Rental Boats.....Rant

GeeBee

GeeBee

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:mad: It seems most boating accidents on Lake Lanier are.....sigh.....rental boats. Just the other day some idiots stopped their rental boat, did not anchor and went swimming. Of course the boat went with the wind, and they did not. One drowned. Two weeks later, I see a 30' rental do the same thing near my cove. Supposedly they have to pass a test before rental, but I'm not seeing any effect on safety.

This latest one from Texas is an example. What kind of idiot gets close to a dam with a running spillway in a low power vessel? A very special idiot.

www.foxnews.com

Texas boat nearly goes over edge of dam, occupants rescued

Some boaters in Texas were rescued Thursday after their vessel came dangerously close to tipping over a dam in the Austin area, according to local paramedics.
www.foxnews.com www.foxnews.com
 
Yep, even when they're not endangering themselves, they're being a nuisance to others - wandering back n forth thru the channel without ever looking behind them; running too close to other boats; "plowing" instead of idling or running on plane, etc.
 
The park near us rents kayaks, on the Hudson River, which is tidal waters. They often paddle far and easy, then the tide swings and they can't get back. Last year there must have been at least three distress calls....frustrating.
 
WALSHIE said:
The park near us rents kayaks, on the Hudson River, which is tidal waters. They often paddle far and easy, then the tide swings and they can't get back. Last year there must have been at least three distress calls....frustrating.
Click to expand...
I'm betting those who made the distress calls were tourists on vacation, first timers, etc. Surely, the park explained the tides to them?
 
Yeah, the two things I see on the rental pontoons almost every weekend.

1. Cruising along with young children dangling their feet off the front of the boat. I can't even look at these, I really don't want to witness the bad outcome.
2. Stopping the boat in the middle of a busy channel - kids in the water swimming with boats and huge wakes going in every direction around them. LKN has 100's of coves that even on a busy weekend are nice and quiet for swimming -- but no let's just stop in the middle of a busy channel and swim.

I am not even going to talk about people not understanding the "rules of the road" in terms of passing and crossing - it's just a free for all on the weekends - just have to stay out of everyone's way. I have my spots on the lake and can always get away from the crowds - the party cove is not my scene anymore.

The one thing I dislike about the marina I am at - they have a fleet of pontoon boats and it's just a sh*t show every weekend - especially when they start coming back in trying to dock. I guess at $589/day and they stay fully booked - they just make too much $$ not to have the rental fleet. At the end of each summer they repair and sell them for even more $$. They also have a boat club they run out of the marina, but I have to say those folks are pretty good boaters -- I think more is at stake if a member damages a boat club boat. But when the rental crew shows up with coolers full of booze - look out!

I am also noticing a lot of new boat owners that have not quite perfected their boating skills - case in point, about a month ago the new owner of a Cobalt R6 took it out for the first time and did 50k damage to it by hitting a clearly marked shoal in broad daylight - didn't understand what those orange white markers meant. The dealership provides orientation with someone to take you out for at least a 1/2 day, but I heard this person declined the orientation. Boat is so badly damaged it is being sent back to Cobalt for repairs.
 
how does insurance work when owner did not follow markers?
 
No idea - I know in this case there was no report, no towboat, DNR or anything, a good samaritan towed him back to the marina. I doubt he is telling his insurance co. exactly how it happened. I would figure he had insurance since the marina requires it if you store your boat there. But I think you might be surprised how many people just pay cash for a boat and never even think about insurance - at least for boats kept at private homes. With the cost of lakefront homes on LKN $150k for a ski boat is secondary.
 
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A few years back I was at a family wedding at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia. One of my cousins was renting a boat and asked me to go with him to show him the ropes. I remember the rental guy telling him to sign this form that said that he had watched the safety video and was cleared to operate on the lake. Did he actually show him the video or give him any safety briefing? Nope...

Frankly, if I had not been with him to show him the ropes it would likely have been a disaster, he had no clue how to operate the boat and they had no interest in showing him...it was scary to think these companies will hand the keys to a boat to anybody with a credit card.
 
It happens on every lake with rentals.... Look at the condition of the boats.

I had my boat in a slip across from the rental slips once for 2 days while doing a repair and it was comical.
 
The truth is, Brian, for a bare boat charter there is no requirement for the rentor to provide any training - or even equipment. The operator of the vessel (rentee) is responsible for ensuring all required safety equipment - as required by law - is aboard!
 
Do the bare boat charter rules/regs apply to small boat rentals? Pontoon, ski CC, etc.?
 
Bruce Herrington said:
Do the bare boat charter rules/regs apply to small boat rentals? Pontoon, ski CC, etc.?
Click to expand...

I can't say for the Coast Guard or other states, but in NC, the Wildlife Resources Commission that patrols lakes is going to hold the operator of the boat responsible. They don't care who owns it or if it is a rental.
 
Federal law says the operator is responsible, and as most states have basically adapted federal law, there's a good chance each state also holds the rentor/operator liable - YMMV. Yes, it would apply to a pontoon or ski boat, but as those are usually on sole state waters, so you'd wanna know the states' laws.

In NY, a new law requires boat operators to have a boating safety class, on an increasing age basis, so all operators are required to have a class by 2025. Of course, there's a carve-out for boat rentors.

www.newyorkupstate.com

13 things you need to know about NY’s new boater safety law

State Parks does not have records of boater safety courses taken prior to the early 1990s,
www.newyorkupstate.com www.newyorkupstate.com
 
We sold our 2 boats within the last 2 years and began renting pontoons to take family out during their visits. The rental companies we've dealt with ask us to watch a video and sign papers. They give a quick speech about the boat and the limits you can go, but very little else, if anything.
 
Good Grief said:
Federal law says the operator is responsible, and as most states have basically adapted federal law, there's a good chance each state also holds the rentor/operator liable - YMMV. Yes, it would apply to a pontoon or ski boat, but as those are usually on sole state waters, so you'd wanna know the states' laws.

In NY, a new law requires boat operators to have a boating safety class, on an increasing age basis, so all operators are required to have a class by 2025. Of course, there's a carve-out for boat rentors.

www.newyorkupstate.com

13 things you need to know about NY’s new boater safety law

State Parks does not have records of boater safety courses taken prior to the early 1990s,
www.newyorkupstate.com www.newyorkupstate.com
Click to expand...

The exclusion for rentals is the dumbest thing I have heard! I don't know the statistics, but my guess would be of accidents that can be attributed to operator error rental boats make up a higher percentage of these accidents.
 
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