Surveyors

[redhead78]

Easy guys, I hear you, however this is not a new boat, I have been a partner in it for 15 yrs. I feel as if the ins co is strongarming me. I don,t want a survey, however I relize it may help me down the line when I sell it , so I know it can't hurt, their timing sucks.......Red

[DRSandbo]

Originally Posted by redhead78

Easy guys, I hear you, however this is not a new boat, I have been a partner in it for 15 yrs. I feel as if the ins co is strongarming me. I don,t want a survey, however I realize it may help me down the line when I sell it , so I know it can't hurt, their timing sucks.......Red

RedHead,

I understand your dilemma, Ins Co's require a survey for re-write (they may be requiring this every 5 years +/- soon) owners sees this as an added expense and hires the cheapest (often not accredited) with the hopes your ins co will accept and he/she (surveyor) finds nothing to make her a risk. Owner gets a less then quality report which reflects poorly on the industry and is worth nothing (waste of your money) lose lose for all involved. Hence the use of a accredited surveyor but at a much higher cost.

As for your ins survey being worth anything at resale, nope, your report is good for your use at the time of survey and of little value for the buyer. A buyer will need his own report done at the time of sale for an unbiased report. Also a pre-purchase survey is far more intrusive (or should be) then a C&V (condition & value).

Hope this helps.

[bstreep]

Originally Posted by Ocean Girl

I have worked with some great surveyors and have learned alot from them. I think the best way to find a good surveyor is to ask fellow boat owners who they used and if they were happy with em. If you ask around these parts (Texas) you usually get one of three names, even though we easily have a hundred. Most people buying boats ask their yacht broker, but most brokers usually recommend a surveyor that is "easy" on the boat and any issues she may have.



No matter how much experience you have, I think it is good to get an unbiased report about the vessel you want to buy, another pair of eyes can be a good thing, spot something you might of missed. Surveyors are not perfect but the good ones can save you a ton of money and hardship.

Erika

Dittos. I guarantee you that Erika and I have duplicate names on our list of 3. One in particular, I'd pay to have him fly to look at a boat. He started the survey on ours at 8am, and finished just before 8pm. AND, he'd recently surveyed the boat before. He made no prior assumptions, and went over the boat from top to bottom - including the masthead.

[SuenosAzules]

I had to throw my two cents in here as well. Being that I am a SAMS marine surveyor and have a pretty good background of boats dating back to my Coast Guard years, I thought I would say this; As first a sailboat owner (long before I became a marine surveyor) I had a surveyor come to my boat once to do a survey for a potential buyer. The survey lasted for 4 hours on a 35' sailboat (including sea trial). The guy weighed quite a lot and during the five minutes I was down in the head, he claimed he lofted the mast by climbing up by himself with no help. I knew this was a lie, as anyone knows that if anything is even tapping your mast it echoes through your boat. The tools he brought for the day was one rubber hammer, one flat head screwdriver, a flashlight, and a digital camera. No moisture meter, no multi meter, nada. His survey was a wopping eight pages with five pictures of my boat. It was more a boat check off than a survey. All for the low price of $600.00. So I have been on that end of it and sympathize with the negative comments. I can also say that surveyors are like cops (some are good, some are bad). For the most part they are good, but I have seen the shotty ones. I have several stories I would love to share here, but I must remain professional. To help, I suggest good old fashioned word of mouth. Finding a surveyor with a back ground in boats and with other credentials is good too (such as being a former marine engineer, or currently ABYC Standards Accreditted, etc). My surveys (on a typical 35' sailboat) take all day. I usually start at about 9am and will put in a good 9 -12 hours on it. I go over everything on the boat, hull, machinery, running and standing gear, etc. My reports are thorough and complete. I do not make any assumptions. I make sure that my clients get what they pay for and have a good survey they can use as a tool when negotiating the sale. I have never forgotten that surveyor that did such a shady job that day. I can only think of the liability guys like that open themselves up to by not being thorough. If I am ever sitting in a courtroom some day I hope it is to give expert testimony and not be on the receiving end of a lawsuit because I did a half effort job on a client's boat where someone got hurt or killed. Well anyway, I have said enough! Until I rant again.. Fair winds!