Boat Safety business for sale

[MrsM]

Spotted this on eBay. 

Boat Safety inspections business. Derby based. £5,500.

https://ebay.us/m/pdRFCU

Edited March 2 by MrsM

[David Mack]

Is a Boat Safety Examiner qualification transferable? I would have thought anyone taking this over would need to do all the Examiner training and qualification from scratch, in which case, where is there any value in the business to be transferred?

[MrsM]

I very much doubt the qualification is transferable. I presume this is selling the 'going concern' business list of past customers etc. I was surprised to read the seller does 400 inspections a year.

[Momac]

7 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Is a Boat Safety Examiner qualification transferable?

Of course not .

 

All that is for sale is a phone number and email address. Perhaps a newly qualified examiner might be interested 

[LadyG]

Just now, David Mack said:

Is a Boat Safety Examiner qualification transferable? I would have thought anyone taking this over would need to do all the Examiner training and qualification from scratch, in which case, where is there any value in the business to be transferred?

He will have a list of clients, that's possibly all that could be transferred,  maybe there is a website, I dont know. I dont think its my guy, he's not quite 78,

 

22 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Is a Boat Safety Examiner qualification transferable? I would have thought anyone taking this over would need to do all the Examiner training and qualification from scratch, in which case, where is there any value in the business to be transferred?

 

[Alan de Enfield]

 

If his examination income is (as stated) £112000 that is £280 per examination.

 

Is the BSS examination now £280 !

[LadyG]

36 minutes ago, MrsM said:

I very much doubt the qualification is transferable. I presume this is selling the 'going concern' business list of past customers etc. I was surprised to read the seller does 400 inspections a year.

Goodness, maybe he has a contract with a few hire firms, which would trim the time down if they were all set up simply and identically.

They only need done every 4 years.

I think would gues that overheads eat up the profit margin. So £160 gross leaves him with maybe £100 a pop.

400x £100 is£40K, so its a no brainer from Return on Income.

I think the course costs about £5K plus expenses, but there is a requirement for a sound knowledge base, and maybe some decent vocational qualifications. I think my BSC examiner has survey qualifications, and is Gas Safe,  Boat Safe.

Edited March 2 by LadyG

[Momac]

22 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

If his examination income is (as stated) £112000 that is £280 per examination.

 

Is the BSS examination now £280 !

I paid £220 almost two years ago in 2024. I expect costs have risen since then. 

 

[LadyG]

55 minutes ago, Momac said:

I paid £220 almost two years ago in 2024. I expect costs have risen since then. 

 

I think it will depend on the location and the needs of the examiner. I suspect many do other work and fit the BS in to their working days. Mine was Gas Safe, so i got him to do bit of gas work, that was about £100. I prefer Gas Safe because I am liveaboard and I don't want a bubble tester 'full stop'. Its a nonsense to have two standards.

Edited March 2 by LadyG

[jonathanA]

2 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

If his examination income is (as stated) £112000 that is £280 per examination.

 

Is the BSS examination now £280 !

i've just booked one for next month, with a very reliable examiner -
Paul Morris, (does a proper job and knows the rules properly- doesn't  make stuff up) and he is charging £240, with one free retest if needed. 

 

 

[Alan de Enfield]

5 minutes ago, jonathanA said:

i've just booked one for next month, with a very reliable examiner -
Paul Morris, (does a proper job and knows the rules properly- doesn't  make stuff up) and he is charging £240, with one free retest if needed. 

 

 

 

You can understand why there are discussions about making it an annual test.

 

Maybe there is an argument for having fixed locations and you take your boat there (like your car for its MOT) and the fee is £54

[ditchcrawler]

8 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

You can understand why there are discussions about making it an annual test.

 

Maybe there is an argument for having fixed locations and you take your boat there (like your car for its MOT) and the fee is £54

And sometimes free with service agreements, My Citroen dealer offered that,  

[jonathanA]

6 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

You can understand why there are discussions about making it an annual test.

