Boat Movers

[Capey_k]

Good Morning,

I admit I am not new to boating, but am new to this particular boat so hope its OK to post this here. I am taking ownership of a boat but am working right up until the last day and need to find someone who will bring it down for me.

I did find a firm on FaceBook but have had no reply to either the message or on their website so think they may have closed or be away.

Is there anyone that you might suggest for an aproximately 3 day quick of 4 day (a bit more relaxed) trip with 3 flights. My old fella can go with as well to help out if needed.

Thank you in advance.

[Athy]

3 minutes ago, Capey_k said:

Good Morning,

I admit I am not new to boating, but am new to this particular boat so hope its OK to post this here. I am taking ownership of a boat but am working right up until the last day and need to find someone who will bring it down for me.

I did find a firm on FaceBook but have had no reply to either the message or on their website so think they may have closed or be away.

Is there anyone that you might suggest for an aproximately 3 day quick of 4 day (a bit more relaxed) trip with 3 flights. My old fella can go with as well to help out if needed.

Thank you in advance.

Welcome to the forum.

Professional boat movers do exist, and indeed at least two of them exist as members of this forum.

We have used, and would recommend, Nigel Carton. I believe (and I hope that he'll excuse me if I'm wrong) that Matty40s undertakes this type of work too.

Edited August 6, 2020 by Athy

[Alan de Enfield]

55 minutes ago, Capey_k said:

Good Morning,

I admit I am not new to boating, but am new to this particular boat so hope its OK to post this here. I am taking ownership of a boat but am working right up until the last day and need to find someone who will bring it down for me.

I did find a firm on FaceBook but have had no reply to either the message or on their website so think they may have closed or be away.

Is there anyone that you might suggest for an aproximately 3 day quick of 4 day (a bit more relaxed) trip with 3 flights. My old fella can go with as well to help out if needed.

Thank you in advance.

It may help with responses if you could say where from and to where.

Someone from Scotland may not be interested in moving a boat from Bristol to London (for example)

[Capey_k]

Thank you for the replies. Of course it would have helped if I had said where to where to....

It would be picked up in Rufford and dropped off in Buxworth on the Peak Forest. Hope this helps.

[David Mack]

2 hours ago, Capey_k said:

Thank you for the replies. Of course it would have helped if I had said where to where to....

It would be picked up in Rufford and dropped off in Buxworth on the Peak Forest. Hope this helps.

 

That's only a 4 day trip at 8 hours per day. Why not do the trip yourself to get to know your new boat. Could be done in a couple of weekends if you don't have 4 days in one go.

[Capey_k]

Of course I sound terribly lazy, we have however to get the house ready to rent out, sort out loads of other things as well...if we fail to find someone able to do it then of course we will do it ourselves, but just hoping to be able to spend the last few days getting the house ready for our tenants etc. Its all happening at once, as it so often does when you take severance and early retiruement and suddenly find yourlsef thinking ...what  the heck have I done.

But thanks for all the advice everyone, I hope to be able to wave at many of you on our travels coming up.

[ditchcrawler]

@matty40s may be able to do it if he is not booked up, there are also people on this group who are not boat movers but will help as they enjoy boating, names escape me at the moment

[TheBiscuits]

7 hours ago, Capey_k said:

Thank you for the replies. Of course it would have helped if I had said where to where to....

It would be picked up in Rufford and dropped off in Buxworth on the Peak Forest. Hope this helps.

 

When do you need this doing?

[Capey_k]

We are looking at the end of this month or the first few days of September. My husband is happy to go along as well, but we need a bit of help as he can't do the Rochdale etc on his own. 

I am looking at howmuch it would cost me to either get a crew for it, or if someone was willing to come along and lend a hand.

Thanks so much for replying.

[Peter X]

There should be a good chance that someone from the forum will step forward to volunteer to crew for you. I used to do this sort of thing quite often and enjoyed it, and probably will again in future, but this year I've held back due to a serious health problem. My doctors think I could die within a few months, but so far they've done a good job of keeping me alive, and on my latest medication I feel great.

