Boat mover urgently required asap

[Claire Ohara]

Hello everyone,

Unforeseen circumstances have left us needing someone asap to move our 57ft cruiser from Berkhamstead to Lyme view asap. 

Can anyone help?

[Alan de Enfield]

17 minutes ago, Claire Ohara said:

Hello everyone,

Unforeseen circumstances have left us needing someone asap to move our 57ft cruiser from Berkhamstead to Lyme view asap. 

Can anyone help?

 

Assuming (always risky) that you mean Lyme View marina (Macclesfield)

 

I'd suggest, that at this time of year with weather and canal closures you'd get the 'quickest' move by using a truck. It probably wouldn't be any more expensive either, and would be done within 1 day.

 

>£1000 for a truck vs £100-£150 per day for a boat mover.

 

According to Canal Planner it is a 13 day trip at 7 hours per day (assuming no closures or severe weather)

 

Edit to add links to a couple of boat trucking firms.

 

Barge Movers

 

A B Tuckey Boat Transport Service (waterways-great-britain.co.uk)

Edited November 27, 2021 by Alan de Enfield

[MtB]

1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

>£1000 for a truck vs £100-£150 per day for a boat mover.

 

 

And lifting the boat out of the water and onto the truck, then off again at Lyme is easy. No need to pay £500 each end of the trip for a crane, just ask the lorry driver to take one end while you lift the other. 

[Alan de Enfield]

1 hour ago, MtB said:

No need to pay £500 each end of the trip for a crane,

 

Agreed - I would normally pay £150-£180 each-way, but it would of course depend on what facilities the marina at each end has.

 

It all comes down to how important "ASAP" is to the OP.

 

13 days at £100 per day (if all goes well) v £800 for a truck and (to use your figures) £500 at each end. The boat will also use around 135** litres of fuel (another £135 ?)

 

Difference now £365.

 

If the Boat mover charges more than £100/day then it could easily be cost-neutral.

 

**Edit to explain :

Journey is calculated at 90 hours, take 1.5 litres per hour (assuming no hold ups) at £1 per litre = £135

Edited November 27, 2021 by Alan de Enfield

[David Mack]

2 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

According to Canal Planner it is a 13 day trip at 7 hours per day (assuming no closures or severe weather)

Below is map of stoppages from CRT website between now and 18 December. So looks like you would have to go via Great Heywood, Autherley, Barbridge and Middlewich, which will add a few days to the journey.

In practice the OP's options are to go by lorry, to leave the boat at Berko until the spring, or perhaps to go for a mad dash over the Xmas /New Year period when there may be fewer stoppages.  But I doubt you'd get a boat mover at that time, so it would probably have to be DIY.

[PeterScott]

3 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

According to Canal Planner it is a 13 day trip at 7 hours per day...

Or 7 days at 13hrs/day ...

1 hour ago, David Mack said:

...between now and 18 December [T&M stoppages] looks like you would have to go via Great Heywood, Autherley, Barbridge and Middlewich, which will add ...

So it's Berko, Braunston, Fradley, GH, Autherley, Barbridge, Middlewich, Kidsgrove, LymeView.  What a brilliant trip - at any time of the year. 

 

Have Windlass Can Travel. ... but sadly not in the foreseeable future while our builders are (not) rebuilding the house-roof-extension. 

 

Surely our collective addiction to the canals can produce a (daft) volunteer crew from somewhere ?? 🙂

 

[Alan de Enfield]

4 minutes ago, PeterScott said:

Or 7 days at 13hrs/day ...

So it's Berko, Braunston, Fradley, GH, Autherley, Barbridge, Middlewich, Kidsgrove, LymeView.  What a brilliant trip - at any time of the year. 

 

Have Windlass Can Travel. ... but sadly not in the foreseeable future while our builders are (not) rebuilding the house-roof-extension. 

 

Surely our collective addiction to the canals can produce a (daft) volunteer crew from somewhere ?? 🙂

 

 

Add in a couple or three days like today and your schedule is 'shot'.

 

If the jbo MUST be done, use a truck.

[enigmatic]

13 hours a day right now probably involves too much night time cruising to really enjoy the route!

[MtB]

3 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Agreed - I would normally pay £150-£180 each-way, but it would of course depend on what facilities the marina at each end has.

 

 

I think it might also depend on the mood of the crane driver if you are telling him what you'll pay. 

 

I think if I tried that I might find my boat was staying on the lorry. 

[Nunovyrbizz]

I'll do it for you. I'm at a loose end at the moment.

 

Can depart Berko Sunday morning.

 

Me;

10 years living aboard, continuous cruising. Good knowledge of G.U, Oxford, Coventry canals. 

Currently living on land for past 3 years so boatsmanship maybe slightly rusty.

Reasonable mechanical skills.

 RYA Inland Waterways Helmsman Cert.

Plenty of UK identification including driving licence etc to prove my id and current address.

 

I'll cover my own food, you cover fuel and any other costs should it break down etc.

 

Would want to bring my dog with me.

 

£800 cash or bank transfer.

 

Give me a shout if you want to chat.

 

[Alan de Enfield]

1 minute ago, Nunovyrbizz said:

I'll do it for you. I'm at a loose end at the moment.

 

Can depart Berko Sunday morning.

 

Me;

10 years living aboard, continuous cruising. Good knowledge of G.U, Oxford, Coventry canals. 

Currently living on land for past 3 years so boatsmanship maybe slightly rusty.