 

Maybe there is an argument for having fixed locations and you take your boat there (like your car for its MOT) and the fee is £54

well i think that is largely Stephanie Horton driving that by claiming that RCR attend many 'unsafe' boats.  hmm what possible self interest is there then....  its utterly ludicrous to suggest an annual test is needed and I think BSS have still to produce any reliable data to suggest the BSS has improved safety/reduced death/injuries...  (happy to be proven wrong on that) 

 

I think i would pay a little bit more to have a consistent standard of tests and examiners properly censured for poor behaviours. 

[mrsmelly]

8 minutes ago, jonathanA said:

well i think that is largely Stephanie Horton driving that by claiming that RCR attend many 'unsafe' boats.  hmm what possible self interest is there then....  its utterly ludicrous to suggest an annual test is needed and I think BSS have still to produce any reliable data to suggest the BSS has improved safety/reduced death/injuries...  (happy to be proven wrong on that) 

 

I think i would pay a little bit more to have a consistent standard of tests and examiners properly censured for poor behaviours. 

I lived aboard full time before the BullSS was introduced, we did not have boats exploding, setting fire, and people dying daily.

[Alan de Enfield]

7 minutes ago, jonathanA said:

I think i would pay a little bit more to have a consistent standard of tests and examiners properly censured for poor behaviours. 

 

 

You'd have thought that the following requirements would weed-out the wannabe little-hitlers.

when trained the examiner has to pay the BSS

 

Training Programme

The BSS Examiner Training Programme is modular and includes online, classroom, and field-based elements. Key components include: 

 

Boat Safety Scheme

• 16 online learning modules covering technical and safety aspects.
• 2.5 weeks of in-person training, including:
• Two days in Evesham
• Two separate weeks at the Examiner Field Craft training centre in Norwich
• A half-day end-of-programme review near Northampton
• Coaching and assessment, including a six-month period with a personal mentor for guidance. 

  
  The programme is selective, with up to 24 trainees per course, and considers qualifications, transferable skills, personal attributes, and geographic location to address examiner shortages. The 2023 programme fee was £5,949 plus VAT, covering training, assessments, and mentoring.

   

   

  Then of course the examiner has to pay the BSS for his paperwork and a fee (£91.20)for every examination "pass" issued :

   

   

  Here is the list of the current fees and charges payable by BSS Examiners for BSS related materials and activities.

  The nature and amount of fees and charges may be added to or amended from time to time, subject to the discretion of the BSS Ltd directors.

  As and when changes or additions to fees and charges occur, this page will be updated.

  Item	Description	Unit cost	VAT	Total
  Examiner registration full year	First registration from when accepted until the 31 March in the next calendar year	£250	£50	£300.00
  Late registration administration charge	Applies to late registering examiners who apply after the deadline without prior agreement	£41.67	£8.33	£50.00
  BSS Certification from 1 April 2025	Applies when BSSER with 'Yes' or 'Yes but...' examination results are recorded	£76	£15.20	£91.20
  Post & Packing: parcel mailed	Parcel or packet up to 2kg weight recorded priority	£26	£5.20	£31.20
  Post & Packing: Courier	Parcel or packet up to 10kg weight	£20	£4	£24.00

  Compulsory undertaking of training courses are required from time to time. These can online, attending a facility or both. The subject matter can vary, such as LPG updates, electrical awareness, IT training, etc.

  Fees for training are pegged as low as we can structure them and are based on what they cost to provide. BSS training courses fees are subject to VAT at whatever the current rates are for training as stipulated by the Government.

  Note that the BSS Conditions of Registration require that Examiners must pay the fees and charges for registration, Certifications and any other BSS fees and charges, within thirty (30) days of invitation or demand and that Examiners must not conduct BSS Examinations or issue certifications unless all overdue fees and charges outstanding to the BSS have been paid in full.

  Payment of invoices is subject to terms and conditions of being a Canal & River Trust financial account holder. These may lead to increased charges.

  For example late payments may attract higher interest rate charges.

  Where no higher rate of interest is specific in any contract between Canal & River Trust and you, the Trust may charge interest at a rate of 8% above the Bank of England base rate on overdue amounts.

3 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

I lived aboard full time before the BullSS was introduced, we did not have boats exploding, setting fire, and people dying daily.

 

 

Indeed and your boats, and my boats and for some others were/are properly maintained and 'safe'.