I'm probably too busy to do much in late August and your move is way up north anyway, but I haven't let that put me off in the past; I was on the Rochdale with a forum member that Christmas a few years ago when it had a bad flood , the River Calder overflowing into the canal a bit west of Hebden Bridge, just upstream of where we were. Pretty scary!

And in October I've got a nice trip lined up to look forward to, two weeks on the rivers Thames and Wey and down into west London crewing for the Narrow Boat Trust delivering coal etc. as I did in 2019. I've crewed a lot for the NBT since I joined in 2016 and retired to do more boating, it's great fun. I've told my doctor and physio that I'm fit for heaving the bags about and intend to do the trip and live to be 100. We need extra crew for that trip if anyone fancies it; see the NBT website for contact details about membership; we're all volunteers on that, including an experienced captain.

[Capey_k]

Dear Peter, thanks so much for contacting me. Sounds like we could have all had a lot of fun. Glad you are feeling up to heaving bags of coal around...I don't think I have ever been in that "place"  ha ha.

Sorry to read you have had ill health but it sounds like you are going to be boating for a long time to come so hopefully will spot you on the canals. 

[Giles Williams]

https://your helmsman.co.uk

[captain birdseye]

On 07/08/2020 at 15:37, Capey_k said:

We are looking at the end of this month or the first few days of September. My husband is happy to go along as well, but we need a bit of help as he can't do the Rochdale etc on his own. 

I am looking at howmuch it would cost me to either get a crew for it, or if someone was willing to come along and lend a hand.

Thanks so much for replying.

Also, if you contact C&RT there are volunteers who may be able to help you with the locks on the Rochdale, Ashton and also at Marple.

Also you could go the other way up cheshire locks and Bosley, ypou are climbing the same height either way but cheshire locks are much prettier 

Edited September 26, 2020 by captain birdseye

[matty40s]

11 hours ago, Aegidian said:

https://your helmsman.co.uk

I'm really interested in this bit from your website

 

I'm licensed by the Canal & River Trust to move boats using trade plates (useful, if your boat is currently on another waterway authority or is, as yet, unlicensed.)

 

There is no licence for doing this.

 

[Guest]

What's happened to the link?

 

Its no longer clicakable?

 

Edit this one seems to work.

 

https://yourhelmsman.co.uk/

Edited September 26, 2020 by The Happy Nomad

[Peter X]

I'm pretty sure matty40s is right, he moves boats for a living and is well respected on this forum for knowing what he's talking about. I try to be too!...

Certainly I've always been under the impression that (a) any boat on CRT waters needs a CRT licence; other rules are applied elsewhere depending on the navigation authority.

And (b) nobody needs a licence to help move someone's boat, whether taking overall responsibility like him, or just helping as crew as I sometimes do. There are several possible scenarios:

1. I think anyone getting paid needs their own insurance,  and it's income which should be declared for tax by the person or company doing it, whereas...

2. Anyone like me doing it for just food and accommodation with no money changing hands (hence it's not of interest to HMRC), is just a guest on the boat and will be covered by any normal boat insurance policy.

3. If someone pays to use a boat, wherever they're going or for whatever reason, that makes it a hire boat and the owner needs to comply with extra regulations and declare the income.

Hope all that helps clarify things.

 

[Peter X]

On 10/08/2020 at 12:37, Capey_k said:

Dear Peter, thanks so much for contacting me. Sounds like we could have all had a lot of fun. Glad you are feeling up to heaving bags of coal around...I don't think I have ever been in that "place"  ha ha.

Sorry to read you have had ill health but it sounds like you are going to be boating for a long time to come so hopefully will spot you on the canals. 

