Mooring Buoys - How to Find / Best Practice - Can I just use any?

[Thresher]

Could it be that the law sees your mooring the same way that it sees your house or property?
If someone breaks into your property and somehow comes to grief, not by being shot but because your property was not well maintained, I believe that they can sue you.

 

[ylop]

Could it be that the law sees your mooring the same way that it sees your house or property?

That might be possible, although a quick search hasn’t revealed any case law that says the occupiers liability act applies, it could, it certainly applies on board vessels.

If someone breaks into your property and somehow comes to grief, not by being shot but because your property was not well maintained, I believe that they can sue you.

This is often misrepresented. Trespassers do have some protection from occupier liability but not simply because they broke in and it is not well maintained. If you put a load of nails or fish hooks into your pickup line so that an unsuspecting user gets torn to shreds you likely would have a liability. If it’s chaffed most of the way through so it’s obviously weak much less likely. Given case law says a quarry putting up “no diving” signs was sufficient to absolve it of liability from someone who came to grief whilst diving and a swimming pool also were found not to be liable to a trespasser when closed, I think “private” or “no mooring” would likely do the same. That might not even be necessary as owners of a pond were found not liable when someone went swimming there when there were no signs - because the judges said it was common sense that this was a risky activity.

 

[jdc]

I think they all come under 'Duty of Care', which is a key test in English civil (Tort) law, or so I understand. Precedent exists a plenty regarding property, but afaik no such precedent exists for moorings.

In principle this duty of care isn't just to a yachtsman who came adrift from your mooring, but to someone who he subsequently collided with, or even to a rescuer. But I wouldn't lose sleep over it, plenty of moorings over the last 100+ years, no cases.