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Buying a Boat from a marina, has anyone ever got their deposit back?


Oxyman

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Hi all not sure if this is the right place to post this but here goes

 

My situation is that I have put a deposit on a boat. the marina is trying to pressurize me into paying money for the boat before I can see things that the surveyor has said need to be fixed are fixed.And the fings that they are claiming are working, are indeed working. there has been some work done on the boat, (blaking and anodes) this was on the agreement that the money offered for the boat was for a boat that is working. The Marina employees have lied to me on several occasions and are doing their absolute best to annoy me with their tissy fits so they can claim I am pulling out for "personal reasons", basically I have realized that the Marina would never give the deposit back and will always lie about the situation to make it sound like I am acting unreasonably. My question is how do experienced people go about buying a boat if you are supposed to put a deposit on the boat but realize that the marinas can never be trusted to return your deposit?

So with this in mind has anyone here had to pull out of a boat deal and seen their deposit returned?

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Hi, sorry to hear you are in this position and I think someone with more legal knowledge than I may answer this comprehensively but I would check certain things like

was the deposit paid on the understanding it was non-refundable? I would think the marina would have terms and conditions within which to operate?

Can you prove the staff have lied to you?

 

If you do think you have a case the small claims court may be an option???

 

Trev

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Hi, sorry to hear you are in this position and I think someone with more legal knowledge than I may answer this comprehensively but I would check certain things like

was the deposit paid on the understanding it was non-refundable? I would think the marina would have terms and conditions within which to operate?

Can you prove the staff have lied to you?

 

If you do think you have a case the small claims court may be an option???

 

Trev

 

Hi thanks for your response, the deposit was paid, subject to survey, (sorry I should have stated that) and I cant pull out for "personal reasons" I have to say that I thought that meant If my personal situation changed and I could no longer afford it or something similar. Not that the marina employees would do their pest to prevent a working relationship, then claim I it's personal. I can't see how I can prove they lied as all actions after paying the deposit have been arranged verbally

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Exactly what did the surveyor say needed fixing? And what was the estimated cost?

 

Do the marina own the boat, or are they merely the broker?

 

How much did you pay as a deposit?

 

How much is the boat?

 

Can you provide a web link to it?

 

Which marina?

 

The answers may help someone to help you.

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Exactly what did the surveyor say needed fixing? And what was the estimated cost?

 

Do the marina own the boat, or are they merely the broker?

 

How much did you pay as a deposit?

 

How much is the boat?

 

Can you provide a web link to it?

 

Which marina?

 

The answers may help someone to help you.

 

Hi thanks for your response here are the details you asked about

 

Exactly what did the surveyor say needed fixing? And what was the estimated cost?

 

Thetford toilet is not flushing, interior lights are not working, tunnel light is not working, sterling battery charger is not working. No quote was given as to how much these would cost to fix the surveyor refuses to do this. in addition various boat safety issues which were verbally quoted as £300 but I want to see the safety certificate issued before I believe them. the surveyor has not tested the washing machine of the electric heater or Microwave. I am wanting to see that these work. I did make the offer on agreement that everything was working, but it was a verbal agreement

 

Do the marina own the boat, or are they merely the broker?

 

They are the broker

 

How much did you pay as a deposit?

 

£1,000

 

How much is the boat?

 

The boat is advertised at £34,950.00, I offered £30,000.00 subject to survey

 

Can you provide a web link to it?

 

I could but am worried about what the legal situation is

 

Which marina?

 

Again I could but am worried about what the legal situation is can anyone clarify what the situation is here

Edited by Oxyman
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I must firstly say I have never bought a second hand boat, and my opinion will not help you.

1. I would never pay a deposit direct to a broker. (just look at Harrels for example)

2. What exactly does "subject to survey" mean? Does this mean if there are any problems you get your deposit back? All second hand boats will have problems.

3. As far as the microwave and washing machine are concerned not sure if that is a valid reason for not buying the boat. If I was selling a boat I would deduct these from the price of boat and sell them as an extra if required.

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I must firstly say I have never bought a second hand boat, and my opinion will not help you.

1. I would never pay a deposit direct to a broker. (just look at Harrels for example)

2. What exactly does "subject to survey" mean? Does this mean if there are any problems you get your deposit back? All second hand boats will have problems.

