Harbour dues without a receipt? Just don’t pay

[BelleSerene]

Somewhat shocked this morning to be asked up the Beaulieu river for an anchoring fee by the lad in a dory - without a receipt. He told me he didn’t have receipts on him. How convenient: how about you go and get some and then come back; I’ll still be here. He said he couldn’t go back but could email me one later.

No thanks!

I don’t expect Lord Montagu would know or care what his staff are doing, when there’s so much easy money around, you have to do so little for it, and your customers are either rich or unthinking or both.

 

[Poignard]

I don’t expect Lord Montagu would know or care what his staff are doing, when there’s so much easy money around, you have to do so little for it, and your customers are either rich or unthinking or both.

I should think the estate's finance director would be interested to learn that there is an opportunity for fees to be diverted into someone's pocket. Even assuming the staff are as honest as the day is long, all income should be accounted for and a duplicate receipt provides the means.

 

[Biggles Wader]

Somewhat shocked this morning to be asked up the Beaulieu river for an anchoring fee by the lad in a dory - without a receipt. He told me he didn’t have receipts on him. How convenient: how about you go and get some and then come back; I’ll still be here. He said he couldn’t go back but could email me one later.

No thanks!

I don’t expect Lord Montagu would know or care what his staff are doing, when there’s so much easy money around, you have to do so little for it, and your customers are either rich or unthinking or both.

Bugger! I'll have to stop dressing up as a young lad and scrap the dory. Or maybe find another anchorage to prey on.

 

[XDC]

Had this happen to me once in France. Think it was the Lezardrieux river (might have been Treg.)

Picked up a buoy.

Within 10 minutes a totally plastic boat (not even fenders) pulled up alongside and just somehow seemed genuine despite lack of sign-writing.

Paid a reasonable sum but no receipt available.

There was a sailing club over on the east bank so assumed the buoy belonged to them and didn’t see a harbour master rib so assume it was genuine but often wondered.

 

[xyachtdave]

I had similar at Harty Ferry round the back the Swale. Basically there's a load of drying creeks nearby with various yacht clubs providing waiting buoys if there's not enough tide to get in. The pilot book states which ones you can use and how they are marked up, sizes of boats that can use them etc, I was on one marked CCC, Conyer Cruising Club.

Lovely sunny evening, settled down in the cockpit with a cold beer and a couple of Herbert's arrive in a small open fishing boat.

'Hello mate, you're on one of our moorings and that'll be £10 please,'

I take his painter and tie it around a winch and 'Go and get my wallet,' which was code for go and get the pilot book. I come back sit on the side of the boat and show him the text about what's what.

You could tell instantly he just wanted to vanish, his mate went bright red and also looked like he'd rather be somewhere else. They mumbled something about not having their 'harbour plan' with them and attempted to untie the boat and leave but unfortunately it was tied to my winch which was out of their reach.

Just for fun I kept them hostage for about 10 minutes asking questions about the moorings, fishing, where he was from etc, all the time they both looked increasingly uncomfortable until I untied them!

That evening I posted about this on YBW's East Coast Forum and within about 1/2 hour had the blokes name and details, he is known for this apparently. Small world!

 

[oldharry]

Had the same in Portland harbour many years ago. I had had a rough passage singlehanded across Lyme Bay, and was pretty knackered. Even as I was preparing to anchor and still in my heavy weather gear a scruffy open boat pulled alongside demanding almost as much as a marina berth 'for anchoring'.

I replied in a few choice words that I hadnt even anchored yet and come back when I was secured and had had something to eat and a sleep. Not surprisingly they didnt re-appear.

 

[rogerthebodger]

In Mozambique I was stopped on a remote beach and asked for a fee for walking on the beach. Same if you anchor in any remote location.

North and south Mozambique seen to be different countries as if you clear in at the capital in the south you are asked (demand) a clearing in fee in the northern towns.

 

[Cantata]

I had similar at Harty Ferry round the back the Swale. .......................That evening I posted about this on YBW's East Coast Forum and within about 1/2 hour had the blokes name and details, he is known for this apparently. Small world!

Dave, I can't see this on the EC forum?

 

[JumbleDuck]

Had the same in Portland harbour many years ago.

There was someone trying a similar trick at Coll a few years back.

 

[xyachtdave]

Dave, I can't see this on the EC forum?

This was about 4 or 5 years ago, I’d imagine the thread it’s still there if you search.

The rather excellent East Coast Pilot saved me a tenner!

 

[Graham376]

In Mozambique I was stopped on a remote beach and asked for a fee for walking on the beach. Same if you anchor in any remote location.

