Business licence

[illia]

Hello all I hope this finds you well . 
I was thinking to rent out my boat occasionally . 
Or to rent out just a share .

Is there a legal way to avoid doing the business licence ? 
In which cases you do not need a business licence ? 
Thank you in advance for your help ! 

[TheBiscuits]

No.

 

Sorry if it's not what you want to hear, but it's true!

 

https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/boating/go-boating/a-guide-to-boating/living-on-a-boat/renting-a-boat-to-live-on

 

Has quite a bit of detail that may help.

[illia]

Thank you so much for your reply it’s very useful . I have a few questions : 

 

1-Do you know if they will fine ( and the amount of the fine ) you if you don’t have a static licence ? 
 

2-Do you know if it’s possible to rent it out on a continuous cruising ? 

 

3- do you know how to get the safety scheme certificate , the gas safety certificate ( in a continuous cruising )?

How much they cost? 
 

thank you in advance for your help 

 

 

[haggis]

1 minute ago, illia said:

Thank you so much for your reply it’s very useful . I have a few questions : 

 

1-Do you know if they will fine ( and the amount of the fine ) you if you don’t have a static licence ? Might not be a fine but they might well remove the boat from the waterway
 

2-Do you know if it’s possible to rent it out on a continuous cruising ? Don't see how as I think you have to have a "change over" place to rent a boat

 

3- do you know how to get the safety scheme certificate , the gas safety certificate ( in a continuous cruising )?

How much they cost? No idea but a BSS examiner and gase safe person would be able to tell you
 

thank you in advance for your help 

 

 

It sounds as if you are planning to rent out your boat but swerve round some of the conditions. Not a good idea methinks. What is to stop the hirer taking the boat, changing its appearance and you never see it again? Or has happened a few times, the hirer doing something which resulted in the boat having to be scrapped and the insurance not paying out as the boat was not insured for hiring. 

I know it is done but you might be risking your boat

 

[Jen-in-Wellies]

11 minutes ago, illia said:

1-Do you know if they will fine ( and the amount of the fine ) you if you don’t have a static licence ? 

They may well refuse to renew your boat license. Then means removing the boat from CaRT waters. It won't be a "cost of doing business" fine you can factor in.

12 minutes ago, illia said:

2-Do you know if it’s possible to rent it out on a continuous cruising ? 

Not officially no. To do it properly, it needs a base mooring.

[Alan de Enfield]

This type of request seems to be gaining in popularity, it seems that more and more of those wanting to 'get onto the waterways' are looking to do it 'on the cheap' and circumnavigate all of the requirements and laws that add cost.

 

Owning a boat is not a cheap option and will get more expensive as the new licencing requirments are introduced.

Owning a 'legal' boat based business (particularly boat hire) is very epensove and basically just to have one boat makes it finacially non-viable.

 

11 hours ago, illia said:

Hello all I hope this finds you well . 
I was thinking to rent out my boat occasionally . 
Or to rent out just a share .

Is there a legal way to avoid doing the business licence ? 
In which cases you do not need a business licence ? 
Thank you in advance for your help ! 

 

You could always do a 'sponsored boat' which is where you 'give' the boat to a proper (fully legit) hire company, they take all costs and hire it out, paying you a small percentage of the income. You are allowed X number of weeks for your own use.

[LadyG]

If owning a boat and paying for a cc licence is not going to be affordable I would suggest you buy something smaller which you can afford, or save up for another year till you can. 

[Tracy D'arth]

Trying to circumvent the law and the bylaws of the canal will lead ultimately to tears as they tow your boat away and leave you with court papers and fines.

#Search  GEORGE WARD  who has done this.

Edited February 14 by Tracy D'arth

[illia]

Thank you Tracy  

In case I start the activity I want to follow all the rules in order to avoid anxiety and issues as you said .

Just one question: 

If I pay for a static business licence and a mooring , can I move around now and then on a continuous cruising for personal holidays ? 
As I wanted to rent the boat out occasionally , maybe on Airbnb , can I pay for a leisure mooring or it has to be residential ? 
thank you very much for your help ! 

[Alan de Enfield]

5 minutes ago, illia said:

If I pay for a static business licence and a mooring , can I move around now and then on a continuous cruising for personal holidays ? 

 

Yes

 

 

 

[Mike Todd]

10 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Yes

 

 

 

If you have a home mooring then you will not be CC ing. 

[ditchcrawler]

17 minutes ago, illia said:

Thank you Tracy  

In case I start the activity I want to follow all the rules in order to avoid anxiety and issues as you said .

Just one question: 

If I pay for a static business licence and a mooring , can I move around now and then on a continuous cruising for personal holidays ? 
As I wanted to rent the boat out occasionally , maybe on Airbnb , can I pay for a leisure mooring or it has to be residential ? 
thank you very much for your help ! 

Your first hurdle will be finding a mooring operator who allows Airbnb

[MtB]

7 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Your first hurdle will be finding a mooring operator who allows Airbnb

 

ISTR the home mooring needs car parking to be associated with it too. A second significant hurdle. 

 

 

[mrsmelly]

30 minutes ago, illia said:

Thank you Tracy  

In case I start the activity I want to follow all the rules in order to avoid anxiety and issues as you said .

Just one question: 

If I pay for a static business licence and a mooring , can I move around now and then on a continuous cruising for personal holidays ? 
As I wanted to rent the boat out occasionally , maybe on Airbnb , can I pay for a leisure mooring or it has to be residential ? 
thank you very much for your help ! 

