Lightening Strike Repairs

Charbonneau gets a lift for repairs

Getting the bottom power-washed was a side benefit to the repairs

Mark, from BIG Electronics, replaces the broken items atop the mast

Cal, also from BIG Electronics, replaces the radome on our arch

We witnessed the fury of Mother Nature during a lightening storm on September 10^th, 2001. We were relieved to see that while Charbonneau lost almost all of her electronics, we had not suffered any physical damage to the hull. As we embarked upon the path to repairs, our relief quickly turned to frustration. We hope by sharing our experiences, you can avoid similar frustrations if you find yourselves in comparable situations.

Perhaps we should start with an overview of the process we went through. In discussions with other cruisers who were hit by lightening, our experiences are very similar to theirs. After a lightening strike, the process begins with a call to your insurance company to open a claim. Once the claim is open, you are directed to have an immediate haul-out to inspect the bottom for any signs of damage from the lightening exiting your boat. A surveyor, normally assigned by the insurance company, provides a complete inspection of your boat while hauled. Insurance companies also tend to let boat-owners select a repair facility to be present at the haul-out and quote the potential repairs.

The survey begins with a thorough examination of thru-hulls, any discoloration in the fiberglass, or other signs of damage associated with the strike. In our case, there was no physical damage and we were put right back in the water. If the surveyor finds hull damage, you’ll be put on the hard until the appropriate repairs can be arranged (and agreed to by the insurance company). In addition to the hull inspection, the surveyor goes through the entire boat looking for electrical damage. When the surveyor has seen everything, he or she will provide a complete report of their findings to the insurance company. If you’ve already selected a repair facility, they provide a quote to the insurance company for the repairs at the same time. After the insurance company receives the surveyor’s report and the repair facility’s quote, they will negotiate to reach an agreeable price for the repairs and the repairs can begin. Once the repairs are complete, the insurance company will either pay the repair facility or the boat owner(s), depending on how your insurance company policy works.

So, where did our frustrations begin? As described above, we immediately called our insurance company, State Farm, and opened a claim. In the next few days we had selected BIG Electronics to complete our repairs, State Farm had assigned a marine surveyor, and a haul-out was scheduled for Friday of the same week. Things were moving quickly. Little did we know that scheduling the haul-out would be the last thing to happen quickly.

Our surveyor, Richard Geisel, inspected the boat on that Friday and promised a report to the insurance company by the following Wednesday. His report showed up at the insurance company sixteen days later, after numerous calls and complaints to both him and the insurance company. To add more insult, his report wasn’t a survey at all. He provided the insurance company with a six-paragraph letter that read like a “What I Did Last Summer” report for grade school. There was no detailed listing of items affected in the lightening strike or recommendations for repairs. Instead he took a photocopy of BIG Electronics’ quote and made notes on it. Unfortunately, BIG’s quote didn’t include all the items needing repair.

The surveyor’s job is to detail these items. He failed miserably. In fact, he lied on several occasions about when his report would be completed, would not return our calls, or discuss the survey with us. After almost two weeks, he told the insurance company that he approved of the parts pricing from BIG, but had some questions regarding labor for wiring. Based on his statements, we ordered the parts from BIG. When the insurance company called him regarding the delay in his report, he changed his story to not approving the cost of parts. It was a mess. His performance was so appalling that we filed letters of complaint with our insurance company and both professional organizations that represent the marine surveyor profession. Bottom line – Avoid Richard Hoffman Geisel, out of Richmond, VA, for any survey work.

We found ourselves in a serious dispute with State Farm due to Richard’s statements and inadequate report. Thankfully, our State Farm agent and our careful notes regarding the claim provided State Farm with enough information to approve BIG Electronics’ quote so the work could begin. After two tense days of negotiations our repair work began in earnest – twenty days after we originally opened our claim. Old Man Winter was getting closer and closer with each passing day.

As I write this, we are only waiting for a few final items. Yesterday, we found that our new B&G depth display was faulty. In addition, we had a six-week back order on our alternator and almost that long to get replacement LEDs for our electrical panel. Because we need to move the boat south before winter, we have ordered the equipment and are having it sent to our home mailing address. We’ll worry about those installations when the equipment finally arrives. State Farm agreed to hold those items as ‘open’ because of the unusual situations.

Although it has been a very frustrating, we have learned quite a bit from this experience. First and foremost, avoid lightening! Since that isn’t always possible, we’ve listed some lessons learned below.

As a side note, we didn’t have any commercial lightening protection devices aboard Charbonneau. Island Packets are well bonded which, theoretically, would be beneficial during a direct lightening strike. There are several devices that promise protection for boats in a lightening strike. Some approach it with the theory of ion dissipation (bottle brush devices on the mast). Others suggest a large direct path from the mast, the most likely target, to the water. I can’t offer answers to which provides the best protection, if any at all. In our case, the damage wasn’t from a direct strike. A green navigational aid, fifty yards from us, took the direct hit. Our damage resulted from one of two methods. Either the charge from the green aid transferred through the water and into the boat via our thru-hulls or our electronics were damaged from induced voltage because we were so close to the strike. In either case, we would have sustained the same damage even with a commercial protection device. They would, however, have provided some protection for a direct strike. We’re looking into the right solution for Charbonneau.

Our total repair bill approached $30,000 with parts, labor, and marina costs. We hope that you never experience a lightening strike while boating. If you do find yourself facing repairs after a strike, perhaps our experiences will assist you in approaching the ordeal better educated. If you have specific questions that we may have overlooked in this article, just drop us a note and we’ll share in any way possible.