Insurance Renewal - Outboard Kill Cord Clause

Mark-1 said:
Which is weird becaise they are catering for completely different circumstances.

LJ is for unconscious/helpless casualties, LJ is just a bit of a boost for someone who is reasonably able to swim.
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I think you meant BA in the second half of the sentence?

however for dinghying to shore a Bouyancy aid is a practical option in many cases - if you end up it the water you are likely initially conscious and relatively sheltered where help may be at hand in the time before hypothermia kicks in. If you leave in the dinghy and it gets wet it won’t matter. If you step off the side of the slipway and end up deeper than planned it doesn’t cast you £25 to rearm it. And if you do slip getting from dinghy to yacht, then probably easier to get into the dinghy unaided etc.

But if someone wants to use a lifejacket for longer survival time in the water, because that’s what they will wear on the yacht, they don’t swim and want extra reassurance or they find it more comfortable then those seem like perfectly reasonable selection criteria too.
 
Chiara’s slave said:
Fortunately my insurer makes no such stipulation. But to have a blanket clause like that made me think about it.
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Yeah I guess the OP was alerting people to a clause which may becoming more common - there’s been a KC clause in my insurance for the last 2 yrs. Some big payouts likely focussed underwriters minds.
 
Chiara’s slave said:
I entered this thread not to argue the toss about RCD, but to point out that outboard powered sailing yachts are quite large and quite secure. The risks associated with our engine use are just the same as an inboard powered boat. Should I wear my killcord, so that OH has to prat about finding the spare rather than just coming back to pick me up?
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My boat is outboard powered and operates the same way as a boat with an inboard. Any kill cord would have to be 30 foot long and possibly wouldn't work as it would drag round and get caught on cleats, etc.

Kill cords on a high speed are a good idea and the suggestion about having a spare readily available on board is very sensible for the passengers to use
 
Boathook said:
My boat is outboard powered and operates the same way as a boat with an inboard. Any kill cord would have to be 30 foot long and possibly wouldn't work as it would drag round and get caught on cleats, etc.
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Whilst I understand exactly what you are saying, I wonder if an underwriter sitting behind a desk somewhere might be concerned to know that the helmsman leaves the throttle controls with the engine in gear.

(If you really wanted to address that risk there are no "wireless" kill cords available.)
 
ylop said:
Because I wear a kill cord and lifejacket in the tender?

I don't think anybody has, or suggested they should. The only policy I ever recall requiring such things was for towing water skiers etc (where an impact vest not LJ was mandatory for the skier). This is typical nonsense that people who are outraged that they are being encouraged to use a kill cord come out with.

You have a right to choose but I'll judge you for doing so. The alternative is you are standing on the dock cutting people's life jackets or oil skins off shouting about real sailors don't need this - your argument is ridiculous.
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Real sailors take precautions when and whether required. I will ask you a simple question. Have you ever tried swimming in a life jacket or tried g noetting out of the water with a life jacket on....... Try it, you are in for a scary shock
Shock.
ylop said:
And dead sailors are often people who didn’t know when it would be required!

Yes I have. I fully accept that swimming in a lifejacket is near impossible, and even swimming in Bouyancy aid is hard work.

I have climbed ladders with even a 275N LJ and it’s seriously awkward but not impossible- of course there is a little tube that you can deflate some or all (and even reinflate with your mouth) if you really need to.

I’ve no issue if someone prefers a Bouyancy aid. The thread was really about kill cords though - I only mentioned lifejackets because I saw an example which had no L/j, k/c and didn’t even have hand on the tiller.
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I dare say you do 100 single arm press ups and then for desert do a 10 mile jog.
 
ylop said:
Whilst I understand exactly what you are saying, I wonder if an underwriter sitting behind a desk somewhere might be concerned to know that the helmsman leaves the throttle controls with the engine in gear.

(If you really wanted to address that risk there are no "wireless" kill cords available.)
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The same can be said of boats with inboards and those pesky motorboats going at 20 knots with auto pilot set for way point to way point.....
 
Boathook said:
The same can be said of boats with inboards and those pesky motorboats going at 20 knots with auto pilot set for way point to way point.....
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There's a YouTube video about that, it always reminds of a time I was nearly rammed up the transom by a big power boat, it's frightening watching them coming and not knowing which direction they are going to alter to, I stood on and it turned to port doing about 25knts, missing me by at most a meter.
 
Boathook said:
The same can be said of boats with inboards and those pesky motorboats going at 20 knots with auto pilot set for way point to way point.....
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Of course - but the underwriter probably thinks someone is always sitting at the controls in those too!
 
Boathook said:
My boat is outboard powered and operates the same way as a boat with an inboard. Any kill cord would have to be 30 foot long and possibly wouldn't work as it would drag round and get caught on cleats, etc....
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Er, no. You install a kill cord socket on your console. Or have I missed a wind-up :unsure:?
 
penberth3 said:
You install a kill cord socket on your console
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usually on the throttle, but yes I agree. Any boat where the helmsman can fall overboard easily ought to have this, or where the power is sufficiently high to unbalance someone.
A similar point is that the cord should be pulled any time the helm moves away from the controls, including docking and undocking - this is an area I see a lot of people miss and put themselves and others at risk.
 
lustyd said:
usually on the throttle, but yes I agree. Any boat where the helmsman can fall overboard easily ought to have this, or where the power is sufficiently high to unbalance someone.
A similar point is that the cord should be pulled any time the helm moves away from the controls, including docking and undocking - this is an area I see a lot of people miss and put themselves and others at risk.
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If you are single handed it's best to have the engine running when you let go your lines....maybe not start again and you are adrift...
 
billskip said:
If you are single handed it's best to have the engine running when you let go your lines....maybe not start again and you are adrift...
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Yes, that wasn't a very well thought out comment.

As it happens I do frequently coast into a berth with my engine off but I like it to be my choice!
 
winch2 said:
Im sorry buy that is just plain wrong. The last thing I want when Im trying to grab a mooring or come along side is for the engine to quit.
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If your engine doesn’t restart that’s a maintenance problem. It’s not something you should put other people’s lives in danger for, or your own. It’s far too easy to knock the throttle as you move and we’ve seen this play out time and time again incidents.
I’m not wrong here, you’re ignoring risk for convenience.
 
lustyd said:
usually on the throttle, but yes I agree. Any boat where the helmsman can fall overboard easily ought to have this, or where the power is sufficiently high to unbalance someone.
A similar point is that the cord should be pulled any time the helm moves away from the controls, including docking and undocking - this is an area I see a lot of people miss and put themselves and others at risk.
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Again, none of that applies to larger outboard powered craft. There’s a Nimbus 11 metre near us with 2 x 400hp outboards. I hope you dont expect him to cut his engines like that, nor ourselves. We drive ours onto a mooring just like you do.
 
Chiara’s slave said:
Again, none of that applies to larger outboard powered craft. There’s a Nimbus 11 metre near us with 2 x 400hp outboards. I hope you dont expect him to cut his engines like that, nor ourselves. We drive ours onto a mooring just like you do.
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No, i said earlier what kind of craft
 
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