Pre-purchase boat survey: what it costs, what it covers and when to do it

The survey is the only moment when someone looks at the boat on your behalf. It costs a few hundred euros and saves you from mistakes worth tens of thousands. Here is how it works and how to make the most of it.

What it costs

• RIBs and small motorboats (up to 7 m): €300-600, often without haul-out.
• Boats of 9 to 13 metres: €600-1,500 for the survey, plus €300-800 for haul-out if the boat is afloat.
• Over 14 metres: €1,500-3,000 and up; with large engines add oil analysis (€100-150 per engine) and the sea trial. The buyer pays. Some sellers agree to split the haul-out: ask.

What a serious survey includes

1. Hull out of the water: moisture readings (osmosis), impacts, hidden repairs, condition of keel, keel bolts and keel-hull joint, rudder and bearings, through-hulls and seacocks.
2. Deck and structure: leaks, delamination, chainplates and mast step, portlights and hatches.
3. Engine and drive: cold start, smoke, leaks, cooling, saildrive or shaft line, true hours from the diagnostics where possible.
4. Systems: electrical, gas, water, bilge, batteries.
5. Sea trial: maximum revs, vibration, steering, instruments. Without a sea trial the survey is half done.
6. Safety equipment and ship's papers. The result is a written report with photos, defects graded by severity and an estimate of the work. It also serves for insurance and for the bank, if you are financing.

What it does NOT include

The surveyor does not open the engine, does not strip the drive, does not verify the VAT position or the title. Documents, VAT and liens are a separate check (registration agent or accountant). And he does not compare the price with the market: he says how the boat is, not what it is worth against the others.

When to do it

After you have done three things: 1. read the listing carefully and asked the seller the right questions (VAT, invoices, hours, documents); 2. compared the price with 5-6 boats of the same model for sale; 3. seen the boat once in person and decided you really like her. The survey is done on one boat, the one you want to buy, with an offer already agreed "subject to survey". Doing three surveys on three different boats costs €3,000 and usually means the shortlisting upstream was done badly.

How to choose the surveyor

• Independent: not the one suggested by the seller or the broker.
• Specialised in the type of boat (sail, power, RIBs) and ideally in the builder.
• Accredited (national surveyor registers, professional associations such as SAMS or NAMS in the US, YDSA or IIMS in the UK) and insured.
• Willing to let you attend: watching the survey is the best lesson about your future boat.

The clause that protects you

In the offer write: "Offer of X subject to a satisfactory survey at the buyer's expense, to be carried out within 15 days. In case of significant defects the buyer may withdraw with full refund of the deposit, or renegotiate the price." It is standard, no serious seller refuses it.

Before the survey: what CheckMyBoat does

The report analyses the listing before you spend on the survey: it calculates the real price with VAT, compares it with the other boats for sale, flags the inconsistencies and prepares the list of specific checks for that model and that engine, to hand to the surveyor. So you pay for the survey once, on the right boat, and the surveyor already knows where to look.