Mooring charge advice?

[j04n]

I would be grateful if anybody could offer any advice before I consider legal advice in case my current predicament gets messy.

 

I gave notice to the Marina my boat is currently moored in early February that I would be leaving at the end of March as I had lost my job in December. My plan was to embark on my last cruise before selling my boat. Love the boat but have found Im either working and have no time to enjoy it or out of work and cant really afford it!

 

Anyway, a week before I was due to leave the Marina we went into lock down and as a leisure boater I was told, as we all were, to stay away from our boats and the Marina. I rang the Marina and reminded them that I was due to leave in a week and not in a position to continue paying so if necessary I would have to visit the Marina in order to remove my boat. Despite several phone calls this was never confirmed until last Friday. The Marina head office confirmed that in light of the current situation they had very generously offered me a reduced monthly mooring charge. Which it wasnt! It was exactly what I had been paying but divided by 12. You could argue at least it was not the advertised daily rate! I politely declined the offer and said that I would visit my boat tomorrow in order to remove my boat from the Marina. Two hours later a received another email presenting me with two mooring invoices, one for April and one for May!

 

Again, I have politely declined the generous offer stating at no time, despite my repeated requests, did the Marina confirm their position or give me the opportunity to remove my boat. I appreciate that my boat has been moored in a secure location and others who have committed to stay on the Marina for another 12 months will have had to pay despite also not being able to attend their boats but I cant help but feel my position is a little different as I have just been waiting to get off.

 

In light of the ultimatum I have been given from the Marina I have informed them that I will be attending my boat tomorrow in order to remove it from the Marina but would appreciate opinions on the presented invoices? I guess they will be mixed. Should I just pay and put it down to experience or do you agree that I have a case and that the Marina has been unreasonable? 

 

Thanks in advance for your comments. Stay Safe everybody.   

      

[restlessnomad]

think you are being unreasonable, you should just pay whatever you agreed to.

[j04n]

I didn't agree to pay anything as

I gave notice to leave but I was told to stay away from the Marina. Thanks for your comment! ?

[restlessnomad]

2 minutes ago, j04n said:

I didn't agree to pay anything as

I gave notice to leave but I was told to stay away from the Marina. Thanks for your comment! ?

ok... I just think marina should not be the one paying for the lockdown... hope you come to an agreement that is fair to both sides... cheers. 

[Phil.]

I don’t see that you have a case. You may have given notice, but you didn’t actually leave. Having given notice to quit you would have been perfectly able to attend the boat to remove it, much along the same lines as continuous cruisers, and winter moorers who had reached the end of their mooring term.

[j04n]

I was told by the marina to stay away! seems I should have just ignored them and taken it off. It would have suited me tbh but thought I was doing the right thing. 

[Richard10002]

12 minutes ago, Phil. said:

 Having given notice to quit you would have been perfectly able to attend the boat to remove it, 

You don't know that. He has told you that he spoke to them to see about getting his boat out, and he was told not to go to the marina.

 

I'd say it would be 50/50 who a court would find for.

 

If I were the OP, having had the call from the marina to say that he could come and get his boat, I would go and get my boat out.

 

Then I might offer to pay half of what they were asking, in full and final settlement. If they chose to risk going to court over one months rent, they would be stupid, rather than pragmatic.

[j04n]

9 minutes ago, Richard10002 said:

I might offer to pay half of what they were asking, in full and final settlement

I tend to agree but not one month of two. I was thinking half of April as it will be off tomorrow. 

[matty40s]

I would offer a part payment of April's, and refuse to pay May's, as it seems from what you say the marina took an age to let you go, in fact, the 1st of May. 

As they will have received a business grant of £10k regardless of any shortfall or not in fees and other activities....more if more than 1 business on site...they are in an ideal situation to look on your case with some sympathy. 

Assuming you have given us all the facts that is.

[Timx]

Just pay what you owe as you never entered into a longer contract, which would be one twelfth of yearly rent for April, and daily rate for May as a counter offer.-

 

[Movin' on]

IMHO if you have already given notice in writing which has only been "frustrated" by the current situation and the marina is following the letter of (rather than the spirit of) the regulations you can take it away after giving further reasonable notice (7 days?) of your intention to turn up on a given date and depart - make it clear you will pay to the date you leave on the day. 

 

Put it all in writing - if they refuse to "allow" you to leave take them to court.

