boat tours

[cheenyweeny]

anyone know what qualifications, insurance etc required to take fare paying passengers out on trips or fishing trips on a rib up to a few miles from shore,i have a couple of years rib experience, RYA power level 2 and my VHF radio licence
is it just a case of the correct insurance and paying tax etc or do you need formal RYA certificates etc

 

[theforeman]

you need a commercial endorsement on your rya qualification but i have a feeling that you can no longer get a comm end on pb2 - you need the next one up ( can`t remember what it`s called just now /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif ). to get comm end you need a medical and i think the safety certificate. in addition to that you have to get the boat " coded " to mca standards - basically certified that it is in good condition and carries the specified safety equipment for the area of operation, plus, as you say, insurance to cover the risk.

 

[cheenyweeny]

Medical !!!!!!!
I need more research - Help!

 

[ulava]

Try here, http://www.ybdsa.co.uk/certification.htm
cheers annan

 

[timgriffin]

You can get your level 2 comm endorsed but it will only allow you to operate from 3nm of a nominated departure point on a Cat 6 MCA coded boat.
TO operate 20 nm from a safe haven on a Cat 3 and 4 coded vessel you will need your Advanced Powerboat or Coastal Skipper and Comm endorsement (you will need to attend a exam for the powerboat comm endorsement). For up to 60 nm from a safe haven you will need YM with comm endorsement and a mate on board, for 150 from a safe haven you need YM with comm endorsement and a coastal skipper as mate .
The medical falls into to types ML5 can be done by your GP and is suitable for work up to 60 miles of shore or ENG1 which must be carried out by MCA approved Doctor and will allow you to go up to 150 nm off shore. In addition to these qualifications you need First Aid Certificate, VHF DSC and Sea Survival.
Tim

 

[Solitaire]

Adding to what Timg has said, you will also need the rib/boat to be coded to MCA standards. This will involve a fair bit of cost as the equipment you will require to carry is not cheap. Life raft for the designated number of people onboard is around £1500! You will need life jackets for all plus two extra and of those two must have a harness and you must carry two clip-on harnesses as well. The boat will need to be surveyed and a stability test undertaken. Be careful with ribs as very often the transom is not high enough to meet the regulations. It is easier to code a new boat than an older one so take that into consideration as well - you have it built with codeing requirements in mind.

You will also need to write an operations manual with a lot of detail about the boat in it as well.

It is not as streight forward as you might think.

 

[Canopy Locked]

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It is not as straight forward as you might think.

[/ QUOTE ]

Beg to disagree! Having been thro the process this summer, it's not too bad.

Step 1 - get your qualifications for the area you intend to operate - probably best to start with code 4 or 5 - the commercial endoresement involves filling in form from the RYA + £25 plus copies of your training cert, 1st aid and sea survival qualification.

As far as the boat is concerned get yourself a copy of Notice MGN 280 - The small commercial vessel & Pilot boat code of practice. This will tell you everything you need to know about how your boat should be equipped for your intended use and will be useful when deciding on the type of boat. However it is quite a big document so there is an easier way /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif. If you contact Mecal and make an application to code your boat (£125 i think - just for the application), they will send you a complete spec sheet for the boat!

if doing this it makes sense to at least have a boat whose basic design makes it suitable for coding.

Lastly the cost.. It's not cheap. For the training, and fitting the extra bits & bobs required, life raft hire, survey etc. you'll be looking in the region of £3-4k so it makes sense doing a little bit of home work before investing the time and effort!

Good luck

 

[cheenyweeny]

Lots of info to chew over - thanks.
One question who checks out the boat?
Does someone come to see it , then again after any modifications.

 

[jfm]

Who/what are Mecal, Rob?

 

[Canopy Locked]

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Who/what are Mecal, Rob?

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As I understand the MCA coding is adminsitered by a number of agencies - eg: Mecal, Buereau Veritas and so on. These are companies, often with world wide operations and some of them specialise in the larger vessels.

I only have personal experience of Mecal. ( a friend who has a dive boat used them and put me onto them)

This company employs or uses surveyors based throughout the UK. They will tell you who the nearest surveyor is and forward him the paperwork. The initial survey is very comprehensive but their principal aim is to ensure safety of the boat, pax and crew. If you're prepared to work with them rather than be resentful of being told to do this or that.. then like me, you will find Mecal extreemely friendly and helpful to work with.

The other tip I would suggest is this.. Where I am has a short season as far as charter boats are concerned, so I aimed my business at a specific niche, rather than trying to compete directly with the 2 nearby charter boats. I have thus enjoyed a fair degree of help and friendship from the other skippers /forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

 

[timgriffin]

We used Mecal on our dive rib very helpful .
Tim

 

[Wiggo]

You need to get an MCA approved surveyor to do the survey. Another £500+