Thank you, my recovery appears to be still going well and it looks as if my trip in October is still on; this one is on rivers not canals. I have another MRI scan on Monday, then I see one of my doctors (there's a team of them!) on Tue 29 Sep, so I'll see then what their latest thoughts about me moving coal bags are. I think I can do it, but they have their worries and I must respect that. They kept me alive through a serious illness (thank you NHS, nothing to do with COVID-19) and they know what they're talking about!

 

I hope you found someone  to help you with your boat move; if not, is anyone up north up for it?

[Giles Williams]

3 hours ago, matty40s said:

I'm really interested in this bit from your website

 

I'm licensed by the Canal & River Trust to move boats using trade plates (useful, if your boat is currently on another waterway authority or is, as yet, unlicensed.)

 

There is no licence for doing this.

 

That's funny, that's what I've got: trading licence, trade plates number 41843, same as the licences boat yards get for moving boats. I could show you a photo Thomas, if you have any other doubts.

Really important if you're moving an unlicensed boat.

1 hour ago, The Happy Nomad said:

What's happened to the link?

 

Its no longer clicakable?

 

Edit this one seems to work.

 

https://yourhelmsman.co.uk/

Darn smart autocorrection. You have it right, of course.

And for Matty here are my trade plates, and current licence. Perhaps you should invest in one.

Edited September 26, 2020 by Aegidian
Added photo, just for Matty.

[matty40s]

No, happy to be illuminated if you have got a Traders Licence with Official Plates to move boats across navigation authorities in this day and age. Have you had similar joy with the Bridgewater/Peel people?

[Giles Williams]

4 minutes ago, matty40s said:

No, happy to be illuminated if you have got a Traders Licence with Official Plates to move boats across navigation authorities in this day and age. Have you had similar joy with the Bridgewater/Peel people?

See above. You will need at least £2M worth of PLI as well, of course. You do have that too, don't you?

[matty40s]

4 minutes ago, Aegidian said:

See above. You will need at least £2M worth of PLI as well, of course. You do have that too, don't you?

I've had £5m for the last 10 years thankyou, I have never had a licence from CRT or BW, that was my question.

 

[Giles Williams]

1 minute ago, matty40s said:

I've had £5m for the last 10 years thankyou, I have never had a licence from CRT or BW, that was my question.

 

I'd recommend one then. I've had to use it at on two moves this year alone, and that's with the whole CoViD shemozzle going on.

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, Aegidian said:

I'd recommend one then. I've had to use it at on two moves this year alone, and that's with the whole CoViD shemozzle going on.

If a boat has a valid licence why does that boat being moved need the mover to have a 'trade plate'?

 

Ive always understood trade plates were for brokers, boatyards and the like to manage unlicensed  boats in their short term care.

 

Genuine question.

Edited September 26, 2020 by The Happy Nomad

[matty40s]

Just now, Aegidian said:

I'd recommend one then. I've had to use it at on two moves this year alone, and that's with the whole CoViD shemozzle going on.

I've always had my own licence for my own boat, I really dont need another licence  and neither do you if you have your own boat. You are paying CRT money for something  they shouldn't be paid.

 

13 minutes ago, Aegidian said:

See above. You will need at least £2M worth of PLI as well, of course. You do have that too, don't you?

I will not go into the ridiculous prices you charge people for just doing 8 hour max days.

[Giles Williams]

Fair question, here's my answer, YMMV...

 

6 minutes ago, The Happy Nomad said:

If a boat has a valid licence why does that boat being moved need the mover to have a 'trade plate'?

It doesn't.  It's for when a boat isn't licensed, for example I just moved a boat off the Avon, which only had an Avon licence, to go for brokerage at Hanbury Wharf. So to pass through Diglis without shenanigans I needed the trade plates on the Severn and the Worcester and Birmingham.

It helps when booking a boat through a passage that isn't under a licence I can log into online too, I can just use the trade plate to book a passage or mooring on the Trust's website.

I'll be using it again to move a boat from the Nene (EA waters, with an EA licence) over to Stourbridge later this year too.

Edited September 26, 2020 by Aegidian
clearing typos