Charter company claims we damage boat

[edsml]

Of course you cannot check everything, but, and I apologize if it was already mentioned, you should report anything as soon as you notice it. I rented a sea bob from Bantour yachting in Croatia at the end of May and couldn't get it to work. I was told they could have had someone look at it on any of the islands and would have refunded the cost, but didn't as I waited to the end.

I also agree you could be getting overcharged. I was docked €400 for a bow thruster in Greece (that I did not believe we damaged) where another company told me they only charge €60 to replace the blades. On the other hand, I snapped off a hatch with a jib sheet while tacking this year in Greece, and Dream Yacht only charged me €200, a seemingly very reasonable rate to replace it.

[Timoz]

Originally Posted by Seaadventurers

Thank you for the responses so far! While I agree that technically, I should go through the boat with. Fine tooth comb, I don’t believe this is at all practical. For me, the main reason for the checkout is to learn the nuances of the boat. While all catamarans are essentially the same, the electrical panel, location of safety devices and valves, etc is what I am trying to learn. In most cases, the boat checkout is at 5pm and time is limited. To complete a “survey” or to dive on the hull is simply impractical. If I were to rent a car and the door handle were to break as I attempted to enter the car, would I be charged for a new door handle? I don’t think so!

I will challenge any charge with my credit card company. I have the name and phone number of the representative that agrees that it was prior damage. In fact, they would not have been aware of the damaged latch if I had not pointed it out. When they did the checkout, all they were concerned with was that I filled the fuel tanks and I was not missing any flares (CROATIA is in Worldcup and flares are used n celebrating). They did send in Andover but reported no damage.

By the way, the charter company is Adriatic Sailing and I will report back to this group how they handle this.

I have chartered many times and whilst a thorough inspection is a good idea, it actually proves very difficult in most situations to find every little fault or scratch. I always end up finding small things throughout the course of the charter. Depending on the age of the yacht and my impression of the charter company I sometimes do or do not point out these things upon return.

I have chartered with Adriatic and whilst I did not have the same situation as you had, I was immensely disappointed in their yacht, service and attitude and will not charter with them again. Plus to the best of my knowledge my broker is no longer booking yachts through them after my concerns were communicated.

As for diving the yacht, I have never done this and whilst I can't see myself doing it in the future either, it does concern me that I have no recourse if the company were to blame something on me.

Your best bet is to use a broker and request only highly recommended bases. For good bases, their reputation, especially with a broker who gives them a lot of business, is worth more than a few dodgy claims.

Cheers,

[JasonL]

Maybe, thet €300 door latch, makes plenty of profit for that charter company.
20 r 30 charters per year, at €300 extra per time., maybe it never gets fixed.

They rely on many only using their company, just the one time.

[wildcat35]

At what point does normal ware and tear become your problem should of been your answer in my option. And if it was some thing you over looked is it possible they over looked it. I would not have paid them if I was sure I did not damage it.

[Nils Gruttner]

It is great to see how many people actually pay attention to the condition of the yacht before they take it out for their charter. As an owner of a catamaran in charter with DYC, I appreciate this attention to detail.

See a problem early , that way it can get fixed and won't cause an issue down the line. That would have to be in the best interest of the charter company as well I would think. The local base guys and girls can't see everything and I found that they generally appreciate the extra set of eyes to report defects.

Rather unfortunate that the original writer got done for the item he did... As was said before, stuff breaks when you rent out boats and fixing certain items should be part of your business plan.

I just started documenting conditions of chater yachts in my blogg from an owner's perspective, so if anyone wants to contribute to help this "data base" grow, please please do.

[Nils Gruttner]

In addition to my previous post....

I did a video review of a charter cat recently (which I am currently editing) and I spent hours doing it with the the reps from the company... And I still missed a couple of things which only became apparent at sea. I. Told them on arrival.... No problems.

You just can't cover all bases, so dealing with a good business seems to be the answer .

Cheers and happy chartering.

Nils

[simon A]

I chartered a keelboat in Trogir, Croatia, a few years ago. The rental agent was located in Zagreb and I paid all the fees as required by the contract. When we arrived in Trogir to take possession of the boat, the rental company charged us a few 100 euros additional for some government tax. I forget the details. Because I strongly objected, they said that they had nothing to do with it, I should take it up to the rental agent. Meanwhile they gave me the obnoxious choice: (1) pay the tax and have a nice holiday on our boat (2) go back home in Canada. I naturally paid and decided pursue with the agent after the holiday.


