts matter in this respect.
• Mooring and buoy services: Cover may be tied to the mooring being carried out at slips, premises or buoys leased or operated by the insured; mooring at third-party piers or buoys should be stated separately in the policy.
• Hauling out and launching: Lifting and launching operations are a major part of marina risk. In the sample terms, towing and launching operations not connected with repair or storage are listed as a separate item.
• Lifting equipment and operational capacity: In the sample terms, loss and damage caused by exceeding the registered or rated lifting capacity of any lifting appliance, slipway or dry dock is excluded (exclusion c). This means the capacity limit remains the insured's operational responsibility; the equipment's licence, maintenance and inspection records matter for underwriting.
• Storage and winter storage: Boats stored on land or under cover give rise to a long seasonal CCC exposure; in the sample terms, damage occurring while the boat is in the operator's care, custody or control is excluded unless it is noticed within sixty days after delivery to its owner (exclusion h). This is not a deadline for notifying the insurer of a claim but a condition of cover relating to the damage being noticed after hand-over; it does not mean that every marina policy contains the same period.
• Refuelling and ancillary services: Refuelling and miscellaneous marina services may be listed among the covered operations depending on the terms; the consequences of pollution, fire and explosion should be assessed separately.

Bodily Injury Cover: Conflict Between Sources

There is a conflict between two sources published by the same insurer on bodily injury (death and personal injury). This page does not present bodily injury as automatic cover.

• Source of the conflict: the promotional description on the product page versus the exclusion clause of the policy terms text published by the same insurer. Both sources were reviewed on 26 October 2026.
• The conflict could not be resolved with the available sources: the date or version of the terms text is unknown, and the "relevant clauses" to which the product page refers and the policy cover schedule were not reviewed.
• Bodily injury should therefore be treated as a matter that depends on the policy and the relevant clauses. Before a marina operators liability policy is bought, whether death and injury are covered and, if so, under which clause and limit should be confirmed in writing with the insurer.
• If bodily injury is excluded in the policy, a separate cover such as general third-party liability may be considered for the injury risk of facility visitors and third parties; employer's liability for employees is a separate subject.

Limit, Defence Costs, Excess and Geographical Limit

• Limit: In the sample terms the limit of liability is the amount in US dollars agreed in the policy. The limit amount is the figure set by the insurer for the marina and written in the policy schedule; this page does not suggest a limit.
• Defence costs: In the sample terms legal defence costs are shown within the maximum liability; that is, defence costs may erode the limit. Defence costs must be incurred with the insurer's prior written consent; the insurer has the right to appoint counsel and to retain the direction and control of the defence.
• Sub-limits: The product page states that the transport of boats is limited to limits set by the insurer. Whether other sub-limits exist should be checked in the policy schedule.
• Excess: The sources reviewed do not state an excess amount or percentage; the excess is set in the policy schedule.
• Geographical limit: According to the sample terms, the covered operations are assessed within the insured's marina and adjacent mooring area and places connected with them; the text refers to 25 miles, but because of translation the exact meaning of the wording is uncertain. The geographical limit should be confirmed from the definition in the policy schedule.
• Premium basis: According to the sample terms the policy is issued on an agreed amount of premium, and the insured keeps a record of gross expenses relating to the covered operations; the insurer may inspect these records and may ask for an annual report.

Contractual Liability and Marina Contracts

In the sample terms, liabilities assumed under a contract (or an extension by contract of liabilities that the law places on the insured) are excluded (exclusion b). The terms of berthing, winter storage, haul-out and service contracts should therefore be read together with the policy.

• Contract clauses that increase liability or give the boat owner an indemnity undertaking may fall outside the policy.
• Clauses that limit liability or direct the boat owner to its own insurance affect claims and recourse after a loss; the validity of such clauses depends on legal assessment.
• Whether the boat owner's policy waives recourse against the operator, and the recourse provisions in the operator's own policy, should be checked separately; the sample terms regulate the preservation and assignment of the insured's recovery rights to the insurer.
• The hand-over record and the conditions on damage being noticed after hand-over (sixty days in the sample terms; exclusion h) matter for cover. This is separate from notifying the insurer of a claim and may differ from policy to policy.

Limits on Repair, Maintenance and Alteration Activities

The sample terms list repair, replacement and maintenance among covered operations. However, expenditure to correct faulty workmanship, materials or design (exclusion i), goods held for sale and property used for hire or charter (exclusions e and f) are excluded.