Edited May 4, 2020 by Halsey

[David Mack]

Marina has been a bit unreasonable in not letting you leave after you gave notice. It's none of their business if you choose to boat, even though we have all been asked not to.

This is the guidance offered by another mooring provider, which I think is more pragmatic in the circumstances:

 

"If you wish to go against our polite request and instructions from CRT and wish to take your boat out, please co-ordinate a suitable time with XXX so we can ensure minimal contact with others. Please note however, we will not be able to provide fuel or pump out facilities at this time. If you do leave, we ask that you do not return until the restrictions are lifted. This is in line with the fact that we remain closed to visiting boats, until the restrictions are lifted, as are the majority of marinas."

Edited May 4, 2020 by David Mack

[Slim]

On what date were you told by the marina to stay away and was it a generic 'banning' such as I received from my marina or was it specific to you taking account of the fact that you were due to leave at the end of March?  What did the marina say when you phoned them a week before you were due to leave? What did they say in the subsequent phone calls or did they not answer? What period of notice were you required to give under your agreement? I think a few more facts are needed.

[Mike Todd]

12 hours ago, Slim said:

On what date were you told by the marina to stay away and was it a generic 'banning' such as I received from my marina or was it specific to you taking account of the fact that you were due to leave at the end of March?  What did the marina say when you phoned them a week before you were due to leave? What did they say in the subsequent phone calls or did they not answer? What period of notice were you required to give under your agreement? I think a few more facts are needed.

Quiet so - any advice would first need to establish that the notice given was within the terms of the contract. There have been threads on here in the past when boaters have wanted to break an annual contract before its end and found themselves (properly) liable for a significant sum. Others have contracts with break clauses in them, although not always as simple as just a month without constraint. Fairness is crucial in a contract. What would a boater feel/do if their mooring provided suddenly gave them a month to leave the mooring well before the end of an annual contract. My guess is that most would advise that the 'eviction' was unlawful.

 

In another context, the advice I have heard for the present circumstances is that establish law and legal guidance is not a lot of help at the moment and that parties to a frustrated contract or lease should rely on a commonsense approach (dangerous , I know!) and negotiate their way out of the problem. resort to litigation is unlikely to do anyone much good and no-one is in a position to advice on the likely outcome.

[Richard10002]

1 hour ago, Mike Todd said:

Quiet so - any advice would first need to establish that the notice given was within the terms of the contract. There have been threads on here in the past when boaters have wanted to break an annual contract before its end and found themselves (properly) liable for a significant sum.

Given that it has been stated that it was only the lockdown that stopped the departure happening, and resulted in the extra charges, it seems reasonable to assume that the notice was given and accepted in accordance with the terms of the contract.

[restlessnomad]

Can the marina ban you from using their facility in future? 

I agree with most people here, instead of going by law, better to go by moral/gentlemanly behaviour, that does not mean paying everything they demand, but to negotiate to a mutually satisfactory amount.

[manicpb]

Can't comment on the legal bit, in your situation I'd probably pay for April and move it asap. I had a similar situation where I'd bought a boat and the marina offered two weeks free mooring and we negotiated an extra two weeks till the end of April. I was asked then how I wished to be billed so I set out to see how I could get it moved.

After speaking to the CRT and I explained, it seemed clear it wasn't a leisure trip and they didn't seem to think my plans were against their own or government guidelines. I didn't take the Mickey, I cruised continually for 8+ hours each day, for three days to my final destination where it won't move until restrictions are lifted.

With regards to the marina taking the cost of lockdown, if you had of left they wouldn't have filled your mooring as they aren't taking in boats I presume. I think you've got a legal argument if you've put in your request to leave all above board and proper as there is no reason you should be out of pocket because of lockdown, just as the marina shouldn't.

[David Mack]

3 hours ago, restlessnomad said:

Can the marina ban you from using their facility in future? 

Of course they can. They don't have to take anyone's business (providing they don't discriminate against customers on grounds of any of the protected characteristics under the Equality Act).

[Jim Riley]

If you fulfilled your side of the contract then just go. The marina has not lost any money, just not gained any that they weren't entitled too. No extra expense will have been incurred by them. If you pay you will be the one that is losing out because of covid19. If they've furloughed their staff it will only have cost them 20%, presuming they have been generous. 

[j04n]

All charges dropped. Which was the fair and right result. thanks for all the comments. Its always a right mix bag on here! ??