Upon my return home, I got in contact with the agent about 5 times in 2 months. They always had a good excuse to procrastinate (too busy with clients in the summer, employee holidays, etc), but never lived up to their promise to investigate.


This left us all with a very bad experience with sailboat chartering in Croatia. This is regrettable, since the whole coast is so picturesque!

[simon A]

During the same holidays, we were given a boat with a defect in the fuel gauge: it showed 3/4 when the tank was full. The employee who gave us the boat said to take a picture of the gauge before we leave, so we could prove upon return that the tank to the same level as when we left.


When we returned to the marina at the end of the charter, we dealt with the same employee to return the boat. Even though he's the one who had shown us the defective gauge, he did not believe us that the gauge was still defective and 3/4 was showing an actually full tank. He insisted on us showing the picture. We did. He then demanded to see the date of the picture (metadata) to prove that we had taken the 3/4 reading on the actual date of rental, not 5 days later.


This shows total lack of respect by rental companies toward their clients.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by Saskatchewan

Having chartered a lot as well, I say this is a rip off pure and simple. I’d suggest Publishing the company’s name and the individuals names , that will help the rest of us and perhaps keep them honest.

We don’t allow that here, reason is we or you have no idea actually of what happened and the Forum is not going to open itself up for the liability, so please no, don’t post the name of the company and individuals names here.

[soares29]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

We don’t allow that here, reason is we or you have no idea actually of what happened and the Forum is not going to open itself up for the liability, so please no, don’t post the name of the company and individuals names here.

The person can post a google review with his/her perception of the service.

[Airjordi]

I have chartered with Sunsail and Dream Yacht charter at least a dozen time and many minor items broke during these charters. We always handed over a list with the deficiencies we noticed and except for one occasion they gave us back the whole deposit.

On one charter, we scratched off some Gelcoat and lost a light and Sunsail asked us if we'd be ok to pay EUR 120 (Greece) for the work to fix the Gelcoat, as this is not "normal wear". We certainly agreed because it was more than fair.

One charter was on a Lagoon 450 and this sliding door also never worked properly (not latchable in neither position). We didn't care and they (DYC) didn't care when we returned it.

In my opinion the proper response to your challenge would be to tell everybody about it so people can avoid this company.

Croatia is getting spoiled... They are getting more and more inventive when it's about money. 20 years ago it was tptally different there.

[Bullshooter]

I'm not sure whether it is fair to say chartering in Croatia is risky, per se. We had our charter with Danielis our of Trogir Croatia this summer, and I thought they were fair with us. They did tell us ahead of time that a diver checks all the hulls at the end of the charters, and he did.

[KC375]

Originally Posted by Timoz

...

As for diving the yacht, I have never done this and whilst I can't see myself doing it in the future either, it does concern me that I have no recourse if the company were to blame something on me....

Cheers,

Most places people charter a quick swim is pleasant enough. Grab a mask and do a quick check underneath. It takes five to ten minutes on a mono and maybe an extra five on a cat. You don’t need to be neurotic a quick check of prop, rudder, leading edge keel (and bottom on a cat) as well as bow.
It may save you a lot of money or it may save your life. Pretty much everyone knows the story of Polbream the Jeanneau 37 that was chartered 3! Times AFTER losing her keel!


https://www.yachtingmonthly.com/spec...t-a-keel-30486

[Dave_S]

So before taking possession of a hire boat you should conduct a full survey?

You will still miss things that require expert opinions.

I think the answer is to go with reputable companies or don't go. Do your research at home on the computer checking the company rather than half the first day surveying the boat.

[KC375]

Whether a boat, a car, or a plane I try to always rent from reputable places BUT I also always do my own pre-flight inspection. Like a pre-flight inspection, a charter boat inspection is NOT an exhaustive survey but it can be an important safety task and avoid misunderstandings, arguments and potentially false charges at the end of the charter. I’ve chartered from several of the “usual suspects” at larger, reputable bases...and consistently identified deficiencies before leaving the dock. Some deficiencies that warranted repairs before departure or partial credit...others that were simply added to the list for future maintenance...trust but verify.