Unhappy with marina charges?

Think about it

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As a person who pays a fortune for their Marina berth I am always surprised how quickly any space is filled to the operators profit immediately the boat stays out for a night.



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You don't pay for exclusive use of a marina berth - you pay for the right to have first call on the berth. Its not like renting a flat.

If marina operates couldn't maximise their income by hiring out your berth when you aren't using it who do you think would pay for the lost income? That's right - you.

You want them to hire it out on your behalf and hand over some of the profits? Who is going to pay the admin costs for doing that and share of advertising and running costs that bring people into the marina in the first place? Yep. You again. Imagine what kind of costs would be involved in running that kind of admin for every berth holder. Not much left for you, I think. And how would you verify what they owed you? Set up CCTV at your berth?

You want them to carry the risk of filling or not filling the berth that you paid for? Fair enough, but risk carries costs. You contracted for the berth, so why should the marina operator carry that risk if you choose to vary the contract?

You want the freedom to come and go as you please. Pay up and let the marina do what it will with the berth when you aren't there. You might not like the alternatives as much as you think. The onlydownside is the possibility of finding someone in your berth when you come home. With minimal foresight and consideration, that can be avoided.
 
Re: Think about it

Surely in this day and age it would not be difficult to find a program that could monitor boats in vacant berths after all the office know where thy have been told to berth.
Its only a couple of clicks more on a keyboard. and all businesses seem to use cumputers these days, where is the great added cost?
 
Re: Think about it

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You don't pay for exclusive use of a marina berth - you pay for the right to have first call on the berth. Its not like renting a flat.

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It's not even that in most marinas. You are paying for a berth in the marina so you can't complain if they stick someone on "your" berth as long as they give you a berth somewhere in the marina.
 
Re: Think about it

Whata load of B*ll*cks !!! Your source of knowledge?? links?? So if i rent a mooring from a harbour anthority Thats not my mooring for the contracted period??
 
Re: Think about it

Premier Marina conditions say that a berth holder has a right to a mooring under the contract but not necesarily a specific mooring. Although in practice berth holders stay on the same berth.
 
Don\'t be so silly

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Whata load of B*ll*cks !!! Your source of knowledge?? links?? So if i rent a mooring from a harbour anthority Thats not my mooring for the contracted period??

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How would I know what's in your small print? But do you really think the Harbour Authority won't or can't put a visitor on your mooring if they know you are going to be away?

I can see it now! Irate owners wanting to know why HIS rebate for usage of his berth is bigger than MY rebate. You can't be making enough effort to let out "MY" berth for me......! Oh, the hassle!

I wonder how many of the people that get hot under the collar about their berths being used when they are away (which is, of course, no skin off their noses) have ever had the pleasure of running a business. Marinas undoubtedly base their financial planning on anticipated income, including that from visitors, and on what the market will bear. You want a scarce commodity, you have to pay. Remove some of that income and it will come straight back on the upfront charges, which will lead to more moans and groans. Sorry, but that's how the system works.
 
Re: Don\'t be so silly

When entering a contract for a mooring /berth you are normally allocated a mooring/ berth number . Lookat it this way , you shoot off for a few days arrive back to find your berth allocated you go up the office Oh dear ALL empty berths have been allocated to visitors what then??? Unless its clearly written in your contract that your berth can be re-let in your absent the mooring owner cannot let it . You see what happens if you sub-let your mooring/berth to someone else either free or for a fee !!
 
I will take up your challange somewhat tongue in cheek.

AWB= All White & Beautiful, I have now bought 3 new AWB's and as sales figure go you are outvoted. You obviously lust after classics boats - nostalgia is not as good as you remember it to be.

Marinas- Beautiful places where I have many enjoyable nights. Hot summer nights - full of happy people walking round preferably with a good mix of retail, entertainment and restaurants - Oh sorry you would prefer to lie in an unspoilt field in the dark - you might be on your own! - sad.

Pave over Langstone? No not quite but I am fed up with conversationists trying to halt progress. If you don't want a sucessful country with good infrastructure and sucessfull businesses go to the third world country and farm. Here we tax the businesses to pay the farmers to "protect" the fields and keep them green (for people who fly over them!) but not grow anything as it can't be done economically in the UK.

Could not agree more about re-developing brown field site but need better government grants to cover the extra cost before it will happen.

Lets have the UK for what the people want and I am happy with a democratic decision even if the majority disagree with me. Just object to pressure groups that shout so loud the silent majority are ignored.
 
Afraid it didb't work at Hamble Point last year they pointed to the small print of the contract and refunds were for 4 months or over. I agree with the person who said that if we inherited a marina we would do the same. Yes I admit I would.
 
Except that\'s not how it works

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When entering a contract for a mooring /berth you are normally allocated a mooring/ berth number . Lookat it this way , you shoot off for a few days arrive back to find your berth allocated you go up the office Oh dear ALL empty berths have been allocated to visitors what then??? Unless its clearly written in your contract that your berth can be re-let in your absent the mooring owner cannot let it . You see what happens if you sub-let your mooring/berth to someone else either free or for a fee !!

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Of course you keep the same mooring or berth. Otherwise, it would be chaos.