Reasonable mechanical skills.

 RYA Inland Waterways Helmsman Cert.

Plenty of UK identification including driving licence etc to prove my id and current address.

 

I'll cover my own food, you cover fuel and any other costs should it break down etc.

 

Would want to bring my dog with me.

 

£800 cash or bank transfer.

 

Give me a shout if you want to chat.

 

 

Who covers the insurance as most 'pleasure boat'  insurance does not give cover for 'anyone employed by you' ie taking payment for moving the boat ?

 

Both of my polices specifically exclude it.

 

It is unfortunate that you have declared you will 'do it for payment' on a public forum. It may be better to withdraw your offer now, and have future communication via PM

[Nunovyrbizz]

Just now, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Who covers the insurance as most 'pleasure boat'  insurance does not give cover for 'anyone employed by you' ie taking payment for moving the boat ?

 

Both of my polices specifically exclude it.

 

It is unfortunate that you have declared you will 'do it for payment' on a public forum. It may be better to withdraw your offer now, and have future communication via PM

Thanks for the advice.

 

The offer is withdrawn.

 

OP, I have a friend who may be able to help, contact me via PM.

[jeddlad]

Sven from SOS Boatmovers is a good guy. Search for SOS Boatmovers on Facebook. I know he charges about £10 per hour. Other movers can charge £14 per hour and one I know of, even tries to charge people for a labourer at £10 per hour to help with the locks!

[Alan de Enfield]

43 minutes ago, jeddlad said:

Sven from SOS Boatmovers is a good guy. Search for SOS Boatmovers on Facebook. I know he charges about £10 per hour. Other movers can charge £14 per hour and one I know of, even tries to charge people for a labourer at £10 per hour to help with the locks!

 

That works out at more than the cost of a truck.

[junior]

I don't think that trip is 13 days.

At this time of year I'd say it is about 9 days, or even 8 if you're boat mover is willing to do a couple of hours in darkness each day. 

I'm not a boat mover, but on a trad boat with a stove at the rear I'd happily boat 7am -6/7pm at this time of year.

[Mike Todd]

23 hours ago, junior said:

I don't think that trip is 13 days.

At this time of year I'd say it is about 9 days, or even 8 if you're boat mover is willing to do a couple of hours in darkness each day. 

I'm not a boat mover, but on a trad boat with a stove at the rear I'd happily boat 7am -6/7pm at this time of year.

But you would need to check insurance . . . 

[ditchcrawler]

4 hours ago, Mike Todd said:

But you would need to check insurance . . . 

Surly a boat mover will have insurance if doing it professionally 

[GUMPY]

5 hours ago, Mike Todd said:

But you would need to check insurance . . . 

Lets not go there again 😱

Many policies allow for single handing after dark 😎

[Mike Todd]

25 minutes ago, Loddon said:

Lets not go there again 😱

Many policies allow for single handing after dark 😎

'Many' means not all. If you are trusting your boat to a third party it is sensible to check that they are insured for what they are doing - in fact in the case of a boat mover it would be entirely reasonable to ask for evidence. (No worse than navigation authorities asking for such evidence before allowing you to sue their waters).

[jeddlad]

19 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

Surly a boat mover will have insurance if doing it professionally 

Lol so you would think. All boat movers only have 3rd party liability insurance. Anything they hit whilst moving your boat is covered but your boat isn't. 

 

All the boat movers says they are fully insured, yes they are fully insured, with 3rd party liability insurance.

 

It is impossible for boat movers to get fully comp insurance as none of the insurance companies offer a policy such as this 

[Tacet]

On 07/12/2021 at 11:28, jeddlad said:

Lol so you would think. All boat movers only have 3rd party liability insurance. Anything they hit whilst moving your boat is covered but your boat isn't. 

 

All the boat movers says they are fully insured, yes they are fully insured, with 3rd party liability insurance.

 

It is impossible for boat movers to get fully comp insurance as none of the insurance companies offer a policy such as this 

Interesting - it would be nice to see a policy or hear from a professional boat mover. 

 

But the boat owner is a 3rd party in the insurance contract - such that, insofar as the imprecise expression "3rd party liability" allows, the mover would be insured against claims brought by the owner.  If the boat caught fire or sank of its own free-will with no help from the boat mover, third party insurance would not cover the damage.

 

 

[PD1964]

So what/who is insured. The boat or the Boat mover?

If a boat is fully Comp, can it be steered by anyone or has it got to be the person who took out and named on the Policy? 
 

 

 

 

[Tony Brooks]

Just now, PD1964 said:

So what/who is insured. The boat or the Boat mover?

If a boat is fully Comp, can it be steered by anyone or has it got to be the person who took out and named on the Policy? 
 

 

On my policy I made sure it was the boat, but I was required t ensure anyone I LENT it to was competent to use it.

[Alan de Enfield]

40 minutes ago, Tony Brooks said:

 

On my policy I made sure it was the boat, but I was required t ensure anyone I LENT it to was competent to use it.

 

"LENT" That is the crux of the matter. Anyone paid to helm the boat requires professional indemnity insurance and my policy clearly deliniates the cover between a 'paid professional' (not covered) and a 'competent friend of family' (Covered)

[PaulJ]

2 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

"LENT" That is the crux of the matter. Anyone paid to helm the boat requires professional indemnity insurance and my policy clearly deliniates the cover between a 'paid professional' (not covered) and a 'competent friend of family' (Covered)

Exactly that. 

It is that simple.