Peer-To-Peer Renting

[laika]

I myself don't have very much experience in this field, but from those who I have talked there seems to be a lack of a service that provides a fast an easy way to find a boat near you to rent or to post your own boat for rent.

There's plenty of boat sharing apps. I believe (although I can't find the thread) we discussed this (along with coding issues etc.) years ago:
Glamorous yachting on the cheap, using a new trip-sharing website

(more platforms seem to have been established since then)

So perhaps the OP should clarify what about the existing sites s/he wants to do differently (presumably by asking the folks who raised the issue in the first place) or whether there's just been a lack of research before this post.

 

[Bouba]

If, heaven forbid, something happened to the health and wellbeing of one of your (not) charterers in your un coded boat. I think that is when you ask yourself, was that worth it ?

 

[boatiebert]

An AirBaB - Borrow a Boat ?

How about calling it U-Boat?

Oh, damn, someone else came up with that idea already. I was going straight off to trademark it.

Funny but someone else just joined to ask about another app idea.

Might work in America with motorboats where people are less personal about their toys but not in the UK. A few hours around day hire narrowboats or on the Broads shows you how well drunken strangers look after other people's property.

And how are you going to make your money out of it to pay for the liability insurance?

 

[RJJ]

Do you mean that I let some Tom Dick or Harriot who I have never met and have no idea of their competence, other than what they make claim to, take my pride and joy out for a jolly? Nah, I don't think that will work, not for me anyway. Going to Sunsail it is a much better idea.

But in the "boatswap" scheme, supported by a decent app, it's not hard to get an idea of competence.

First, they can upload their certificates for viewing. I'm sure the RYA could even be persuaded to run a service verifying people's quals for a couple of quid.

Second, you could have a community of boaters equipped to provide references of sailing experience. From "this guy's a c u next tuesday" to "modest, competent and highly trustworthy". You could have "I've sailed with this person as crew" "I've sailed with this person as skipper" and separately "I've lent/exchanged/chartered my boat to this person".

Third, you get to scrutinise the person's profile to see if they have experience in your type of boat.

Fourth, and correct me if I'm wrong, while you need to be coded to make money, I don't think you need to be coded to take a large deposit.

Fifth, this would work best with reciprocity i.e. you'd be lending your boat for a week in the Solent, in return for a week in the Scottish Islands. It befits both owners to treat each other, and the boats, with enormous respect.

 

[TernVI]

....

Fourth, and correct me if I'm wrong, while you need to be coded to make money, I don't think you need to be coded to take a large deposit.
....

Ithink it's well established that offering your boat to the general public requires that it be coded, whether you are making money or not.

 

[RJJ]

Ithink it's well established that offering your boat to the general public requires that it be coded, whether you are making money or not.

...but you're not.

 

[boatiebert]

Fourth, and correct me if I'm wrong, while you need to be coded to make money, I don't think you need to be coded to take a large deposit.

I don't know how it works now but in motorcycling you used to be able to pay for "Riders " insurance. It meant the rider was insured to ride anything up to a certain cc.

Does similar exist in boating? An "I can sail anything" insurance policy?

Clearly for most the boat exists as something far more personal that other consumer objects. Perhaps there's something in the manner of entering a displacement hull that triggers the sensitivity of some kind of 'back to the womb' experience not wanting some other man penetrating the sanctity of it and fiddling around?

 

[TernVI]

...but you're not.

You'd have to be quite careful to keep within the 'friends and relatives' guidance.
I think you'd be in trouble if a web service introduced you to someone for the purpose of them using your boat and you'd never known them before. If a group of people who largely know one another swapped boats among themselves that might be quite different. I know that kind of thing goes on, but for racing which is probably exempt anyway. ISTR my dinghy racing insurance allows me to loan the boat to any competent person or somesuch wording, boats get lent to friends of friends etc for the Nationals and other events.

 

[Tranona]

...but you're not.

The reality is that an app would be a solution looking for a problem. Are there really enough people interested in boat swaps that are just waiting for an app? Boating is very personal when it involves actually owning a boat. If one wants to try a different location chartering is easy. The nearest to swaps is boat shares, and experience shows that those work best when they grow out of existing relationships rather than strangers coming together.

 

[Gixer]

Just to give the OP something else to think about there might be a business model around renting out your boat as a 'static caravan'.
I know the family and I have been looking at AirBnB and spotted a few people renting out their boats for this purpose.
Personally I love the idea of staying afloat in a marina for a weekend or so, would be a good opportunity to have a look around before taking your own boat there.

 

[RJJ]

The reality is that an app would be a solution looking for a problem. Are there really enough people interested in boat swaps that are just waiting for an app? Boating is very personal when it involves actually owning a boat. If one wants to try a different location chartering is easy. The nearest to swaps is boat shares, and experience shows that those work best when they grow out of existing relationships rather than strangers coming together.

Well, I'd be keen. Always wanted to sail in the Scottish islands but I can't imagine having the time to take the boat there. And I struggle to justify the cost of chartering when I have a nice boat in the Solent at vast expense.

So in principle, I'd do this swap. Not now for various reasons, but in future.

I know there are owners who love polishing their pride and joy. But there are plenty of owners with tatty boats who just use them and (based on appearances) don't mind the risk of the odd gelcoat scrape in addition to the hundreds already there.