 

Unfortunately today there is a new breed of boaters who are either unwilling or unable (skills or financial limits) to maintain their boats to a safe level and compulsory safety examinations are necessary.

 

The argument (in my mind) is that the items needed to be checked, and the consistency (and quality) of the examiners are very questionable

[LadyG]

1 hour ago, jonathanA said:

 

 

I think i would pay a little bit more to have a consistent standard of tests and examiners properly censured for poor behaviours. 

I'm not sure about that, it is not in the best interest of many boaters to complain about their view of the standard of a BS examination.

Some people may be qualified to contest any fail, but if that were the case they could put in a formal complaint stating their case. I dont see many people doing that.

The majority will just accept the recommendations, remedy, and have a re test. 

Consistency is desirable, but every examiner has a different  background and different expertise, and every boat will be different. It will always be thus. 

The examiner charges the boater what he feels is reasonable remuneration,  each Examiner and each boat incurs different costs.

A few people who are boaters might  do the BS course as a little extra to their main income, but I cant see anyone leaving school and setting up a business armed only with this Certificate. 

[Cheese]

That level of turnover might mean VAT registration, so it could be more like £220-240+VAT per exam. Most examiners probably have a smaller operation so don't need to charge VAT.

 

And there won't be much outgoings to reclaim VAT on, so net income might be nearer £90,000

[MrsM]

With the stated turnover they would have to be VAT registered. £90k is the turnover threshold after which they have to register.

[ditchcrawler]

As was pointed out on FB the only person it is any use to is another BSS inspector so bit of a limited market and people have to go somewhere for their BSS inspection so if they are in the area they would probably pick the work up anyway.

[Momac]

1 hour ago, LadyG said:

I cant see anyone leaving school and setting up a business armed only with this Certificate. 

That's not even an option. You need some sort of relevant  experience and  qualifications before you can do the BSS training.

[Ex Brummie]

"buying the book" of a retiring tradesman is common practice in the heating & plumbing trades. 

It does not incorporate any guarantee of income as you may find the prospective customers would much rather sek the advice of friends & neighbours, but hopefully the retiree would be passing on your details to phone enquirers. I know of one individual who paid for referrals who did not retain too many customers when he turned up in a Range Rover to service oil boilers.

 

When I set up on my own, I had two offers, both around £5000, which was money I did not have, but within three or four months, with lots of letterbox drops and limited adverts in parish magazines etc, I was earning my keep without any such payments. 

 

[Ken X]

16 minutes ago, Momac said:

That's not even an option. You need some sort of relevant  experience and  qualifications before you can do the BSS training.

This is very true in surveying.  Our companies youngest Surveyor was thirty.  We required applicants with several years hands on experience, including knowing what bad practice looked like and the naughty tricks some people got up to.  A miss spent youth was a positive asset as it taught you what to look for and where.  The best applicants tended to be time served and several were ex-forces.  You also need to have the gravitas to deal with clients, particularly when you have to point out a failure, explain why and back it up with the relevant Standards.

[Jon57]

6 hours ago, MrsM said:

Spotted this on eBay. 

Boat Safety inspections business. Derby based. £5,500.

https://ebay.us/m/pdRFCU

Started at £10000. Some reduction. 

[Alan de Enfield]

4 minutes ago, Jon57 said:

Started at £10000. Some reduction. 

 

Probably realised the company has no assets apart from 'the guy retiring', and a list of potential customers.

[David Mack]

1 hour ago, LadyG said:

Consistency is desirable, but every examiner has a different  background and different expertise, and every boat will be different. It will always be thus. 

I recall that when what later became the Boat Safety Scheme (then called something like Standards for Pleasure Craft - mandatory for hire boats and optional for privately owned craft I think), BW were concerned that the volume of work created would be more than could be carried out by the number of qualified marine surveyors then practicing on the canals. So they created the role of Boat Safety Examiner, which they intended would be taken up by existing boat builders,  fitters, repairers and similarly experienced people who would be trained and examined specifically for the job. The initial blurb said that due to the lesser level of training and qualification compared to surveyors, the Examiners would be given specific criteria to assess boats against, and it would be necessary to remove the discretion which could normally be exercised by a surveyor. All with the aim of a consistent and repeatable standard.

Shame the BSS hasn't followed through on all that!