When should skippers insist on wearing lifejckets

Any time the boat isn't tied to the dock or anchored/moored at rest. Mind you so far the only genuinely hazardous incidents have been people accidentally walking off the edge of he pontoon at the marina
 
It is mostly common sense. If you don't wear one all the time, put it on in situations where there is a clear possible risk to safety i.e. dinghy transfer, fog in the shipping lane etc. A solo night watch also demands a safety line plus the rule that no one goes "up front" at night unless there is someone else in the cockpit. We all have our own variation on the rules, but broadly they are very similar with the aim of prevention rather than cure. LJs are more comfortable than they were and the new generation of really lightweight, minimal bulk designs may encourage folk to wear them regularly. On the question of choice, it is undoubtedly the skipper's call and the policy ( as well as an LJ fitting session) should be clearly laid down at the safety briefing.
 
stuartwineberg said:
Any time the boat isn't tied to the dock or anchored/moored at rest. Mind you so far the only genuinely hazardous incidents have been people accidentally walking off the edge of he pontoon at the marina
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Over the years I've known 2 people who have drowned whilst on yachts, both seperate instances & both involving someone falling from a moored boat!
Not sure what conclusion to draw from that :confused:

Any crew on my boat can please themselves unless I deem they should be worn, that's likely to be when underway & wind/sea conditions dictate, at night, in fog & ideally in the dinghy (depending on people/location etc.).
Oh, and if we are sinking :eek:
 
wesail with children so feel we should set an exampl, always waring a LJ when out of the harbour or in the winter when not moored this seems like the most workable compromise for us.
 
Crew are encouraged to wear one for the first day on board, then they get a choice until I tell them to put one on.
Nights, fog or the dinghy and it's not optional
 
ninky said:
...Luckily as we were trying to leave the harbour the other weekend and got stuck in some lumps the QHM boat came by and checked he was wearing one (he'd put his coat over the top), so that's sort of reinforced the 'need a life jacket' message...
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Hi ninky. Just a quick one - I guess by this you are implying that your husband just happened to have his coat over the top of his LJ on this occasion - he/you don't normally wear them under coats?
 
ninky said:
Luckily as we were trying to leave the harbour the other weekend and got stuck in some lumps the QHM boat came by and checked he was wearing one (he'd put his coat over the top), so that's sort of reinforced the 'need a life jacket' message.
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Wear an auto LJ under your coat (especially if it's done up) and you might float but probably have real trouble breathing. The force of the LJ inflating could well compress your chest quite significantly!

Defo not to be recommended!! :eek:
 
emsworthy said:
Wear an auto LJ under your coat (especially if it's done up) and you might float but probably have real trouble breathing. The force of the LJ inflating could well compress your chest quite significantly!

Defo not to be recommended!! :eek:
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'tis what I was getting at... even a manual one - renders it useless. Auto + done up coat is likely to end in broken ribs at best.
 
Gwylan said:
Crew are encouraged to wear one for the first day on board, then they get a choice until I tell them to put one on.
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Have you considered how legally vulnerable this makes you? By establishing times when you think a lifejacket is necessary, you are effectively establishing times when you think it is not. If an accident occurred in one of those latter times, you could be in serious trouble.

Much safer, legally, to leave it to individual judgment at all times.
 
orbister said:
Have you considered how legally vulnerable this makes you? By establishing times when you think a lifejacket is necessary, you are effectively establishing times when you think it is not. If an accident occurred in one of those latter times, you could be in serious trouble.

Much safer, legally, to leave it to individual judgment at all times.
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Much safer generally to tell them to wear it at all times.
 
orbister said:
Have you considered how legally vulnerable this makes you? By establishing times when you think a lifejacket is necessary, you are effectively establishing times when you think it is not. If an accident occurred in one of those latter times, you could be in serious trouble.

Much safer, legally, to leave it to individual judgment at all times.
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Safest of all: if you have only the slightest inkling that your crew might sue you - take someone else sailing (if you must).

Personally speaking, my crew's either married to me (for better or worse) or offspring (yes, dad).
 
There shouldn't be any need for confrontation with anti-LJ crew. Just send any new crew member a helpful briefing email well in advance of a trip which includes the point that LJs must be worn at all times everwhere except below decks. That way we all know the score, and anyone who can't live with it needn't turn up.
 
I rarely wear mine in the dinghy. Have climbed in and out without assistance/problem from the water in the past when swimming. Only ever use the outboard when there's more than one person aboard, otherwise we row - and you're hardly likely to not notice someone falling out - and the thing is so easy to turn around and go back for someone - and if they fell out and inflated their jacket would perhaps be more difficult to recover to the dinghy... you lot are rarely wrong (never?) though, so I'm obviously missing something?
 
Me thinks that the crew on deck in this Dashew video should really have been wearing harnesses - they were out in a F 10 sailing across the North Atlantic in winter...... :(
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BNabB0-XVM&feature=related

Or maybe they are doing like Ninky's hubby, and have L/J's on under their jackets? :)
Harnesses would be a bit more sensible though......

Ooops, sorry, posted the wrong link initially - that was re a more benign tradewind crossing on a Vancouver 32.....
 
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I agree. We would always be clipped on offshore in anything over 15 knots. You never know when a rogue wave will wipe the deck. Unless it's really blowing we wouldn't bother with lifejackets in the harbour- kids, OAPs and nonswimmers excepted..
 
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