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Old 05-25-2017, 09:42 AM   #1
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Question about Survey as seller

Prospective buyer bringing surveyor to see my boat that is for sell. As a seller, do I just leave or stay on the boat?
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Old 05-25-2017, 09:44 AM   #2
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At least in my experience as a buyer and as a seller, the surveyor did not want anyone on board, just him.
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Old 05-25-2017, 09:50 AM   #3
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That is the broker's job. If you don't have one, stay with the vessel but DO NOT offer any comments until written report out. Answer very general questions. Many a deal has gone south due to gabby owner. Get a chair and sit on the dock if need be. Let these guys talk. Good luck
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Old 05-25-2017, 09:51 AM   #4
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I have never had the seller aboard when doing a survey as the buyer. I do want to be aboard as the buyer when the surveyor does the survey. If a surveyor doesn't want me there when I am the buyer, I will find another surveyor. As the seller, I would leave them alone to do the survey.
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Old 05-25-2017, 09:57 AM   #5
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In general I would agree- as the seller, stay out of the way. But there are instances where it is necessary and helpful:

Some brokerages don't want their brokers operating the boat for a seatrial, usually because there is no coverage from the sellers policy for this commercial use. You can often get a waiver to this restriction. But it is usually easier for the seller to operate the boat for the sea trial. Also the seller can be there and avoid any abusive operation, like running at wot for 15 minutes.

The seller can sometimes answer questions that avoids negative findings on the survey. In one case, if the seller were there he could have told us how the A/C could be set for heat pump heating.

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Old 05-25-2017, 10:00 AM   #6
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I just had my vessel resurveyed.

I work from home (the boat) so I greeted the surveyor, and left him alone to do his business. I think about 5 words were exchanged between us the 5 hours he was on the boat.

Moral- let the surveyor do their job without interruption.
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Old 05-25-2017, 10:15 AM   #7
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"As a seller, do I just leave or stay on the boat?"


I have dine both dependent upon the surveyor. I ask them ahead of time what they are expecting and if their requests are reasonable I try and comply.
On the last large boat I sold about a year ago I was there during the entire survey and supplied a lot of information both ahead of time and during the survey.
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Old 05-25-2017, 10:25 AM   #8
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I have never had the seller aboard when doing a survey as the buyer. I do want to be aboard as the buyer when the surveyor does the survey. If a surveyor doesn't want me there when I am the buyer, I will find another surveyor. As the seller, I would leave them alone to do the survey.
Agree completely. As a buyer, I absolutely INSIST on accompanying the surveyor. I will try hard not to ask too many questions, and work hard not to interfere, but I want to see what he does and what he sees. If he is not okay with that, I will find another surveyor who is.

For the seller, it is a kind of a tightrope. From the buyer's perspective, it is nice if the seller is available in case questions come up. On the other hand, you don't want the seller hovering, getting in the way, interfering with frank conversations you might have with the surveyor. So the seller needs to be available, but out of the way. "Pull up a chair on the dock" sounds like good advice.
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Old 05-25-2017, 01:15 PM   #9
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Last year we had our boat surveyed for possible sale. We kinda made a trip out of it . We had to take the boat twenty miles north on the river to a marina with travel lift. We stayed on the boat the night before and greeted the surveyor the next morning. We left the boat and just kinda hung out at the boatyard looking at boats and talking with yard manager while surveyor and potential buyer went over the boat .We wanted to check out the yard and their work incase the sale didn't go through we were planning on coming back for bottom job in a few months .
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Old 05-25-2017, 01:35 PM   #10
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Being available if the boat is large with many systems and buttons (read if the surveyor is thorough and actually turns everything on) he will save a lot of time on some boats if the seller is available.


Being available doesn't mean aboard unless invited to participate


I have had one surveyor who went through my sportfish with me and we enjoyed shooting the bull as he went about his business. It wasn't a complicated boat, plus he knew my background and thought it might help him.


But every situation might be different.
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Old 05-25-2017, 02:45 PM   #11
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Being close by and available but not underfoot is the best for the selling broker and seller. The surveyor is employed by the buyer and they can sort out their relationship. Seller is good to have around to answer questions and operate machinery and the vessel during sea-trial.
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Old 05-25-2017, 03:52 PM   #12
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The last boat I sold and the last two boats I bought, the seller was not present for the survey. I don't plan on being present with my sailboat is being surveyed by potential buyers. The broker will however.
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Old 05-25-2017, 06:04 PM   #13
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Being close by and available but not underfoot is the best for the selling broker and seller. The surveyor is employed by the buyer and they can sort out their relationship. Seller is good to have around to answer questions and operate machinery and the vessel during sea-trial.
This. Important on a complex boat. Not so important on a basic production boat or something like a 25' outboard.

I do engine surveys and I like having the owner around to answer questions about history, maintenance, operating modes, problems, etc. Not as important for the hull/insurance surveyor.