 

[boatiebert]

It's a different business model entirely but I think it might be interesting, see The Classic Car Club.

So, basically, what's missing (or is it?) is a Classic Boat Club with boats all around the countryside. You don't buy a boat, you buy a club membership and then exchange your club points for sailing in whichever boat you want, wherever you want, where you want.

Strikes me it could work. Run it as a non-profit, and you could even take boats in lieu of payment to build up the fleet.

Wouldn't have to be all big & fancy ones either.

Established in London in 1995, Classic Car Club is an exclusive private members’ club for people who love the joy of driving classic cars but not the heartache of looking after them.

Our members simply purchase packages of Classic Car Club ‘points’ that they exchange for days behind the wheel of some of the greatest cars ever made.

We take care of the downsides associated with ownership such as storage, insurance, maintenance, tax and repair and include unlimited mileage so you don’t have to worry about clocking up additional ‘stealth’ charges

How does it work?

CCC membership comes with an allocation of points that are exchanged for carefree days in fantastic classic cars. To calculate the point requirement for a booking simply multiply the band of the car by a factor of five for a weekday and twenty for a weekend.

 

[Tranona]

It's a different business model entirely but I think it might be interesting, see The Classic Car Club.

So, basically, what's missing (or is it?) is a Classic Boat Club with boats all around the countryside. You don't buy a boat, you buy a club membership and then exchange your club points for sailing in whichever boat you want, wherever you want, where you want.

Strikes me it could work. Run it as a non-profit, and you could even take boats in lieu of payment to build up the fleet.

Wouldn't have to be all big & fancy ones either.

Same idea as was tried with classic yachts a few years ago, but withered away. That is a boat share scheme so very different from boat swap.

 

[Tranona]

Well, I'd be keen. Always wanted to sail in the Scottish islands but I can't imagine having the time to take the boat there. And I struggle to justify the cost of chartering when I have a nice boat in the Solent at vast expense.

So in principle, I'd do this swap. Not now for various reasons, but in future.

I know there are owners who love polishing their pride and joy. But there are plenty of owners with tatty boats who just use them and (based on appearances) don't mind the risk of the odd gelcoat scrape in addition to the hundreds already there.

Just because people have old unused boats does not mean that they would be attracted to lending their boat to a stranger, never mind interested in doing a swap for a boat the other end of the country for a week.

Imagine the chances of finding another person with a comparable boat prepared to swap for a specific week in a specific place. Plenty of people with nice boats on the south coast (like me) charter boats elsewhere. Easy to do, commercial transaction with defined outcomes. Market is huge because it meets the needs of a large number of buyers and sellers. Direct bartering between individuals such as you are suggesting is very rare in any form of asset exchange.

 

[boatiebert]

Same idea as was tried with classic yachts a few years ago, but withered away. That is a boat share scheme so very different from boat swap.

Any links to it? I was thinking more of a sort of fleet hire for the common man rather than shared ownership of acres of varnished wood. Who did what?

May be that just underlines that part of that kind of particular endeavour (sinking loads of money into ultimately sinking boats), is a motivation of personal folly in which pride of owership take prime place.

I mean, I get that. If I was a multi-millionaire, I'd prefer a shed load of immaculate wooden boats rather than Impressionist paintings complete with a flunkey to dust them down & polish up their varnish.

But if we stuck to hiring out modern GRP classics, which are now dirt cheap, would it work? I'm surprised someone doesn't do a hire fleet of, say, Centaurs, the way the Swedes to old Folkboats.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Direct bartering between individuals such as you are suggesting is very rare in any form of asset exchange.

House swaps are a big thing, and that's even more personal than a boat swap.

 

[Tranona]

House swaps are a big thing, and that's even more personal than a boat swap.

Yes, but there are millions of houses (and owners), although not sure it is a "big thing" although a number of exchange websites exist. Of course the big difference is that homes are fixed whereas boats are highly mobile assets, so damage aspect aside much more risky to let a stranger take possession unless there is some kind of insurance against its disappearance!

Which of course got me thinking (as I should have done earlier) and googled - to find of course that several boat swap websites already exist, so the OP is late in the game! and RJJ could google as well. Interesting to know whether there is any swapping going on in these strange times.

 

[Bouba]

House swaps are a big thing, and that's even more personal than a boat swap.

Most people staying in your home probably live in their own house. So you don’t have to explain (endlessly) how a marine toilet works

 

[JumbleDuck]

Yes, but there are millions of houses (and owners), although not sure it is a "big thing" although a number of exchange websites exist. Of course the big difference is that homes are fixed whereas boats are highly mobile assets, so damage aspect aside much more risky to let a stranger take possession unless there is some kind of insurance against its disappearance!

Well, maybe ... but most houses are full of mobile assets, and a lot more mobile than a yacht.

Which of course got me thinking (as I should have done earlier) and googled - to find of course that several boat swap websites already exist, so the OP is late in the game! and RJJ could google as well. Interesting to know whether there is any swapping going on in these strange times.

Interesting. I would be very happy to swap my boat, but I'd want to know the other person reasonably well, or at th every least have them vouched for by a trusted mutual friend.

 

[RJJ]

Most people staying in your home probably live in their own house. So you don’t have to explain (endlessly) how a marine toilet works

One solution could be to swap spouse along with the boat. That way she / he can demonstrate the loo, the engine starting, and perform other useful and amenable functions.