I have rented marina berths at different marinas over a space of some 25 years. All have used empty berths for visitors and I can recall two occasions when we have had to wait while our berth was cleared. You are simply asked to inform them when you are going to be away. If you return early you call in and let them know and they clear the berth. It is not a problem. Since this is, in fact, how things work, your assertion that it doesn't or couldn't work hardly rings true.

A drastically reduced return for accommodating visitors would result in marinas having very much less incentive to do so, since they would undoubtedly recoup the losses in charges to the permanent berth holders. This could have significant effects on the services available to all sailors away from home. It could also lead to all kinds of disputes with existing berth holders.

In all, it would simple be a huge amount of fuss and bother for little or no benefit to anyone.
 
Re: Except that\'s not how it works

On at least three occasions I've had to put my boat on to the visitors berth for periods ranging from a few hours to several days as there were boats on "my" berth.

The marina office were well aware of when I was coming back but failed to ensure that the owners of the boats knew they had to be back by that date.
 
Bad management

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On at least three occasions I've had to put my boat on to the visitors berth for periods ranging from a few hours to several days as there were boats on "my" berth.

The marina office were well aware of when I was coming back but failed to ensure that the owners of the boats knew they had to be back by that date.

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A poorly run marina will manage any system poorly - not that a temporary change of berth strikes me as a major problem.

And, of course, the efficiency of marina management has no bearing on the question of rebates for visitor occupancy, except, possibly, the likely effect of making poorly managed marinas even less inclined to make sure berths are available for their regulars than they are now. You can't have it both ways.
 
Re: Except that\'s not how it works

So how come the berth holder cant sub-let his own berth? Having to let the marina know when you are away and the hassel of contacting them if you arrive back early seems to me to be an unnesessary pain . I would have thought and expect ,having paid thousands of pounds to the marina for the "privilege" of a berth , "hassel" free sailing for the duration of the contract . I'd certainly be pi55ed off if I came back to find another boat on my present mooring ,but then its not in my contract so I get trouble free sailing!! Why do you marina berth holders put up with it????
 
Re: Except that\'s not how it works

I have a friend who lives on the River Humber (well, nearby) and has had his yacht in the Hull Marina on and off for many years.
It's always been reasonable and accessible. It used to be run by the City Council, but is apparently now run by British Waterways. He has left and taken his yacht up to Kip Marina, for various reasons, but mainly the price rises, which have been applied in an odd way and the chaos that berth holders now have to endure. For instance the hose is locked away and you have to go and get the hose, bring it to the pontoon, and return it after use.
He tells me the new manager used to be commercial manager for Hull Truck Theatre Company, which perhaps explains why it has become a farce.
 
Sub let his own berth?

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So how come the berth holder cant sub-let his own berth? Having to let the marina know when you are away and the hassel of contacting them if you arrive back early seems to me to be an unnesessary pain . I would have thought and expect ,having paid thousands of pounds to the marina for the "privilege" of a berth , "hassel" free sailing for the duration of the contract . I'd certainly be pi55ed off if I came back to find another boat on my present mooring ,but then its not in my contract so I get trouble free sailing!! Why do you marina berth holders put up with it????

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You mean the berth stays empty unless the berth holder can find someone specifically to fill it every time he is away and makes all the arrangements, collects the money etc.? In the meantime, the number of spaces for visitors is drastically reduced because only the berth holder's nominees are allowed to use it. And what about the right of the marina operator to have a say in who does and does not berth there? And who will evict your subtenant for you if he refuses to leave? Who will be responsible if your subtenant causes damage to the marina or another boat or other kinds of trouble?

By comparison, giving the marina a call on the very few occasions that I return earlier than expected is hardly "hassle".

Or do you mean the marina does all the work of organising, staffing, supervising, servicing, processing payments on your behalf and then gives it back to you? Mind you, there wouldn't be much to give back once the marina's legitimate cut was taken off for managing this complicated system. I strongly suspect the berth holder would be the loser in the end.

The opportunity to suspend your berth holding after a period of non occupancy is a fair compromise.

Another poster mentions three occasions when his berth has been occupied. Not a problem, though, because he simply went to temporarily to another berth. Three times out of how many comings and goings, I wonder? No system is perfect, but this one works well. It keeps costs for berth holders lower than they would otherwise be and ensures that the greatest possible number of berths are available for visitors. As with most things, you have to look at both sides of the argument if you want to make sense of it. Marinas are not charities.
 
Re: Sub let his own berth?

Quote "As with most things, you have to look at both sides of the argument if you want to make sense of it ." quote . Something you seem to not be doing .
 
Re: Bad management

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question of rebates for visitor occupancy,

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Rebates? I've never been given a rebate on my berth despite it being empty for the last three seasons. I carried on paying as I like the berth so much I didn't want to lose it.
 
Two questions

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question of rebates for visitor occupancy,

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Rebates? I've never been given a rebate on my berth despite it being empty for the last three seasons. I carried on paying as I like the berth so much I didn't want to lose it.

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Does your particular contract allow for rebates?

If it does, have you asked for one?

It is your own free choice to keep paying, I presume.
 
So

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Quote "As with most things, you have to look at both sides of the argument if you want to make sense of it ." quote . Something you seem to not be doing .

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Who else here is making the case for the status quo? As I believe I have made clear, I think the sort of system you seem to propose would be detrimental to the interests of BOTH sides.

You don't agree? Why not give us your analysis then?
 
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