3. As far as the microwave and washing machine are concerned not sure if that is a valid reason for not buying the boat. If I was selling a boat I would deduct these from the price of boat and sell them as an extra if required.

 

When we bought our second hand boat through a broker the "subject to survey" stated that issues have to be over a certain rectification cost. As you say all boats will have some issues that the survey picks up.

 

 

 

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When we bought our second hand boat through a broker the "subject to survey" stated that issues have to be over a certain rectification cost. As you say all boats will have some issues that the survey picks up.

 

 

 

 

Ah ok a bit difficult if the surveyor won't give an estimate.

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So is it just that perhaps that the batteries are flat that stopped the surveyor testing the items?

 

Just my opinion but a deposit made subject to survey is an indication that as long as there is nothing serious wrong with the boat that just can't be negociated, then you are entering into an agreement to purchase and as such teh vessel is withdrawn from the market. It looks like you were lucky they didn't take 5-10% deposit.

 

Flat batteries or a few electrical issues are no real reason to pull out just to negociate further.

 

Good luck

 

Paul

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When we bought our boat it was a brokers "stock" boat. We still put our deposit down "subject to survery" on the understanding that if any major defects were found we would pull out of the sale or look to buy a different boat. The deal was also that any minor defects that the survey found were to be rectified by the broker at their cost. This worked fine for us as we got a boat that looked a felt brand new when infact she was 5 years old.

 

Your situation is slightly different as the broker doesnt onw the boat they are merely selling it for a third party. A lot will depend on the terms and conditions that you signed up to but as the faults you describe are very minor I seriously doubt that you will get any money back if you pull out. Some of those things you could have checked out yourself, switching lights on, checking battery condition and the charger etc. and it is worthwhile bearing this in mind for future purchases.

 

I am interested to hear what exactly you mean by the brokerage staff pulling "hissy fits". If they are asking for the full balance now that works are complete then they are only asking you to complete your part of the deal that you have no doubt signed up to.

  • Greenie 1
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Ah ok a bit difficult if the surveyor won't give an estimate.

 

True, and if the seller/broker don't agree with the surveyor's estimate no idea how that would ultimately work out either.

 

Another thing, we paid the deposit by credit card, so if you really believe that the seller/broker are not keeping to the deal I would think you have some recourse to the credit card company.

 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thetford toilet is not flushing, interior lights are not working, tunnel light is not working, sterling battery charger is not working. No quote was given as to how much these would cost to fix the surveyor refuses to do this. in addition various boat safety issues which were verbally quoted as £300 but I want to see the safety certificate issued before I believe them. the surveyor has not tested the washing machine of the electric heater or Microwave. I am wanting to see that these work. I did make the offer on agreement that everything was working, but it was a verbal agreement

 

You say the offer was subject to a satisfactory Survey.

 

Here's my take on the situation, and it is just my take, not any comment on the law.

 

The survey doesn't seem to have flagged up any major problems with the boat, there are some minor issues that affect boat safety, and the loo, and battery charger don't work.

 

I'd make a revised offer in writing "as a result of remedial safety works being identified on the boat" and "important domestic systems not functioning" I'd offer to complete the sale for a reduction of £X to reflect these problems (make it reasonable), or at the agreed price with these issues fixed.

 

Personally I'd lean towards favoring the first option if you don't trust the broker. But there's no saying you can't have your surveyor revisit to confirm completion of agreed works. If you go down the 2nd route, list the required repairs in writing, and ask them to confirm that the repairs have been done in a similar format. I'd also maybe put them on notice that if a 3rd visit from the surveyor is required bacause they haven't done the work they said they have, then you will be seeking to recoup your costs re the extra visit from the surveyor.

 

Finally a remark that you may not like. if this is anything approaching a full sized narrow boat 30K suggests it's more than a few years old, you can expect there to be some issues that need your attention fairly early on. take a few moments to examine your actions, and make sure you're not being a tad too fussy.

 

Good luck with the purchase.

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Edited to say, I've pulled out of a sale after an unfavorable survey, and the vendor wouldn't meet me 1/2 way on some rather expensive repairs. The marina (BW Sawley) had the deposit back to me by return of post. and such a shame, as the owner eventually sold the boat for 20% of the boats original asking price under what I was offering, even after the survey. he basically lost the full price of the repairs not the 1/2 I was offering.