Many years ago we used to camp by the lagoon at Sao Martinho do Bilene, north of LM. As soon as tents pitched, locasl would come out of the bush asking for money to guard the tents or, put another way, if you don't pay we'll trash the tents. One rand was good investment.

 

[Cantata]

This was about 4 or 5 years ago, I’d imagine the thread it’s still there if you search.
The rather excellent East Coast Pilot saved me a tenner!

That's a bit weird. The post is dated yesterday!

 

[BelleSerene]

After the event I wrote to the harbour master to inform her. They continue to close ranks and tell some quite obvious untruths, for example:

- that the boatman had been right to charge me a swinging-mooring fee for my anchorage, on the ground that a buoy was the closest mooring allowed to where I had anchored. Of course, there's no valid cause in law for charging that: you can ask me to move because you don't allow anchoring in that part of the river, and you can charge an anchoring fee for anchoring anyway. You can't just make up charges.

- that despite the lack of any sign indicating allowable stretches for anchoring, I should have consulted their website or printed material to find out before anchoring! Don't know about you, but I don't check council websites for parking locations, I just look at the road signs. And I wonder how these petty people expect you to know what's on their printed material that you can't even get access to while you're still afloat?!

- that because the software in their harbour office will send you a receipt by email, the man in a dory who collects cash - not electronic payment - isn't obliged to give a paper receipt on receipt of payment. He is.

- that my own attitude and behaviour had somehow been negative. Sometimes you wish CCTV were more prevalent!

- that when, the following weekend, I returned to the river and offered payment in their office, including for that previous weekend's anchoring, I had stayed on a short-stay pontoon without permission and should first have called over VHF. In fact, that's precisely what I did, and the reason I tied up to the mid river pontoon is because the harbour office specifically directed me there over the radio - as friends coming up the river behind me overheard.

Petty officialdom sometimes seems to think it can make up the law or the rules of reasonable behaviour as it goes along. I know Beaulieu has something of a reputation in this regard.

 

[RivalRedwing]

Dave, I can't see this on the EC forum?

http://www.ybw.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-397720.html

 

[KINGFISHER 8]

I had the same on South Caicos Island … "$5 to guard your dinghy mister?"

 

[[3889]]

Also a similar experience when I enquired recently about anchoring in Cellar Bay on the Yealm in a completely undeveloped, and rather exposed area of the river. £19 per night! The slight difference being that the charge was legally, if not morally, valid. My 5 day excursion to England's south coast will be enough for another decade or so.

 

[BelleSerene]

Also a similar experience when I enquired recently about anchoring in Cellar Bay on the Yealm in a completely undeveloped, and rather exposed area of the river. £19 per night! The slight difference being that the charge was legally, if not morally, valid. My 5 day excursion to England's south coast will be enough for another decade or so.

Don’t want to confuse the topic, as Beaulieu is generally believed to have the historic right to charge for anchoring. The issues with Beaulieu were that
- when you anchored in apparently the wrong place, they went well beyond their right to ask you to move and to charge you for anchoring (both of which I offered) and they invented the right to charge the higher fee for a swinging mooring, simply because there was one lying nearby which I hadn’t even touched!
- and that they demanded cash without giving a receipt at the time.

But in the Yealm, what makes you think an anchoring charge would be legal at all? I do not believe it is.

 

[Kukri]

Tell the importuning oiks that under the Bribery Act the Master of a British ship who pays harbour dues without a receipt commits a criminal offence!

(It’s almost true... it’s what tell my Masters to say to the folks in Marlboro Country...)

 

[LittleSister]

But in the Yealm, what makes you think an anchoring charge would be legal at all? I do not believe it is.

As far as I can make out from its website, the River Yealm Harbour Authority has the powers to make such a charge. The designated harbour extends to include Cellar Bay. Charges are made for overnight stays, and the charge is the same for anchoring, mooring, or visitor pontoons.

 

[[3889]]

As far as I can make out from its website, the River Yealm Harbour Authority has the powers to make such a charge. The designated harbour extends to include Cellar Bay. Charges are made for overnight stays, and the charge is the same for anchoring, mooring, or visitor pontoons.

Yep. http://www.yealmharbourauthority.co.uk/downloads/Visitor_Charges_2019.pdf
Entirely legal. Also entirely unjustifiable, IMO. If brexit wasn't sufficient incentive to abandon the UK this sort of shenanigans certainly is. Does anyone know of another country in Europe where anchoring outside of a developed harbour incurs a charge? I certainly don't.