Ohlin Karcher
N/A
Deep down they love a bit of ruff..I am not surprised they are suspicious if you go around dressed like thatBit of an historical poke in the eye..
Cruising to France - do I need a yacht qualification of any kind?
- Thread starter West Coast
- Start date
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The whole of the Vilaine, Ile-et-Rance Canal and Rance are, strangely, exempt from the money making French policy of requiring certification for use of inland waterways. When I charted for a week on the Charente I gritted my teeth during the 10 minute 'Boat Skills' training delivered by a college student as his summer job. Apparently this was deemed sufficient in lieu of a CEVNI; my commercially endorsed YM Offshore qualification was not
DownWest
Well-Known Member
If you charter a boat on the rivers/canals, you don't need a licence. He was just seeing if you had enough nous to not bend it.
Bit illogical, but French way round a problem.
awol
Well-Known Member
ross84;6958551 I was told I would need a certificate of competency said:
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But if you have a CEVNI you do not need to be assessed. I had to pay a small fee for the legally required assessment. I was not happy, not about the cost but the indignity of being assessed by someone to whom I would struggle to award a DS certificate. The assessment is meaningless, it is a revenue-generating scheme.
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Are you sure DS is not a certificate of competency? It can be, and often is, commercially endorsed by professional mariners servicing wind farms, running tour boats etc. Coastal Skipper is not a CoC but can be upgraded to one by successful completion of a Yachtmaster Coastal exam, i.e. with a different examiner to the instructor.
awol
Well-Known Member
I am not an expert, others on here are, but as I understand it the DS course completion certificate can be commercially endorsed with the addition of an invigilated (i.e. not on-line) DS shore-based exam. I believe Coastal Skipper has been superseded by Yachtmaster Coastal which is a CofC.
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I'm not an expert on the RYA's YM scheme either but I am reiterating the information given by my YMI trainer on a recent course. I failed, BTW, so take what I say with a pinch of salt. It's confusing but my understanding is that Coastal Skipper is no longer a course, replaced by YM Coastal for which no examination is required. If you want a CoC based on this course then you need to take a Coastal Skipper exam. The days when this was a consolation prize for failing YM Offshore are over: you choose your level of certificate beforehand and either pass or fail.
Day Skipper is a standalone CoC, AFAIK. When I did my sea survival half the course were potential wind farm servicing skippers seeking commercial endorsement and had only completed the standard DS.
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LadyInBed
Well-Known Member
As far as certification is concerned, the only UK certificate that is recognised in Europe is the ICC, so all the other RYA scrolls of paper are irrelevant!
AntarcticPilot
Well-Known Member
It's always worth remembering that we mostly sail in "internal waters". Not usually "territorial waters" and certainly not "international waters" unless we are making long passages (I made it into "international waters" while on passage from the Clyde, but that's the only time!). And that matters, because in "internal waters" the law that obtains is the law of the country that the waters are internal to, not the International Law of the Sea, and not the law of the flag state. They can impose whatever regulations they like as long as we're in internal waters. We are fortunate that most European countries don't impose their own regulations on foreign flagged vessels - but in internal waters, they can. The EU has a principle called comity that means that British reguations are accepted for British flagged vessels (within reason), but after Brexit, that goes out of the window unless it is negotiated; I rather suspect that the powers that be will have much weightier things on their mind, though!
Graham376
Well-Known Member
In Zeebrugge, the very fascistic port police made me paint a port of registry on my transom, at gunpoint.
Some Belgian and Dutch guys, crew off a big tug, came and poked fun at the red-faced, angry officials, surrounding them, mocking them, laughing and offering them puffs on huge spliffs
Port of registry is a requirement under international law. 24 boats were impounded a by new to the job customs officer in Bruce's yard (Portugal) a few years ago until rectified.
Don't understand Daydream believer's comment above, we've never been asked for VAT proof or had the engine number checked - what do they check that against anyway? No engine number on any of our papers but the boat is pre-RCD, maybe that makes a difference.
dunedin
Well-Known Member
If that is the case, how does it work with SSR. AFAIK there is no formal port of registry for boats on SSR (although there is under the full Part I registration, which is different).
Ohlin Karcher
N/A
Yes that was my understanding also.
bobgarrett
Well-Known Member
The back of the SSR says "Cardiff" so when asked that is what I put.
Ohlin Karcher
N/A
Apologies to the Welsh but I'm not painting that on my hull any time soon :encouragement:
Ohlin Karcher
N/A
I had a Day Skipper as crew recently, he couldn't sail to save his life, and knew next to nothing about anything nautical, although a fine chap in other ways. I find it impossible to believe a DS can get a job driving a wind farm cat. Maybe your guys were on the way to do the YM Offshore?
RichardS
N/A
That's not correct, I'm afraid. My RYA Yachtmaster is fully recognised in Croatia and, as I had to pass an exam to be awarded it, it clearly demonstrates my competence. :encouragement:
Richard
duncanmack
Well-Known Member
My late father, who was a retired C&E officer, had a sense of humour and retired part-time to S Brittany, kept his boat in Le Bono harbour.
SSR regs studied, he painted the name of the boat on the transom (Jean Marie - it was supposed to be Marjorie but the little kids in Bono struggled with my mum's name) and for a "port" stated "Kippen"
Kippen is as near as dammit in the centre of Scotland, but did have a boat builder of some renown based there. He built a slew of lifeboats during WW2 and lots of superb rowing boats for fishing and rowing afterwards.
Never questioned...
French logic. I had a long conversation with the Bureau Maritime in Auray some years ago.
1 What determines whether a motorsailor is a sailing boat or a motorboat? "Puissance" (power: of sails V engine)
Very complicated formula applicable, but they don't really care..... - quelle surprise.
2. ICC necessary inland?
Well, if you were allowed to actually sail through the canals then ICC + CEVNI unnecessary. However you can't sail - and you have to take the mast/s down due to the lack of air draft.
A boat without a mast is of necessity a motorboat. If it's engine is over 6CV ( basically HP) then you need either a Permis Bateau or an ICC + CEVNI if appropriate to the waterway.
Quite simple really...
duncan99210
Well-Known Member
You are, of course, quite correct in that the SSR doesn’t have a port of registry. However, just about every time I’ve booked into a marina in mainland Europe or had anything to do with the Greek Port Police, they all expect a port of registry. So what we’ve done is to put a small sticky label on the bottom of the certificate stating “Home Port: Falmouth”; we’ve also got Falmouth on the stern of the boat. Simple to do and stops irritating questions about how to spell the name of the port.
LadyInBed
Well-Known Member
This has been discussed on previous threads about qualifications and as I remember it, not all EU Countries recognised YM, and that was one of the reasons for coming up with the ICC.