 

Handy hint no 312: I always make offers to brokers in writing after I've found out what the owner will accept. All my offers are always conditional on the following.

 

1. A satisfactory Survey report (I would never accept a minimum value of repairs, if my surveyor feels uneasy about the boat I will consider walking)

2. A satisfactory Water trial.

 

When I make an offer It's because I want to buy the boat in the condition I perceve it to be in, if I can't test the micronuke, then I assume it's not working, and offer accordingly. If i make these assumptions then I inform the broker, and state that if the untried parts can be proven to work then my offer will be revised upwards accordingly.

 

Handy hint no 112: try this question if you're ever buying another boat through a broker.. "has this boat been surveyed before me and rejected?"

Edited by fuzzyduck
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I agree with a lot of the above, but buying a boat through a marina or privately i would want to know what was working and what wasnt before money changed hands.... in the case of buying privately then obviously everything is easily checked when looking, but in the case of a marina , unfortunately usually batteries are disconected etc. so things are not so easily checked and buyers tend to take confidence in the broker and rely on the fact they will disclose any problems or faults. If the listing says the boat is equiped with a flushing toilet and microwave then they should of course be checked and working units , because that is part of the description of what is being bought, unless of course the sales literature says that it is equiped with a non working toilet and microwave, so in my opinion it is certainly not unreasonable to expect them to be repaired or replaced , or such cost to be deducted from the sales price.

 

So my advice is, tell them you want the boat as per their description along with a full survey, if not contact your local trading standards office who will soon recover your deposit whatever the terms of refunds states, as you are not obliged to accept their terms as they are not selling you what they are advertising.

 

hope this helps, good luck

Rick

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In answer to the original question, yes.

Put down a non returbable deposit subject ti satisfactory survey. Survey shiwed up significant problens so we walked. Broker refunded deposit after trying to sell us others of his stock.

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  • 2 weeks later...

i did pay one on a boat "subject to survey" at a broker and the suvey was not to my likeing and thay did refund me.

 

i calld them and said i didnt think i wanted to wate as long as it would have taken to sort the stuff out and it wasnt ecanomical.

 

thay said fine no problem and gave me it back i didnt even have to ask them i had asumed thay would ceep it untill thay said thay would put it back on the card i payd it with. i wasnt presurd or enything.

 

i did say to them i was shoked and thay told me that if i wasnt happy with the survey then it wasnt a problem and thats why thay told me to have it done and pointed out that my diposit was to ritane the boat for me so if i didnt want the boat i was to have it back.

 

i think i may have been lucky

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  • 3 weeks later...

Yes... on a sea boat and a marine marina, but same rules apply. Deposit was subject to survey, survey said don't touch it with the proverbial.

They were fine in principle about returning the deposit but in practice held on to part of it until the surveyor had been paid!! Bit odd I thought as he was supposed to be completely independent of them, and there was some dispute over how much we should pay him as he had only had to do half the survey before finding the killer flaw, and said at the time that his fee would be reduced accordingly.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I think DCcruiser has hit the nail on the head really.

This broker isnt based in Staffordshire by any chance?

Wait until the real fun starts when they tell you ''we have nothing to do with the boat services company''although they share brews loos and everything else including the rent and the wife is the broker and the husband own the services!

If that rings a bell then yeah its based in Staffordshire.

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  • 8 years later...

I lost a 1000 deposit to a broker in 2008 near whilton locks because we stupidly paid it and our funds hadn't cleared in time - 1 week! The owner took the boat off the market.. I felt bitter at the time, but we subsequently found a boat at a brokers quite nearby that took a deposit fixed a few important things then took the rest. It was a stroke of luck. The second  boat had dropped by £13k by the time our house sold,  Steve lost about that on his house sale so we were quits, and we got a much better liveaboard for the mooring we had chosen.

Loved it and miss her.

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On 07/05/2012 at 18:17, Chertsey said:

Yes... on a sea boat and a marine marina, but same rules apply. Deposit was subject to survey, survey said don't touch it with the proverbial.

They were fine in principle about returning the deposit but in practice held on to part of it until the surveyor had been paid!! Bit odd I thought as he was supposed to be completely independent of them, 

 

Which is why you should never get a broker to arrange the surveyor for you, because they're not independent, or at least the lines are blurred.

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