A free Word template for a boat damage survey report: instructions, the incident as reported, damage found, cause, repair method and cost, unrelated defects, and example findings graded A, B and C.
Download the Word template.DOCXA damage survey report answers the questions in your instructions: what is damaged, what caused it, whether that matches the incident as reported, how it should be repaired and what that should cost. Insurers and loss adjusters settle claims from it, and yards price the repair from it.
This template follows the order most adjusters expect. Download it in Word, or read on for what goes in each section, with example wording and example findings.
Who instructed you, for which claim, and on which boat. A damage report is often read by an insurer, a loss adjuster, the owner and a yard, so name each party and their role.
Instructed by the hull underwriters on 3 October 2026, claim reference HC-2026-0418, to attend the vessel and report on the nature, cause and extent of damage following a grounding. Attended ashore at the repairing yard on 6 October 2026 in the presence of the owner and the yard manager.
What happened, according to the owner or skipper, kept separate from your own findings. Write it as reported and say who reported it.
The owner reports that on 28 September 2026, at about 15:30, the vessel touched an uncharted rock while entering the anchorage at Cala Galdana under engine at about 5 knots. The vessel was hauled out on 1 October.
What you saw and measured, item by item, with photos. This is where your findings go.
Your opinion on how the damage happened and whether it matches the incident as reported. Insurers pay for sudden and accidental damage, so say clearly which items are consistent with the incident and which are older.
The fresh gelcoat fractures at the forward end of the keel, the crushing of the keel root fairing and the cracking of the internal floor tabbing are consistent with a forward grounding at moderate speed as described.
How the damage should be repaired and what it should cost. An adjuster sets the claim from this section, so tie every cost to a damaged item.
The repairing yard's quote of EUR 18,400 for removing and rebedding the keel, renewing the keel bolts and re-tabbing floors 2 to 4 is considered fair and reasonable for the work described.
A short answer to each question in your instructions. Many readers stop here.
Your statement, name, accreditation and signature, and the basis on which the report is issued.
Each finding says what the system is, where it is, what was found and what should be done, with a grade for how urgent it is. These are written the way Axsail writes them from what the surveyor says on board.
Joint open by 4 mm over the forward 600 mm, with crushed fairing compound and fresh gelcoat fractures.
Recommendation: Drop the keel, inspect the keel bolts and the hull stub, and rebed the keel.
Tabbing cracked away from the hull on both sides of floors 2 and 3, with fresh white fracture lines. Floor 4 sound.
Recommendation: Grind back and re-tab floors 2 and 3 to the builder's laminate schedule.
Abrasion through the gelcoat over 150 mm. Moisture readings in the area match the rest of the blade.
Recommendation: Fill and fair, and seal before relaunch.
Rust scale and wasting on the nuts and washers older than the incident. Not caused by the grounding.
Recommendation: Replace the nuts and washers when the keel is rebedded. Owner's account.
Old scuffs with weathered edges, unrelated to the incident.
Recommendation: Polish at the owner's convenience. Owner's account.
A damage report is easiest to use when four things never mix:
An adjuster can then settle the claim from the report without coming back to you.
Take the photos before anything is moved or opened up, then again at each stage the yard opens. Put a scale in the frame for cracks and gaps, and note the time on each photo. In the report, put each photo next to the finding it shows, the way Axsail places them from what you said on board.
Your instructions and the claim reference, the incident as reported, the damage found with photos and readings, your opinion on the cause, the repair method and a cost you consider reasonable, any unrelated defects kept separate, short conclusions and your signed certification.
Usually the party that instructs the surveyor, most often the hull insurer or its loss adjuster. An owner sometimes instructs their own surveyor to check the insurer's findings or the yard's quote.
An insurer pays for damage caused by the insured incident, and the owner pays for wear and older damage. Keeping them in separate sections makes the claim clear and avoids disputes over what the policy covers.
Yes. Download it, add your logo and terms, and use it for your own surveys. No sign-up.
Dictate as you inspect. Axsail builds the findings and the report for your signature
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