new boat warranty - how long?

[blueglass]

having only bought used boats in the past, how long is the usual warranty on a new boat?

 

[Powersalt]

on my princess they said the warrenty of the fitted items is as per the suppliers warrenty, although they will put pressure on the supplier giving a fair deal. As for the boat itself, well after 12 months a fair review of the problem is what I was told. And they have been true to their word, working on faults fond 24 months after delivery.

Hope that helps

 

[Talulah]

Usually separated in to Hull warranty and then everything else.
Hull warranty is typically 5 years. Other bits dependant upon manufacturer. i.e. engine 12 months. electronics 3 years, heating 12 months etc.

Also hull warranties have proved extremely difficult to claim on. Often requiring non-disclosure agreements before repairs carried out.

There are some boat builders I would not buy from having read reports in the industry. Equally there are some UK motor boat builders who would be top of my list because they have looked after the customers years after the warranty expired.

 

[blueglass]

I accept that boats are a combination of many parts but I do think its a cop out to throw the warranties back on to outside suppliers who did NOT fit the parts.
cars are made in the same way and the car manufacturer will give typically 3 years warranty on the whole car even though those parts were supplied from outside.

 

[maby]

Not sure if it is the same for their motor boats, but our Beneteau sailing boat came with a one year warranty that could be extended for another two years by paying them to do an annual survey. This is for the mechanics; there is a five year structural warranty on the hull, but that does not extend to cosmetic issues.

 

[jfm]

I don't think this is as important as some people think it might be.

First, choose a builder with a low incident rate of breakdowns. Check they fit quality components not second rate stuff

And second, develop a mutually beneficial relationship with your boat dealer so that you want to buy from them and they want to keep you happy. When that happens, they will fix your boat anyway, and not hide behind the precise terms, exclusions, and cut off dates in the warranty. Essex Boatyards are exemplary on this score

 

[Nick_H]

I accept that boats are a combination of many parts but I do think its a cop out to throw the warranties back on to outside suppliers who did NOT fit the parts.
cars are made in the same way and the car manufacturer will give typically 3 years warranty on the whole car even though those parts were supplied from outside.

Cars are not made in the same way, manufacturers use hardly any proprietary parts, and they buy volume, so suppliers are forced to accept the same warranty period as the manufacturer offers on the car. If the supplier doesn't agree, they dont get the work. There's no real comparison with boat building.

 

[KevB]

having only bought used boats in the past, how long is the usual warranty on a new boat?

Consumer law says 'a reasonable amount of time'. There have been threads in the distant past regarding this. Anything up to six years depending on the item.

 

[blueglass]

Cars are not made in the same way, manufacturers use hardly any proprietary parts, and they buy volume, so suppliers are forced to accept the same warranty period as the manufacturer offers on the car. If the supplier doesn't agree, they dont get the work. There's no real comparison with boat building.

I agree that the volumes and scale of operations is much different with cars, and many of the suppliers are interwoven via parent companies etc etc but they can and do use externally sourced parts. The success or failure of many of those parts is at least partly dependent on the way they were fitted, location within the boat, interaction with other parts etc.
Call me a dreamer but it would be very nice to have a blanket overall warranty from the boatbuilder. I would buy a boat readily from them.

 

[BartW]

develop a mutually beneficial relationship with your boat dealer so that you want to buy from them and they want to keep you happy. When that happens, they will fix your boat anyway, and not hide behind the precise terms, exclusions, and cut off dates in the warranty.

+1

and I just want to add: be sensible about your expectations,
fe,
if the boat is located far distant from the builder,
it will cost him big money to do a warranty repair,
so if you can manage to replace a small broken item yourself,
don't hesitate to do so,
you build up a mutual beneficial relation.

 

[rafiki_]

I agree that the volumes and scale of operations is much different with cars, and many of the suppliers are interwoven via parent companies etc etc but they can and do use externally sourced parts. The success or failure of many of those parts is at least partly dependent on the way they were fitted, location within the boat, interaction with other parts etc.
Call me a dreamer but it would be very nice to have a blanket overall warranty from the boatbuilder. I would buy a boat readily from them.

I think what Nick was saying is that suppliers to vehicle manufacturers have to accept the same warranty terms as the VM. In fact there is an industry in the VM world returning and inspecting parts from dealers. In mobo's the engine/drive manufacturer would spec their own warranty terms.

 

[blueglass]

I think what Nick was saying is that suppliers to vehicle manufacturers have to accept the same warranty terms as the VM. In fact there is an industry in the VM world returning and inspecting parts from dealers. In mobo's the engine/drive manufacturer would spec their own warranty terms.

Yes I understand that. I'm just saying that it would be great if boatbuilders adopted the same principal with their suppliers. Obviously with small production lines and high levels of customisation boatbuilders don't have the same clout as a VM. I know it's not going to happen - just musing on the one day possibility of a marine Mondeo with a 3 year warranty and reliability.