Quote:
Originally Posted by Ex-Calif
And regarless of declarations or warrantees the remedy lies in court. At which point it is expensive for buyer and seller and becomes a crap shoot.
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I understand where you are coming from - but for me the value of the
contract is
not after the deal has been completed (i.e. cash paid in full and boat now bought and in my name)........and it turns out that not everything was as claimed, in the contract or otherwise. For me that definately falls under Caveat Emptor (aka hard cheese!), whether or not a
legal remedy is potentially available. As you say, going to court is expensive and a crap shoot.......but the good news is that is true for both parties

.
For me where the contract and these clauses
work is for the short period just before signing (by gathering the info I need to help me sign) to after the Survey has been completed or abandoned half way (so I have extra
fuel to claim a bad survey to refuse the boat - in practice that can already get done on pretty much any basis, especially if helped by the
Surveyor - even if the real reason is the wife has
now decided that she does not like the curtains

).
In practice all that probably a couple of weeks (+ / -). At that time I only have a deposit at risk (and for me that wouldn't be 10%! - but I appreciate that for others it might be)....the risk being both total loss of deposit, or having to go to court myself to try and reclaim it.
Obviously the Vendor can go to court and try and force a
sale (under the agreement) but, as you say, that is an expensive crap shoot. and if the boat is basically ok, he will have no problem selling her (and therefore more likely to decide against court) - if bad (and especially if undisclosed) then more likely to fail at court (crapshoot notwithstanding).
Regarding the
Seaworthy condition, I added the bit about the "full sea-trial" to reduce the
scope for argument ("I never said she could tackle Cape Horn in
Winter - this afternoon"

)....and to help focus the Vendors mind that the boat had to be good to go.....or to disclose early doors why not - rather than it coming as a later surprise ("you mean the sea-trial involved the boat leaving the harbour?")......really only intended to make clear that the boat was expected to be able to leave the harbour under
power and the
sails to then go up (with everything connected to that working, in some sort of fashion) - and during the seatrial not to sink

....seatrial really to make sure that is all true, and whether true enough to buy (engine runs, but have heard healthier 90 a day smokers after running for a bus!.......the
mainsail does raise - and very quickly

, mostly due to being hoisted on bungee cord

).
For some reason I seem to have adopted this thread

and that despite my best of intentions not to go all
internet lawyer

especially as I am aware that more than one or 2 real lawyers on CF

.......but I feel comfortable chipping in, both as OP seems sensible enough to take
internet "legal advice" for what it is worth (nadda!) and also as I am a long way away from him - so when he loses all his
money / buys a boat with no
keel 
he can't easily hit me with an axe

.....which fits in with my overall approach to deals, bear the practical in mind as much as the
legal.
Would be nice to hear how the offer and then deal goes - especially if badly

.