If you want to abide by all the rules as you say then the simple answer is to get in touch with the licensing authority where you wish to keep the boat such as CART and tell them what you intend doing and they will give you chapter and verse of what you can and cannot do. I found them very helpful over the years.

[Tracy D'arth]

29 minutes ago, illia said:

Thank you Tracy  

In case I start the activity I want to follow all the rules in order to avoid anxiety and issues as you said .

Just one question: 

If I pay for a static business licence and a mooring , can I move around now and then on a continuous cruising for personal holidays ? 
As I wanted to rent the boat out occasionally , maybe on Airbnb , can I pay for a leisure mooring or it has to be residential ? 
thank you very much for your help ! 

I have recently researched this for a friend. For Airbnb it has to be the same as a rented flat, full insurance, residential planning permission, residential mooring, gas and electric tests and certificates as a house, Car park and a serviced mooring.

[dmr]

4 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

ISTR the home mooring needs car parking to be associated with it too. A second significant hurdle. 

 

 

 

Thats interesting as our mooring contract with CRT includes static letting but they did not explicitly ask about car parking, though if its your own premises they probably assume car parking etc..

Nearer to you, Moonboats managed to operate a significant hire bussiness without a base for some time, and since she left Honeystreet I think she is again baseless but has a deal with a pub?, so these things are not cast in stone.

I suggest that getting the safety and correct insurance sorted out should be the main priority, if you try to do things properly then CRT might well be a bit flexible, despite some problems they are mostly good people if you co-operate with them.

[MtB]

3 minutes ago, dmr said:

 

Thats interesting as our mooring contract with CRT includes static letting but they did not explicitly ask about car parking, though if its your own premises they probably assume car parking etc..

Nearer to you, Moonboats managed to operate a significant hire bussiness without a base for some time, and since she left Honeystreet I think she is again baseless but has a deal with a pub?, so these things are not cast in stone.

I suggest that getting the safety and correct insurance sorted out should be the main priority, if you try to do things properly then CRT might well be a bit flexible, despite some problems they are mostly good people if you co-operate with them.

 

Didn't CRT originally treat static lets as the same as being hire boats? Then 2 or 3 years ago introduce a new category of licence for renters not cruising (or something like that)? 

 

I think the car parking requirement was for the base for hire boats out cruising. 

 

 

[ditchcrawler]

01899187-8087-7a70-afc3-7597a96c8af8.pdf (canalrivertrust.org.uk)

 

From 12 June 2017 boat owners will be able to apply for a Static Letting Licence for static boats which will cover all types of boat rental, including long-term renting, Airbnb-style short breaks, and overnight stays. The boat owner will need to have a permanent mooring and should talk to their local planning authority to see if planning permission is needed. The price will be the same as for the current Self-Drive Holiday Hire licence. The Static Letting Licence has more rigorous requirements to make sure that both the boat is safe and that potential renters are fully briefed before spending a night on board. Boat owners will be required to have: proof of adequate insurance; a Non-Private Boat Safety Scheme Certificate; a detailed handover document including emergency procedures and contact numbers; a Landlord Gas Safety Certificate; and written permission from their mooring provider.

[illia]

Is the Marina considered as a residential mooring ? 

[Tracy D'arth]

1 minute ago, illia said:

Is the Marina considered as a residential mooring ? 

Ask the marina owner.  If it is not then they would be in breach of planning and use regulations and a whole big can of worms opens up.

[Arthur Marshall]

The op should (assuming they are serious, which personally I doubt) also remember that, in general, advice given for free is worth what they've paid for it. Odd, too, that the boat owner seems to know nothing about either marina regulations or continuous cruising. And appears incapable of reading anything CRT has produced on the subject.

[Crewcut]

There are easier ways for an individual to make money than trying to rent out a narrowboat to random people. Not worth the hassle, even if it is done genuinely just to try to offset some of the costs of a hobby that you are passionate about. In my humble opinion...

[Arthur Marshall]

32 minutes ago, Crewcut said:

There are easier ways for an individual to make money than trying to rent out a narrowboat to random people. Not worth the hassle, even if it is done genuinely just to try to offset some of the costs of a hobby that you are passionate about. In my humble opinion...

Back in the year dot, before there was any fuss about renting, I used to let friends use the boat for a few weeks a year, for which they did indeed give me money, if not much. Every time it came back it had damage that was never owned up to - one huge dent in the bow, broken deck planks. Once it was left with a literally overflowing toilet. Simply wasn't worth the grief.

[David Mack]

What you are proposing is a boating business. What you need to know about business boating on CRT's waterways is set out at https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/business-and-trade/business-boating/starting-or-expanding-a-boating-business.

 

Back in 2015 someone applied for planning permission for a static letting boat near me. CRT were supportive and permission was granted. But the project never went ahead - I don't know why. The online planning documents will give you some idea of what was needed to get permission.

https://portal.calderdale.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?keyVal=NPH53BDW0D600&activeTab=summary

 

[MtB]

3 hours ago, Arthur Marshall said:

The op should (assuming they are serious, which personally I doubt) also remember that, in general, advice given for free is worth what they've paid for it. Odd, too, that the boat owner seems to know nothing about either marina regulations or continuous cruising. And appears incapable of reading anything CRT has produced on the subject.

 

 

You took too many grumpy pills this morning Arthur!