BOAT-COMPARATOR Guide

Towing and assistance at sea: who to call, who pays what on a rental

Broken down offshore in a rented boat: operator, coastguard, sea-rescue volunteers, commercial assistance — who to call in each situation, what's free and what gets billed.

The engine that won't restart at anchor, a line around the propeller, running out of fuel two miles from the harbour: none of this is exceptional on a rental, and it almost always ends with a simple tow. Which leaves the question nobody asks until it happens: who do you call, and who pays?

First: is it a breakdown or an emergency?

Everything follows from this. A boat that floats, a healthy crew, manageable weather: that's a breakdown, not distress — start with our guide engine breakdown: what to do, because a good share of rental "breakdowns" get fixed on board (kill-switch clip, fuel reserve, line in the prop). Water coming in, an injured crew member, a lee shore getting closer: that's an emergency, handled immediately on VHF channel 16 — the rescue coordination centre takes over, and cost is not part of the conversation: rescuing people is free, always.

A renter's first phone call: the operator

For a simple breakdown, your natural contact is the operator or the base: their number is in the contract and they have every interest in getting their boat back quickly and in one piece. Many bases recover their own boats or send a local professional. It's also a practical obligation: rental contracts almost always require you to notify them before any third party touches the boat — re-read the contract clauses on this.

Volunteer sea rescue: saving people is free, towing a boat may not be

If the coastguard tasks a volunteer rescue organisation (in France, the SNSM), two things must be kept apart. Rescuing people is never billed. Towing the boat itself, however — a service rendered to the vessel's owner, not a rescue of lives — can give rise to a financial contribution, generally set according to the boat's size and the distance covered. Nothing scandalous about it: the stations run on donations and the call-out has a real cost. Maritime law has in fact long distinguished salvage and assistance to property, which earns remuneration, from the rescue of persons, which earns none.

So who pays, in the end?

Three scenarios. If the failure lies with the boat itself (mechanical failure through no fault of yours), towing and recovery costs are in principle the operator's or their insurer's problem — the strong argument for having called them first and followed their instructions. If the incident stems from your own use (an avoidable empty tank, a line in the propeller, a grounding — see our guide what to do if you touch bottom), costs can be withheld from the deposit, up to the excess. And if you bought an excess waiver, check what it includes: some policies cover towing and assistance, others don't.

During the tow: the right reflexes

Lifejackets on everyone, nobody on the foredeck while the towline comes under tension (a parting line whips), steer to stay in the tug's wake, and keep the VHF on the agreed channel. Let the professional set the speed: boats are towed slowly.

The best assistance is still prevention

A study by McKnight and colleagues published in 2007 in Accident Analysis & Prevention (see the study on Google Scholar), based on more than 3,300 US Coast Guard recreational-boating accident reports, concludes that human error is the main contributor to boating accidents — well ahead of equipment failure. Translated for a renter: checking the fuel at departure, watching the lines before engaging gear and taking the technical briefing seriously prevents the vast majority of tows.

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