This point cannot be stressed enough. When a surveyor comes down to the boat, there are several steps that need to be accomplished before their arrival.

1. All systems including the water, waste, AC/DC electrical, and engine(s) need to be functioning in order to properly check their status and working ability.

2. Any hatches, panels, or locked doors need to be opened and accessible for the surveyor to check any hidden wires, lines, systems, and hardware.

3. The broker, seller or hired captain must take control of the vessel during the sea trial. This is done for two reasons. First, if the surveyor is operating the vessel, he/she can not adequately check the systems while underway. Second, and most important, most surveyors are not insured to operate the vessel they are surveying. Some surveyors are also licensed captains and maintain the proper insurance. But how can they operate the vessel and be checking the engine at the same time? The buyer must ask that question before they let anyone run someone else's boat.

4. If the vessel is going to be hauled out of the water for a bottom inspection, make sure the time is passed onto the surveyor. If a surveyor shows up to survey the boat a 9AM and the haul out is not scheduled until 4PM, you might be charged for the down time. There should be close coordination between the surveyor, broker, and boat yard. This is the buyer's responsibility.

1. We do not disassemble panels, doors, or fixtures to access parts of the boat.
2. We do not commission any systems. That should be the sellers or brokers responsibility.

Once the survey is complete, there is generally a 2-3 day turn around time for the report to be printed and mailed out. If a report is needed in a shorter time frame, an additional charge maybe incurred.