A survey on a new boat?

[leftbrainstuff]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

Final acceptance from the Jeanneau dealer next week on a 2015 Jeanneau 349 used as a demo boat this past season (US Great Lakes area). She's still in the water. The full two year factory warranty will be applied to this boat.

Would you still get a survey?

Yes because:

1) Insurance is easier to get and your bargaining power is increased. It shows you're serious and not just another annoying customer looking for a deal.
2) Sellers always love to overhype. Your expectations may be higher than the actual vessel condition based on your relationship to date. To reset your expectations, having an impartial surveyor, may add a dose of reality before the deal is done.

But beware of:

I've only ever commissioned one survey. The surveyor was useless IMHO. Cut and paste survey resulted in plenty of mistakes in the actual survey. Anything above his shoulders and below his knees was missed.

The bigger issue was what he missed that was obvious. In our case I caught everything so no surprises. I have 3 trades and 3 engineering degrees and 60k hours of non marine experience. If you are relying on the surveyor to catch everything then be wary. Having a knowledgable friend to challenge the surveyor can improve the outcome you expect.

You will also need to find a surveyor who never has and never will rely on this dealer for work or recommendations. It's a small industry. Ideally you need to fly in a surveyor to meet this criteria.

I conducted my oil analyses and rig analyses independent of the official survey. Which didn't include this level of rigor anyway.

The rest of the systems I assessed myself including hull integrity.

Our broker, flown in from far away, also video interviewed the seller.

Sent from my SM-N900T using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[RKsailsolo]

Originally Posted by Chrisgo

Just wanted to clarify my statement that the 349 is U.S. built. I think it's France built, I confused it with the 379.

Thx. 349 is built in France. Acceptance and sea trials completed Monday. Did a thorough visual. No surveyor. Two year warranty. Pretty confident. What a great day. Thanks to all of you for your feedback.