ICC - Do you really need it?

[Drascomber]

The title of the thread says "Do you really need it".
The body of the inital post says "Have you been asked for it"
Two different questions.

Consider.
How often are you asked for your driving license? In my case in the last 20 years - only when I needed to hire a car. Do I carry it when travelling abroad - yes. Do I really need it? What do you think?

So. When I sail in Waters that require a qualification I carry my Day Skipper cert. along with a lot of other paperwork. In the EC do I expect to be asked for it? - no. Do I need it? Yes - because like my driving license, I might be asked for it and for me the consequences of breaking the law outweigh the hassle of obtaining the certificate.

 

[peterb]

[ QUOTE ]
Has anyone ever been asked to show an ICC?

[/ QUOTE ]

I've been asked for qualifications, and the ICC was accepted. But not, I expect, in the way that the OP was thinking of.

I had some meetings in Hamburg. Having an afternoon to spare, I thought I might hire a boat on the Alster Lake. I walked down to the departure point, and asked the man. "Nein, in Deutchland, qualifications!" So I delved into my case and produced an ICC. He hummed and hawed for a minute or so, then agreed. Then I produced my Yachtmaster ticket, old style, like an old style UK passport. His eyes lit up: "Ahh, Yachtmeister, ja, ja, ja!" He'd obviously never seen one before, and read it almost reverentially. I got my afternoon on the water, but I'm not sure that it was the ICC that got me the schnaps that I was offered on my return.

 

[Anonymous]

I believe that while DS (both theory and practical) exempts you from the ICC test -- i.e. you can get an ICC for the asking, and the fee -- DS has no legal significance overseas whereas the ICC is in several languages and has been accepted by Euroland.