Unaccompanied viewing of brokerage boats

[andyball]

Looking at boats both on the south coast & the Thames recently.......at several Thames brokers,were slightly surprised to be given several bunches of keys, and left to get on with it (they asked for our telephone number). this is convenient for us as buyers:

but what do sellers think? does the "free" berth while you're selling make up for loads of people tramping around your boat each weekend? Has anyone ever had anything go missing/get broken?.
Or is it not ideal, but unavoidable if you want to sell the thing?

 

[ccscott49]

IMHO, theres no way a broker should let anyone just go and have a look unsupervised, they could walk off with anything and who's to say the telephone number is real, a recipe for disaster!

 

[Guest]

I reckon your including Penton Hook. I bought both my boats from them (P32, Crown37) and on each occasion
I was given keys to serval boats to view on my own or just with the wife. I think your point about the free berth
is most valid.

"The Med is calling me"

 

[Moose]

All the time that I have spent looking at boats over the last year, this seems to be common practice at all the brokers we have been to except Peter's who have a policy that no one goes on a boat without being accompanied.
Many boats we have seen from other brokers have had lockers full of gore tex waterproofs, handheld gps's e.t.c.
Also if you are on the Hamble or somewhere with nil locks, what is to stop you taking the boat, the engine keys are usually in the boat or on the key rings!!
Brokers should really address this issue

Moose

 

[ari]

Very bad broker practise. They certainly don't all do this!

Ari.

 

[DavidP]

Hi
When i first viewed the boat i bought i was accompanied, but the times after that i wasnt, i dont see a problem with this if you take away anything that can be stolen, and who realy wants to look round a boat cluttered with your personal effects .It also gives you time to sit down ,look hard and think about what you are going to spend your money on .
Dave.

 

[ccscott49]

One big difference, Dave, you are not a thief! Also it was your second visit, so you were maybe serious and the broker has had a chance to verify that your phone number is real and/or he can make a judgement as to your honesty, but the first time, no way! If I wanted to rob a boat, or steal it, I would come once to suss everthing out, then come back and steal everything or steal the boat, when I'd made arrangements of where to take it. or leave the boat open, to come back later! No I'm not a thief either, nor stupid!

 

[stamfordian]

Imho i would not like all unsundry climbing all over my boat and think this practice is appalling.Ive been to loads of brokers yards recently and in one there were folks there who i,am sure were on a day out,with 3/4 kids who were going from boat to boat climbing all over them in full view of the brokerage staff.....noooo not for me i think i,ll sell privately not paying for nothing

http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/stamfordian

 

[Sirus]

Got to say I think its a bloody good idea, I always go round all the marinas at the start of the season looking at the boats for sale so I can stock up on the bits I need!!!!!!!!

 

[numenius]

Pilfering

I'm with Stamfordian on this - I got my current boat from a very large brokerage, in fact I think they say they are the biggest, and I saw exactly the same thing - kids swarming everywhere, hatches, windows etc left open and so on (though to be fair, it won't be the kids pinching stuff so much as adults) . In between me buying the boat and getting it delivered, someone made off with the fire extinguishers. As the brokerage is several hundred miles fromwhere I live, I could not just nip back down and remove all "removables" once my offer was accepted. - The extinguishers are not a huge thing in the scale of things I suppose, but of course replacing them was yet more money. It would be interesting to know how much petty theft of that sort goes on.

Equally, it has to be said, I find nothing worse than a hovering salesman if I'm looking at a boat, car or whatever and it was good to be able to wander round without being hassled.... Perhaps there needs to be a happy medium somewhere?

http://members.lycos.co.uk/boaty1965/index.htm

 

[ccscott49]

So! It was you, you b......d bring back my GPS and 100lb anchor!!

 

[Sirus]

Did my back in lifting that, should sue you really.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

I had all my C-Map electronic cartridges nicked from the last boat I sold on brokerage. The trouble is, as a seller, do you want potential buyers put off because the broker's too effing lazy to accompany them onto your boat?

 

[ari]

Surely the simple answer is this. Ask the broker you are about to list your boat with if he always accompanies people viewing boats. If the answer is no, move on to someone who does.

Any broker taking his job seriously is going to accompany potential purchasers surely?

Ari.

 

[ccscott49]

Lets face it chaps and chapesses, would a car salesman give you the keys to a £25,000 Mercedes and say go ahead have a look around? or an estate agent give you the keys to a £125,000 house and say go ahead have a look around? Yeh! in your dreams!!

 

[burgundyben]

I think this is another example of poor performance by a broker, it does not surprise me, a so called specialist gave me particulars for a boat that were wildy inaccurate and covered himself with a disclaimer, I think in general that the perofrmance of brokers is not where near the standard it should be and in that sense the relevant trade associations are failing.

Discuss.



For sale, 1970 Triumph Spitfire-sold, 1947 Lambretta, 1922 Great grandmother, PM for details.

 

[milltech]

I looked over three boats at the weekend. On the first I was accompanied to the boat but left to my own devices on board, and then escorted away again. I liked it, the opportunity to poke about without a salesman at your elbow. On the next one I was accompanied and on the last one I was given the keys.

Back when I was first looking for a boat in the late 70's it was very commonplace to be handed the keys in a yard, perhaps a left over from the days when only gentlemen went yachting, these days I think it a very risky business.

John

 

[Trevethan]

Same with us.. first viewing always accompanied and subsequent viewings with or without as we wished.

Its a bit odd really as brokers are in all reality salesmen. They can't do muich selling sitting back in the office. Having said that being on thje boat alone/with swmbo gives a great opportunity to poke around in dark corners for problems/bitch about the vessel/owner/broker and the state of hygiene in heads for example, without worrying about insulting people or feeling pressured to get a move on.

Worst viewing experince we ever had was of a Robert Spray ketch out of the water in Plymouth. There was no ladder long enough to get up her sides and eventually got on by climbing a 15 foot bank then leaping/stretching about four feet to the bowsprit platform. Once inside the boat was a hell of a state. Aft cabin totally bare. half eaten tin of beans and other bits of food developing new civilisations in dark corners. And the owner wanted £60 grand

Needless to say SWMBO was not at all impressed and I was banned at looking at boats for 3 months ater that!

Pretty much every vessel we have seen other than a couple of beauties in Plymouth have been dirty, untidy, smelly or a combination.

I wonder why people just don't bother to throughly clean their boats when selling and make them "wife friendly"

 

[tr7v8]

Certainly we walked on and off loads at Essex Boatyards with no escort and the vast majority were unlocked as well. The state of some boats inside had to be seen to be believed...This was my experience in the 80's as well when looking at boats.
Unfortunately our boat had a porta potti and various viewers decided to use it whilst looking and Essex then moved & delivered it without either emptying it or lashing it down. The mess & smell inside the cabin had to be believed, they eventually coughed up (sic) for a new carpet!
We saw hoards of people trooping on and off some of the bigger boats with x kids in tow and loads of women in high heels, tight skirts etc!

Jim
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[oldgit]

Er 125k.where in the southeast is this bargain?

O my Gawd its still going ahead......