Minnesota Family Protection Act would close boating insurance loophole

(KMSP) - A new bill that reached the Minnesota legislature Monday would require insurance coverage for all people onboard a boat, regardless of family status.

Currently, Minnesota law requires insurance coverage for all family members in a car, but does not require them to be included in a boat insurance policy. The Minnesota Family Protection Act would close that loophole. There are more than 800,000 registered boats throughout the state.

"They will put on the boat family members that they believe if tragedy strikes, they will be covered. But the secret is in Minnesota, god forbid, if that tragedy does strike, if it's your family member, you are not covered," Representative Nick Zerwas said.

The bill was authored by Senator Paul Anderson and Representative Kelly Fenton and supported by Wiggle Your Toes and Fox 9’s own Courtney Godfrey, who was injured in a boating accident last summer.

Courtney said her recovery was made even more challenging when the family discovered she was excluded from their boat and umbrella insurance policies.