But I don't like it when the owner (or anyone else) hovers over me and chats me up. I have asked for quiet time before.
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Old 05-25-2017, 10:00 PM   #14
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As a buyer, it bothers me if the seller gets to involved in the survey. A couple of years back, we had put money down on a nice looking boat, waiting for the mechanical survey, the seller came to the boat and changed all the fluids and filters before the surveyor got there to do his inspection. As a result the surveyor said that he could not get an accurate oil reading of contamination. This was the start of distrust of the seller, as though he was trying to cover-up and hide things. Which we later found to be the case.
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Old 05-25-2017, 10:36 PM   #15
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Prospective buyer bringing surveyor to see my boat that is for sell. As a seller, do I just leave or stay on the boat?
As the owner, you have a right to be there. I would want to (will be if anyone gets that serious), because when I bought mine, having the owner there to explain certain things saved a lot of wasted time, and unanswered queries. Because, let's face it - there are always certain quirks in the way our boat works that are simply explained if you know it, and inevitable questions about what was done, and when, that might not be logged in any one place, but can be easily answered when known by the owner, but waste a lot of time figuring it out, or being left 'dangling' if you don't.
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Old 05-26-2017, 07:43 AM   #16
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As a buyer, it bothers me if the seller gets to involved in the survey. A couple of years back, we had put money down on a nice looking boat, waiting for the mechanical survey, the seller came to the boat and changed all the fluids and filters before the surveyor got there to do his inspection. As a result the surveyor said that he could not get an accurate oil reading of contamination. This was the start of distrust of the seller, as though he was trying to cover-up and hide things. Which we later found to be the case.
That is very common whether the seller is present or not.

My oil would probably be freshly changed too, after all long trips I usually do and that unless an estate sale would be my story.

The difference is any kind of maintenance log that would show it as normal versus cover up or last irregular. Like my oil analysis log of so many years ...it would answer that too.

There are honest and dishonest sellers, a good surveyor should pick up on that pretty quick.
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Old 05-26-2017, 07:49 AM   #17
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That is very common whether the seller is present or not.

My oil would probably be freshly changed too, after all long trips I usually do and that unless an estate sale would be my story.

The difference is any kind of maintenance log that would show it as normal versus cover up or last irregular. Like my oil analysis log of so many years ...it would answer that too.

There are honest and dishonest sellers, a good surveyor should pick up on that pretty quick.

Another reason to ask the surveyor what if anything he would want ahead of time.
If it was season end or in storage the fluids would be changed on my boats.
During the season it would be an unlikely situation the fluids were just changed - but why leave it to luck?
Once you are aware of a surveyor coming its just easier to ask a few questions to see what (if anything) he/she may want ahead of time and/or for the survey. If they do not tell you I doubt you will be able to know what it might be.
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Old 05-26-2017, 07:56 AM   #18
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Another reason to ask the surveyor what if anything he would want ahead of time.
If it was season end or in storage the fluids would be changed on my boats.
During the season it would be an unlikely situation the fluids were just changed - but why leave it to luck?
Once you are aware of a surveyor coming its just easier to ask a few questions to see what (if anything) he/she may want ahead of time and/or for the survey. If they do not tell you I doubt you will be able to know what it might be.
While many boat models are similar...we have all seen that the older the boat becomes, the more unique it often becomes.

If the surveyor actually turns on every system like they often say they do...hooking up normally disconnected items and noting where the switches are can be a huge help.

Some people prep their boats for survey....others don't and you see it in the survey.

If you have ever needed to go aboard another older boat and run it for someone...you have a pretty good idea of what is hard to figure out and what isn't.
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Old 09-14-2017, 08:38 PM   #19
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Agree completely. As a buyer, I absolutely INSIST on accompanying the surveyor. I will try hard not to ask too many questions, and work hard not to interfere, but I want to see what he does and what he sees. If he is not okay with that, I will find another surveyor who is.

For the seller, it is a kind of a tightrope. From the buyer's perspective, it is nice if the seller is available in case questions come up. On the other hand, you don't want the seller with the surveyor. So the seller needs to be available, but out of the way. "Pull up a chair on the dock" sounds like good advice.
EXACTLY, to all above denverdon.
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Old 09-14-2017, 11:44 PM   #20
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Prospective buyer bringing surveyor to see my boat that is for sell. As a seller, do I just leave or stay on the boat?
A few points to note when asking for a Survey,

1) Ensure the Surveyor has experience in your type of vessel/construction
2) Ensure he/she has P & I insurance
3) Ensure he/she is a current member of a recognized Surveyors association
4) No surveyors should be allowed on board without the Owners permission
5) All surveyors must positively identify themselves and their principals
6) Has the scope of their attendance been agreed with Owners and Club?
7) Surveys must be carried out jointly
8) No unsupervised access to crew or documents
9) If documents are requested, a list should be submitted for consideration by the principal

So back to your specific Question: as being on board or not,as above every Surveyor should have the owner or his representative on board and should have made such arrangements prior, it is not common practice to have the buyer on board at this time, after the Survey report is received by the buyer and with agreement of the seller a second visit to the vessel by both the Surveyor and buyer may be under taken.


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