Everything You Need To Know About Boat Shipping

1. Relocation

Moving homes and relocating is one of the most important reasons why you may need to ship a boat. House movers pack and ship your home’s contents. Boat shippers do the same with your boat.

2. Time

Time constraints often make boat shipping the best option. Crossing the Atlantic can take up to a month, not to mention the added prep time. With boat shipping, you can fly to your destination and have your boat meet you there later.

3. Purchase

If you have purchased a boat outside of your local area, hiring a boat shipper to move your boat is the best way—and sometimes the only way—to get the boat home.

4. Repairs

The larger the boat, the more complex the repairs. Repair and maintenance for your boat may not be available in your area, leaving you with shipping as your best option

5. Safety

You won’t be taking that 20-foot daysailer across the Pacific Ocean in winter. Even if your boat is ocean-ready, you might not be. Difficult crossings require the right equipment and experience. Boat shipping bypasses these obstacles.

Boat Trailer

Trailering a boat is the most common way to move a boat overland. This is a frequent option for boat owners who keep their boats on their property or at a marine storage facility. Allowable size limits vary from state to state. Generally, the boat cannot have a beam width exceeding eight and a half feet to travel on public roads.

You’ll need a tow vehicle and trailer capable of transporting the boat. Be mindful of the Gross Combined Vehicle Weight (GCVW): boat, trailer and tow vehicle, along with riders and gear.

By Water on Keel

Shipping on the keel or on the bottom means transporting the boat to its destination by navigable waterways. The longer and larger the boat, the more cost-effective this option becomes.

Transporting the boat on keel by yourself is the least expensive choice. But if you lack the time or know-how to get the boat to its destination, you can hire a boat delivery captain and crew to do it for you.

Hiring transporters means purchasing special insurance, as well as flying the captain and crew home after the delivery.

Flatbed or Multi-Boat Trailer

A flatbed trailer is a viable option for shipping a boat when the boat is too long, wide or heavy to be trailered on a boat trailer with a personal vehicle.

Cradles support the hull of the boat, keeping it secure during transport and preventing damage. The boat is lifted onto the flatbed trailer with a crane.

Smaller boats will be shipped on a step-deck, multi-boat hauler, while larger boats will be shipped individually on a flatbed trailer. Great care must be taken when lifting, bracing and strapping the boat to the transport vehicle.

Boat and Yacht Transport Ship

When you need to ship your boat from coast to coast or across oceans, a boat transport ship is the favored option. OTIs (Ocean Transport Intermediaries) or NVOCCs (Non-Vessel Operating Common Carriers) are experienced at taking boats of nearly any size from port to port.

Though the most common size of boats on transport ships is between 35 and 150 feet, some transporters can carry boats up to 260 feet long.

An advantage of a boat transport ship is that wear and tear on the boat are almost non-existent. With safe boat handling practices, boat transporters are able to deliver boats in pristine condition.

International boat shipping costs are considerably higher than overland transport. Expect to pay $3,000 to $15,000, minimum, to ship a boat over water. Shipping large yachts from one continent to another may cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Size

Beam size, length and weight are factored into the overall cost of boat shipping. Along with distance, boat size influences the shipping cost the most.

Distance

The number of miles that the boat travels and the type of miles—overland, on the keel or water-borne transport—determines the cost of shipping a boat.

Destination

Destination isn’t the same thing as distance. Boat shippers adjust the boat shipping quote based on the port destination. Some ports may levy extra changes. If the port isn’t in demand, the shipper may need to charge more.

Season

Prices tend to rise in summer, which is the prime boating season. Remember that embarkation and destination ports may not always have the same seasons, so this will greatly affect shipping times. For example, June, a temperate month in Long Beach, California, coincides with typhoon season in the waters of Southeast Asia.

DOT and FMCA Authorizations

Not all companies that offer boat shipping may be properly authorized and licensed.
Make sure that the transport service has been authorized by the Federal Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Authority. Check on authorizations directly by accessing the Federal SAFER (Safety and Fitness Electronics Records) system.

Insurance

When transporting your highly expensive vessel over water or land, accidents or even minor damage may occur. The boat shipping company must carry adequate insurance, and this, too, can be verified on the SAFER system. Prior to shipping, you’ll also want to examine your insurance riders with your insurance agent to make sure that your craft is sufficiently covered.

Payment Terms

If the boat shipping company asks for full payment upfront, you may need to look elsewhere. The industry standard practice is for the customer to pay 50% upon receipt of the boat by the shipper and the other 50% upon receipt of the boat by the customer.

Tracking

It’s increasingly common for boat shipping companies to allow customers to view the entire progress of their vessel. While this may be less necessary for short hauls, you will definitely want GPS tracking for boat transports that stretch into days or weeks.

Depending on the level of service offered by the boat shipping company, you may need to extensively prepare your boat or the company may do the work for you.

• Remove all personal items from within the boat
• Drain the fuel down to one-quarter of the tank or as specified by the boat shipping company
• Secure engines
• Remove antennae, satellite dishes and radar units
• Close, lock or latch windows or doors
• Disconnect batteries
• Drain water tanks
• Secure or remove all lines
• Make sure that all keys are available
• Double-check on your insurance with your agent

Resources

• A1AutoTransport.com
• Boatingbasicsonline.com
• Yacht-transport.com