• The scope of maintenance and repair carried out within the marina varies according to whether it is done by the operator's own employees or by subcontractors; dishonesty or misconduct of the insured's contractors or employees is excluded in the sample terms (exclusion d).
• For shipyard-type ship repair and major alteration activities, Ship Repairers' Liability Insurance should be considered; which policy an activity falls under is determined by the definitions in the policy.
• Welding, hot work and fuel system work carried out on boats require a separate risk assessment as regards fire and pollution consequences.

Main Exclusions and Policy Conditions

In the sample policy terms the policy gives rise to no liability in the following cases. The list is a summary; the policy, its clauses and the cover schedule govern.

• Death or personal injury (clause 6(a); see the Bodily Injury Cover section)
• Liabilities assumed under contract, or the extension of liabilities that the law imposes on the insured (b)
• Exceeding the registered or rated lifting capacity of a lifting appliance, slipway or dry dock (c)
• Dishonesty or misconduct of the insured or its contractors or employees (d)
• Goods held for sale (e)
• Property used for hire or charter (f)
• Loss recoverable under any other insurance for the insured's benefit, except the excess over that insurance (g)
• Damage occurring while in the operator's care, custody or control, unless noticed within sixty days after delivery to the owner (h; a condition of cover, not a notification period)
• Cost of correcting faulty workmanship, materials or design (i)
• War, riot and similar political and military events (j) and nuclear risks (k)

The main duties of the insured in the sample terms are: notifying the insurer as soon as possible of any situation that may give rise to loss; not admitting liability without the insurer's written consent (an insured who admits liability may lose the policy); cooperating with the insurer and taking reasonable steps to prevent loss. The policy may be cancelled by either party on thirty days' written notice to the other; the sample terms also contain a time-limit provision for bringing an action against the insurer; the numerical period of that provision is not given on this page as a general rule. The duty to notify a claim and the condition in exclusion (h) that damage be noticed after hand-over are separate matters: the first is the insured's obligation towards the insurer, the second a condition of cover.

On the action time-limit provision: under Turkish law the limitation period for claims arising from an insurance contract is governed by Article 1420 of the Turkish Commercial Code, and for liability insurance Article 1482 separately regulates claims against the insurer. Articles 1452(2) and 1486(2) of the Code treat contract terms contrary to those provisions as invalid. A time-limit provision in sample wording must therefore be assessed together with the law governing the policy and the mandatory provisions of Turkish law. This page reaches no legal conclusion on whether such a provision is valid or would be applied.

How It Differs from Hull & Machinery, Ship Repairers, Ports & Terminals and P&I

These policies do not automatically replace one another. In the same incident the boat owner's policy and the marina operator's policy may both respond; in that case contract terms and the apportionment of fault determine who bears liability.

Information Needed for a Quotation and Underwriting

• Marina location, mooring capacity, number of boats afloat and ashore, boat types and sizes
• Operating certificate under the Sea Tourism Regulation
• Lifting and launching equipment: type, capacity, age, maintenance and inspection records, operator experience
• Storage and winter storage: on land, under cover or afloat; number of boats stored each year
• Mooring and buoy arrangements, pier condition and storm exposure
• Fuel station and ancillary services
• Repair, maintenance and alteration activities; own employees and subcontractors
• Gross income or expense figures (for the premium basis)
• Samples of marina, berthing and winter storage contracts; liability terms
• Security, fire and emergency measures; loss and incident history
• Existing policies and the requested limit and excess preference

This list is an example; the information and documents requested vary by insurer. Acceptance, requests for further information and terms rest with the insurer concerned.

Sources and Currency

• MAPFRE Sigorta, Marina Operators Liability Insurance product page (reviewed on 26 October 2026)
• MAPFRE Sigorta, Marina Operators Liability Insurance Terms (4-page PDF; no date or version information; reviewed on 26 October 2026)
• Sea Tourism Regulation Article 51 (Official Gazette 24/7/2009, 27298; as amended by Presidential Decision No. 6229 of 19/10/2022)
• Turkish Commercial Code No. 6102, Articles 1420, 1452, 1482 and 1486 (text published on ticaret.gov.tr; reviewed on 26 October 2026)

The text of the Regulation was read from a secondary compilation of legislation and should be compared with the official text. The current version of the policy terms has not been reviewed, and this page does not present them as a standard valid for all insurers. Last checked: 26 October 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Neolife's Role

Neolife Group helps analyse liability needs by reviewing marina activities, existing policies and contracts, researches suitable insurance solutions, arranges placement work and compares the quotations received. This does not mean that any particular insurer's or reinsurer's capacity exists, that cover will be provided or that a premium is committed; acceptance and terms rest with the insurer concerned.

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