Bashing Marinas

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Bobdehler

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On the topic of unfair charges;

I requested a quote from a contractor to change a sheave box on my mast and was told that the marina charges him £25 to work on site! This cost to be passed on to the client.. plus VAT!
More than the price of the sheave block!

The contractor even advertises in their year book!

Any other marinas run this scam?
 
I believe mine wants to charge a tenner, yes. Doesn't affect me as I do all the work on my boat, but still seems rather cheeky.

I think places with workshops on site see it as a kind of protective tariff to stop those companies being undercut by outsiders - but its unclear why they deserve such protection. And my yard has no services on site anyway!

For your £25 plus vat you could probably have bought a lazy tong riveter and a cheap cordless drill :)

Pete
 
Bobdehler said:
On the topic of unfair charges;

I requested a quote from a contractor to change a sheave box on my mast and was told that the marina charges him £25 to work on site! This cost to be passed on to the client.. plus VAT!
More than the price of the sheave block!

The contractor even advertises in their year book!

Any other marinas run this scam?
Click to expand...

I very much doubt that they force the contractor to pass the cost on to you - it should be an on cost for him like parking costs or mileage etc. But thats for you to negotiate.

I'm not surprised at the marina doing that - given their legal liabilities for the safety of contractors working on their site, they will have to control access, record comings and goings and insure themselves against the risks. No point in taking on all these issues if there is no money in it, is there?

Just putting the other side of the story. Why not use a club pontoon / mooring if you are unhappy with a marina. Bound to save you money big time
 
wotayottie said:
..... I'm not surprised at the marina doing that - given their legal liabilities for the safety of contractors working on their site, they will have to control access, record comings and goings and insure themselves against the risks. No point in taking on all these issues if there is no money in it, is there? .....
Click to expand...

As the marinas are obliged to control risks on their site anyway (and provide liability insurance) why should they charge for it as they have no choice in this matter? I would have thought that this would be covered in the overhead element of the marina fees as they will always have requirement for 3rd parties on their site, even if its just the electricity meter reader man. Far better that they have system where only contractors who have valid 3rd Party liability insurance at a suitable value are allowed in. I see it as a just another revenue stream and not as a fee to cover over heads associated with 3rd parties working on their premises for someone else. However, I have no issue with that as long as it is in the contract. At Largs Yacht Haven they don't charge for other Contractors working in the marina even though the marina rents workshops to a number of companies, they do insist on pre registration and a copy of the public liability insurance certificate and insurance in excess of £3MM.

I wouldn't be surprised if it was a practice that had its origins in boat yard owned marinas that offered both facilities for yacht storage and full yard services all owned by the same company. I have a vague recollection that this practice was dropped on the Clyde sometime ago as there are only a few service companies who work across all the marinas anyway.

Just some thoughts on the subject.
 
I would have thought that a company that is advertised in their yearbook would be an "approved" contractor and had submitted copies of third party liability insurance. End of story.

The mast and rigging service company concerned says that this marina is the only one on the Clyde that makes this charge. I only use marinas for winter storage so maybe time to look at alternatives. The one I use rents cradles for the winter and that is the attraction.. it certainly isn't the cheapest on the Clyde!

I wrote a complaint letter and they say its the contractors choice to pass costs onto the client. The contractor can pay £200/year or £20/visit.. plus VAT that seems to translate to £25+vat cost to me.

I have the tongs but not the sheave box or rivets.. time to explore the internet I think!

Thanks for the replies - the situation in the eastern med makes my charges seem almost reasonable!
 
I recently learned that my marina doesn't charge contractors to attend but charges £11 for the boat's keys. It looks as if they are missing a trick here.
 
johnalison said:
I recently learned that my marina doesn't charge contractors to attend but charges £11 for the boat's keys. It looks as if they are missing a trick here.
Click to expand...

Yeah, especially since I'd be leaving the contractor with a spare when I visited to discuss the work, or hiding one somewhere on board, rather than paying such a silly fee :)

Pete
 
Bobdehler said:
On the topic of unfair charges;

I requested a quote from a contractor to change a sheave box on my mast and was told that the marina charges him £25 to work on site! This cost to be passed on to the client.. plus VAT!
More than the price of the sheave block!

The contractor even advertises in their year book!

Any other marinas run this scam?
Click to expand...

Some marinas won't allow contractors on site at all, unless they are on an approved list.
 
Bobdehler said:
I would have thought that a company that is advertised in their yearbook would be an "approved" contractor and had submitted copies of third party liability insurance. End of story.

The mast and rigging service company concerned says that this marina is the only one on the Clyde that makes this charge. I only use marinas for winter storage so maybe time to look at alternatives. The one I use rents cradles for the winter and that is the attraction.. it certainly isn't the cheapest on the Clyde!

I wrote a complaint letter and they say its the contractors choice to pass costs onto the client. The contractor can pay £200/year or £20/visit.. plus VAT that seems to translate to £25+vat cost to me.

I have the tongs but not the sheave box or rivets.. time to explore the internet I think!

Thanks for the replies - the situation in the eastern med makes my charges seem almost reasonable!
Click to expand...

Is this Kip Marina? I vaguely recall in the mid to late 1990s when I was based at Kip that they levied this charge. As for the advertisers being approved, not likely, anyones money is good enough to advertise in the year book.
 
I certainly have no objection to providing my PLI certificate, even copies of qualifications etc, in fact I always ring ahead and email a copy should it be required if working in a new marina, but if they want to charge me I simply decline the customers kind offer of work. I have more than enough to do without being involved in that nonsense.
 
I know of a marina present in the Solent and Sussex that runs this fee "policy". Allegedly it is so that they can check the contractor's insurance.
 
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