If live-aboard canal boaters don’t move far enough or often enough in one year they could find that they can not get a licence the next year.
Update; In their 13 March ‘Boaters Update’ CRT wrote ‘it is very unlikely that someone would be able to satisfy us that they have been genuinely cruising if their range of movement is less than 15-20 miles over the period of their licence. In most cases we would expect it to be greater than this.’.
Plans to provide greater clarity for those boaters who have stated that they will ‘continuously cruise’, but then don’t move their boat far enough or often enough to meet the Canal & River Trust’s (CRT) published ‘Guidance for Boaters without a Home Mooring’ have been announced.
CRT will look at how far these boats have moved over the course of their previous licence to see if it satisfies the requirements for continuous cruising. From 1 May, regular reminders will be sent to all those boaters whose limited movement is causing a concern. On the expiry of their licence, those that have consistently failed to move in accordance with the CRT Guidance will be refused a new licence unless they take a home mooring.
Initially CRT will focus on those who, having declared they will continuously cruise, move the least, including a number of boats that barely move at all. For the first few months, while boaters are becoming familiar with this policy, CRT proposes to issue short duration licenses to give those boaters concerned a further opportunity to establish an acceptable range of movement.
CRT will write to anyone with a boat registered as not having a home mooring this month to advise them of the process and will begin renewing licenses on this basis from 1 May 2015.
The CRT action has the approval of the National Association of Boat Owners, the Association of Continuous Cruisers, the Residential Boat Owners Association, the Association of Waterways Cruising Clubs and the Inland Waterways Association.
Mike Rodd, chairman of the National Association of Boat Owners, comments: “NABO has many continuous cruisers among its members and recognises the significant contribution they make to the wellbeing of our waterways. For those who are living on their boats as a lifestyle choice, these requirements [to continuously cruise] will not present any problem – NABO’s own survey of continuous cruisers shows just this. Of course some folk who live on their boats may be affected: those who are genuine boaters will welcome the clarity, but a small number will find it difficult to conform. Here we welcome CRT’s new Welfare Officer, Sean Williams, and applaud his work, especially in getting CRT’s existing enforcement officers briefed on the resources available to help those who are in difficulty.”
The Association of Continuous Cruisers comments: “ACC are pleased to see that CRT are improving communications to make boaters aware at an early stage of any possible infringement.”
The Residential Boat Owners’ Association comments: “RBOA is broadly supportive of CRT, as it is putting considerable effort into resolving what many see as a problem with boats which do not have a home mooring and which fail to move sufficiently to satisfy CRT’s guidelines.”
Thanks to Harry Arnold and Waterway Images for some of this report and images.
